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Confidential Employee Information for Open Records Requests

FPP L.004

Employee Personal Information Release Election

Government Code, Section 552.024, provides that each state employee may choose whether to allow public access to the person’s:

  • Home address
  • Home telephone number
  • Social Security number
  • Information that reveals whether the person has family members
  • Emergency contact information

Regardless of Section 552.024 election, Government Code, Sections 552.117 and .1175, provides for the confidentiality of the above employee information for:

  • Peace officers
  • Security officers
  • Current or former employees of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice
  • Certain current or former employees of the Office of the Attorney General performing law enforcement activities
  • Current or former employees of the Texas Juvenile Justice Department
  • Current or former members of the Texas military forces or U.S. military
  • Statewide elected officials and members of the legislature
  • District, county and municipal attorneys
  • Firefighters and emergency medical services personnel

In addition, Government Code, Section 552.1175, provides that judges and district, county and municipal attorneys may choose to have the above information withheld from public disclosure.

Note: A number of other groups can opt in writing to protect their information, but these groups also fall generally within Government Code, Section 552.024 or .117. If your agency employs a member of another protected group under Section 552.117 or 552.1175, ensure that the employee has elected to withhold personal information, if necessary, then mark the payroll system accordingly. Dates of birth are already considered confidential, but Section 552.1175 includes that in the list of what the employees can opt to protect.

The payroll system for your agency records the employee election for each of the types of information that the employee may choose to protect. For new employees, each field needs to be populated with the valid value meaning Yes – release the information or No – protect the information.

For more information, see the documentation for your agency payroll system:

  • Centralized Accounting and Payroll/Personnel System (CAPPS) HR/Payroll: For employees in a protected class, web services will return the appropriate value upon hire so that the employee information is marked Confidential. All other employees may make changes to their release indicators through Employee Self-Service.
  • Human Resource Information System (HRIS): “How to Enter Records for a New Hire or Transferred Employee” in the HRIS Online Inquiry and Entry Guide
  • Standardized Payroll/Personnel Reporting System (SPRS): “210 Record – Employee Descriptive Information” in SPRS Personnel Edits Personnel Batch/Transaction Status Layout
  • Uniform Statewide Payroll/Personnel System (USPS): “HMPNH – New Hire/Processing a New Employee” in the USPS Process Guide