Current through Register Vol. 47, No. 6, September 18, 2024
(1)
General. Agency records are open for public inspection and
copying unless otherwise provided by rule or law.
(2)
Confidential records.
The following records may be withheld from public inspection.
Records are listed by category, according to the legal basis
for withholding them from public inspection.
a. Sealed bids received prior to the time set
for public opening of bids. (Iowa Code section
72.3
)
b. Tax records made available to
the agency. (Iowa Code section
422.20
)
c. Records which are exempt from
disclosure.
d. Minutes of closed
meetings of a government body.
e.
Identifying details in final orders, decisions, and opinions to the extent
required to prevent a clearly unwarranted invasion of personal privacy or trade
secrets.
f. Those portions of
agency staff manuals, instructions, or other statements issued which set forth
criteria or guidelines to be used by agency staff in auditing, in making
inspections, in settling commercial disputes or negotiating commercial
arrangements, or in the selection or handling of cases, such as operational
tactics or allowable tolerances or criteria for the defense, prosecution or
settlement of cases, when disclosure of these statements would:
(1) Enable law violators to avoid
detection;
(2) Facilitate disregard
of requirements imposed by law; or
(3) Give a clearly improper advantage to
persons who are in an adverse position to the agency.
g. Records which constitute attorney work
product, attorney-client communications, or which are otherwise privileged.
(Iowa Code section
622.10
)
h. Hospital records, medical
records, and professional counselor records of the condition, diagnosis, care,
or treatment of clients or former clients of the commission.
i. Circulation records of the Iowa Veterans
Home library.
j. Any other records
made confidential by law.
(3)
Authority to release confidential
records. The agency may have discretion to disclose some confidential
records which are exempt from disclosure under Iowa Code section
22.7 or other law.
Any person may request permission to inspect records withheld from inspection
under a statute which authorizes limited or discretionary disclosure as
provided in rule 6.4(17A,22). If the agency initially determines that it will
release such records, the agency may, where appropriate, notify interested
parties and withhold the record from inspection as provided in subrule 6.4(3).
This rule is intended to implement Iowa Code chapters 17A, 21
and 22.
