Unclear whether student newspaper's open-records request for campus and city cameras will now be denied
July 10, 2003
TEXAS —
Under a state Homeland Security law enacted in June, public officials cannot
disclose the locations of certain security cameras on private and public
property.If the provision is applied retroactively, it could strike down an
open-records request filed last fall by the University of Texas at Austin
student newspaper, which was asking for information about cameras on campus and
in the city. Gov. Rick Perry signed House Bill 9 on June 22, effectively
sealing information about state-funded security systems in order to protect
public or private property from an act of terrorism or related criminal
activity. Records that relate to the specifications, operating procedures and
location of security cameras are now confidentialThe locations of
security cameras that are "in a private office at a state agency," including a
university, are still available to the public unless the cameras are in "an
individual personal residence" or are being used for surveillance in an active
criminal investigation. The location of security cameras in university
dormitories most likely would not be kept confidential because dorms do not
constitute individual residences, said Andrea Varnell, a representative from the
office of Sen. Eliot Shapleigh, D-El Paso, the author of the security system
provision in House Bill 9. Under the provision, information about cameras at the
governor’s mansion would be exempt from public disclosure, but locations
of cameras in offices of state legislators would be public record, she
said.The state must continue to release information about the amount of
funding provided to all security systems it operates.Jason Hunter,
former editor of The Daily Texan, said the legislation is intended to
prevent the release of information requested by the newspaper."I don't
think there is any question that the security legislation was directly aimed
towards [the Texan's] request," Hunter said. "I mean they even lifted the
language directly from it. They didn't get too creative."In October of
2002, The Daily Texan filed an open-records request for information about
the location, cost, recording hours and technical specifications of security
cameras at the University of Texas and in the city of Austin.UT
officials denied the request, claiming that it would hamper the university's
ability to protect the campus from crime. The university said it was protected
from disclosure under national security exemptions.The request was
reviewed by Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott, who ruled in favor of the
newspaper. He said that campus security cameras were not part of the national
security plan and records pertaining to them must be released. UT filed a
lawsuit against Abbott to overturn his decision. Travis County District
Judge Paul Davis dismissed the suit in February, and the university decided in
March to appeal the case. The Third Court of Appeals in Austin has agreed to
hear the case, but no date has been set for oral arguments. The
university and Abbott are still reviewing House Bill 9 to determine how it will
affect The Daily Texan's request for security camera records and the
subsequent legal action taken by the university. "We are going to take a
look at [the law in the context of the lawsuit] and see where there may be some
changes that need to be made," said Abbott's press secretary Mike
Viesca.Patricia Ohlendorf, legal counsel for UT, said the university
will likely drop the lawsuit against Abbott if the law applies to The Daily
Texan’s request. "The bill does indicate that locations of
security cameras and devices are confidential," Ohlendorf said. "Assuming that
this law is retroactive it would take care of a number of issues we raised in
our lawsuit."Varnell said the bill is only retroactive if explicitly
labeled so within the text. Within the section relating to security cameras,
there is no mention of the bill being retroactive. But both Ohlendorf and Viesca
said the state government is currently determining whether the bill can be
applied to The Daily Texan's request.
For More Information: Read previous coverage
- Texas government sheds light on school records The Report, Spring 2003
- Texas district judge rules UT-Austin must hand over security camera files News Flash, 3/4/2003
- Univ. of Texas sues Attorney General to dispute disclosure of security cameras News Flash, 1/27/2003
© 2003 Student Press Law Center
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