Current through Register Vol. 63, No. 12, December 1, 2024
(1) If a
court order or a specific statute requires the Department to disclose
information that this rule protects, the Department must disclose the
information.
(2) The Department may
not disclose client information:
(a) For
purposes not directly connected with the administration of child welfare laws;
or
(b) When disclosure is not
required nor authorized by:
(A) ORS
419B.035 (governing
confidentiality of child abuse records), set out in section (11) of this
rule;
(B) ORS
419A.255 (governing
confidentiality of juvenile court records) set out in section (12) of this
rule; or
(3)
The Department may not disclose investigatory information compiled for criminal
law purposes, including the record of an arrest or a report of a crime, unless:
(a) The Department determines after
consultation with law enforcement or a prosecutor that the information can be
disclosed without interfering with an ongoing law enforcement investigation or
prosecution of a case; or
(b) The
Department determines that disclosure is required by ORS
419B.035(1)(i)
because a child, as the result of abuse, died or suffered serious physical
injury taking into account the factors listed in ORS
419B.035(2)(a).
(4) Department employees may not
disclose the information described in section (3) of this rule unless
authorized to do so by the Child Welfare Program Manager or designee or the
department's public records unit in accordance with Public
Records Law.
(5) A person
authorized to review client records may not review the complete case file if
the complete file contains confidential information about other persons,
including, but not limited to other clients, ex-spouses, battering partners,
housemates, and half-siblings unless the other person provides written consent
that meets the requirements of OAR 413-010-0045(2)(a).
(6) The Department may not disclose the
records of a patient at a drug and alcohol abuse treatment facility to any
person without the consent of the patient.
(7) The Department may not disclose client
information contained in a record sealed by a court order of expunction or any
part of the expunged record.
(8)
Department Adoption Records.
(a) The
Department must seal Department adoption records in its possession consistent
with ORS 109.289.
(b) The Department may not access, use, or
disclose Department adoption records in its possession except as provided in
ORS 109.289.
(c) Subject to subsection (d) of this
section, the Department may, without a court order, access, use, or disclose
Department adoption records in its possession for the purpose of providing
adoption services or administering child welfare services that the Department
is authorized to provide under federal or state law.
(d) The Child Permanency or Post-Adoption
Program Manager, or their designee, must authorize the unsealing of and access
to, use of, or disclosure of Department adoption records by other Department
employees.
(e) The Department may,
upon request and if available, disclose the county in which an adoption was
finalized and the case number of the adoption proceeding as provided in ORS
109.331.
(9) Reporter of Abuse. The identity of the
person making a report of suspected child abuse, and any identifying
information about the reporting person, must be removed from the records or
shielded from view before records are viewed or copied. The name, address or
other identifying information may only be disclosed to a law enforcement
officer or district attorney in order to complete an investigation report of
child abuse.
(10) Reports and
Records Compiled Pursuant to the Child Abuse Reporting Law.
(a) Each report of suspected child abuse must
be immediately reported to a law enforcement agency.
(b) The Department must assist in the
protection of a child who is believed to have been abused by providing
information as needed to:
(B) The district
attorney;
(C) Any law enforcement
agency or a child abuse registry in another state investigating a child abuse
report;
(D) Members of a child
protection team or consultants involved in assessing whether or not abuse
occurred and determining appropriate treatment for the child and
family;
(E) A physician who is
examining a child or providing care or treatment, and needs information about
the child's history of abuse; and
(F) A non-abusing parent, resource parent, or
other non-abusing person responsible for the care of the child.
(c) A report,
record, or findings of an assessment of child abuse may not be
disclosed until the assessment is completed, except for the reasons stated in
paragraphs (e)(A) and (B) of this section. If a related criminal investigation
is in process the
Department, in consultation with the deputy
district attorney assigned to the investigation, will determine whether the
protective services assessment may be disclosed.
(d) Records or findings of completed child
abuse assessments must be released upon request to the following:
(A) Attorneys of record for the child or
child's parent or guardian in a juvenile court proceeding for use in that
proceeding; and
(B) A citizen
review board established by the Department or by a juvenile court to review the
status of children under the jurisdiction of the court for the purpose of
completing a case review. Before providing information to a citizen review
board, the Department must assure that the board has informed participants of
their statutory responsibility to keep the information confidential, and will
maintain records in an official, confidential file.
(e) Records or information from records of
abuse assessments may be disclosed to other interested parties if the
Department determines that disclosure to a person or organization is necessary
to:
(A) Administer child welfare services and
is in the best interests of the affected child. When disclosure is made for the
administration of child welfare services, the Department will release only the
information necessary to serve its purpose; and
(B) Prevent abuse, assess reports of abuse,
or protect children from further abuse.
(11) Juvenile Court Records in Department
Files.
(a) The Department may not disclose
records and information in its possession that are also contained in the
juvenile court's record of the case or supplemental confidential file, defined
in subsections (b) and (c) of this section, except as provided in ORS
419A.255 and other federal and
state confidentiality laws pertaining to client records.
(b) Record of the Case.
(A) The juvenile court's "record of the
case", as defined in ORS
419A.252, includes but is not
limited to the summons, the petition, papers in the nature of pleadings,
answers, motions, affidavits, and other papers filed with the court, orders and
judgments, including supporting documentation, exhibits and materials offered
as exhibits whether or not received in evidence, and other records listed in
ORS 419A.252.
(B) The record of the case is unavailable for
public inspection, but is open to inspection and copying as provided in ORS
419A.255.
(c) Supplemental Confidential File.
(A) The juvenile court's "supplemental
confidential file", as defined in ORS
419A.252, includes reports and
other material relating to the child's history and prognosis, including but not
limited to reports filed under ORS
419B.440, that are not or do not
become part of the record of the case and are not offered or received as
evidence in the case.
(B) The
supplemental confidential file is unavailable for public inspection, but is
open to inspection and copying as provided in ORS
419A.255.
(C) The Department is entitled to copies of
material maintained in the supplemental confidential file and if such material
is obtained, the Department must ensure the confidentiality of that material as
provided in ORS 419A.255.
(d) Reports and other materials relating to
the child's history and prognosis in the record of the case or in the
supplemental confidential file are privileged and except at the request of the
child, are unavailable for public inspection but are open to inspection and
copying as provided in ORS
419A.255.
(e) When the Department inspects or obtains
copies of reports, materials, or documents pursuant to ORS
419A.255(4),
the Department may not use or disclose the reports, materials, or documents
except as provided in ORS
419A.255.
(12) Notwithstanding the above subsections,
the Department may not disclose a record of sexual orientation, gender
identity or gender expression unless:
(a) The department determines, in written
findings, that failure to disclose the record is reasonably likely to
jeopardize the child's safety or well-being;
(b) The department determines, in written
findings, that disclosure of the record is necessary to provide services to the
child or the child's family; or
(c)
The child consents to the disclosure.
(13) Records Received from the Oregon Youth
Authority or the Juvenile Department. The Department must preserve the
confidentiality of reports and other materials it receives from the Oregon
Youth Authority or the juvenile department relating to the child, ward, youth
or youth offender's history and prognosis, as provided in ORS
419A.257.
Statutory/Other Authority: ORS
409.050 & ORS
418.005. 418.340
Statutes/Other Implemented: ORS
409.225, ORS
418.005, ORS
419A.102, ORS
419A.252, ORS
419A.255, ORS
419A.263, ORS
419B.035, ORS
432.420, ORS
109.289, ORS
109.329, ORS
109.331, ORS
192.501, ORS
409.010 & ORS
409.194