December 23, 1999; School District 11 (Anoka Hennepin)
12/23/1999 10:14:43 AM
This is an opinion of the Commissioner of Administration issued pursuant to section 13.072 of Minnesota Statutes, Chapter 13 - the Minnesota Government Data Practices Act. It is based on the facts and information available to the Commissioner as described below.
Facts and Procedural History:For purposes of simplification, the information presented by the person who requested this opinion and the response from the government entity with which the person disagrees are presented in summary form. Copies of the complete submissions are on file at the offices of IPA and, except for any data classified as not public, are available for public access.On November 8, 1999, IPA received a letter dated November 6, 1999, from Joe Mac. In his letter, Mr. Mac asked the Commissioner to issue an opinion regarding his access to certain data that School District 11, Anoka-Hennepin, maintains. IPA, on behalf of the Commissioner, wrote to Dr. Roger Giroux, Superintendent of the District, in response to Mr. Mac's request. The purposes of this letter, dated November 10, 1999, were to inform him of Mr. Mac's request and to ask him to provide information or support for the District's position. On November 19, 1999, IPA received a response, dated November 18, 1999, from Paul Cady, District Legal Counsel. A summary of the facts is as follows. On October 29, 1999, Mr. Mac wrote to Mr. Giroux and requested copies of the written appointment orders' for appointing Ms. Judy Sutter, Ms. DeAnn LaValle and Mrs. Mary Olson designees for certain data. In a letter dated November 1, 1999, Mr. Cady responded by providing a copy of the School Board policy designating the Superintendent of Schools as responsible authority. Mr. Mac then requested this opinion.
Issue:
In his request for an opinion, Mr. Mac asked the Commissioner to address the following issue:
Discussion:
Pursuant to Minnesota Statutes, section 13.02, subdivision 16, the responsible authority in a school district is the individual designated by the governing body of that district who is responsible for the collection, use, and dissemination of any set of data on individuals, government data, or summary data, unless otherwise provided by state law. Pursuant to Minnesota Rules, part 1205.1100, subpart 1, the responsible authority has authority to appoint designees, who shall be members of the staff of the entity. Pursuant to subpart 2, The appointment order shall be in writing and copies of the order constitute public data on individuals...
In the case of this opinion, the District's responsible authority, Dr. Giroux, apparently appointed at least three designees. Mr. Mac requested a copy of the written appointment orders. Mr. Cady responded, on behalf of the District, by providing Mr. Mac with a copy of the School Board policy designating the superintendent as the responsible authority. Mr. Cady wrote, As setforth in the policy, the responsible authority may delegate activities to other administrators, which is consistent with the appointment order provisions of Minnesota Rules, Part 1205.1100, subpart 2. The relevant section of the policy states, [In carrying out the duties and responsibilities, the superintendent:] May delegate certain activities relating to student records to administrators and/or counselors. In his response to the Commissioner, Mr. Cady reiterated the District's position. He wrote, The District acknowledges that while the August 25, 1975, policy is ripe for revision, it nevertheless complies with [Chapter 13's] requirements for written designation of the responsible authority, as well as, setting forth an appointment order. The Commissioner respectfully disagrees with Mr. Cady. The School Board's policy serves only to affirm that which is set forth in the Minnesota Rules, Part 1205.1100, subpart 1, i.e., that the superintendent may delegate responsible authority activities. The Board's policy does not constitute the appointment order prescribed in subpart 2. The Rules require government entities to issue written appointment orders so that individuals know to whom they should direct data requests. In this case, the District did not provide Mr. Mac with the information he requested. Therefore, it has not complied with his request. In order to be in compliance, the District should create and officially act on appointment orders and do so promptly. Opinion:Based on the facts and information provided, my opinion on the issue raised by Mr. Mac is as follows:
Signed:
David F. Fisher
Dated: December 23, 1999 |
Responsible authority
Designee appointed by Responsible Authority
Appointment in writing
