South Carolina Code of Regulations
Chapter 114 - DEPARTMENT OF SOCIAL SERVICES
Article 4 - CONFIDENTIAL INFORMATION
Section 114-410 - Release of Information and Records
Universal Citation: SC Code Regs 114-410
Current through Register Vol. 47, No. 12, December 22, 2023
A. Definitions.
(1) Agency--the South Carolina
Department of Social Services.
(2)
Client--an applicant for or recipient of aid or services granted under programs
administered by the agency.
(3)
Person--an individual, partnership, corporation, association, governmental
subdivision or public or private organization.
(4) Public Records--records of meetings and
all other records which by law are required to be kept or maintained by the
agency, and includes all documents containing information relating to the
conduct of the public's business prepared, owned, used or retained by the
agency, regardless of physical form or characteristics. Records such as medical
records and adoption records are, by law, closed to the public. This definition
excludes those records concerning which it is shown that the public interest is
best served by not disclosing them to the public.
(5) Releasing authority--the agency official
charged with maintenance and disposition of records created or received in
accordance with the administrative or specific program material for which
responsible.
(6) Researcher--a
person conducting a research project or study in the field of social services
which has not been requested by the agency.
B. General Release Provisions.
(1) Except in the discharge of his proper
duties, no person employed by the agency will furnish copies of official
records or give any information which may be used as a basis of a claim against
the State or the agency.
(2) In
honoring requests, the releasing authority will disclose only that information
which is germane to the request.
(3) Only names and amounts of assistance
received by clients have been determined to be public information. All other
client information is confidential.
C. Research in Agency Records.
(1) Agency records may be made available to
qualified individuals for the purpose of welfare research and study.
(2) Space and facilities will be furnished by
the custodian of the records to authorized researchers.
(3) Agency records will not be removed from
the premises of the custodian for the purpose of research.
(4) Records transferred to the State Records
Center will not be returned to the agency for use by authorized
researchers.
D. Applications for Research.
(1) All requests
for access to agency records for research and study must be approved in advance
by the State Commissioner of Social Services. Applications will be addressed to
the Commissioner, S.C. Department of Social Services, P.O. Box 1520, Columbia,
S.C. 29202.
(2) Applications will
contain the following information:
(a) Name
and address of the researcher, and any assistants;
(b) Professional qualifications of the
researcher, and any assistants;
(c)
Description of the project or field of study in which the researcher is
engaged;
(d) A statement of the
reason for requesting the use of agency records;
(e) A reference to the particular records to
which access is requested and their location;
(f) Inclusive dates during which access is
desired.
(3) Prior to
being granted access to agency records, each individual named in the
application will be required to sign an agreement stating that:
(a) All information obtained from the records
will be treated in accordance with ethical principles to prevent a clearly
unwarranted invasion of personal privacy.
(b) The identity of individuals referred to
in the records will not be divulged without permission of the individuals
concerned.
(c) The researcher
understands that permission to examine the records does not imply approval of
the project or field of study by the Commissioner or the agency.
(d) All identifying entries pertaining to an
individual will be deleted from abstracts or reproduced copies of documents
from the records.
(e) The
researcher agrees that prior to publication or dissemination he will submit his
manuscript for clearance to the Commissioner, S.C. Department of Social
Services, P.O. Box 1520, Columbia, SC 29202.
(f) Any published material or lectures on the
particular project or study will contain a statement as follows:
"The use of Department of Social Services records in the preparation of this material is acknowledged, but it is not to be construed as implying official approval of the Department of Social Services of the conclusions presented."
E. Client Case Records.
(1) Information from case records of clients
or former clients of the agency will be released only to the extent considered
necessary to the accomplishment of the legitimate purposes for which the
information is requested.
(2)
Except when otherwise required by law, information from client case records may
be released to the following persons.
(a)
District Offices, Department of Social Services.
(b) County Departments of Social
Services.
(c) The client or former
client upon request.
(d) Direct to
the next-of-kin or legal representative (upon submission by the latter of a
certified copy of the court order of appointment) when the client or former
client has been adjudged insane or dead. Next-of-kin or legal representative
will furnish the releasing authority with the following documents, as
appropriate, if not on file in the office concerned.
(i) Copy of the court order adjudging the
client or former client to be insane.
(ii) Adequate proof of death of the client or
former client.
(e) A
representative, other than a legal representative, specifically authorized in
writing by the client whose records are involved. The purpose for which the
information is to be used and the nature of the service to be performed will be
furnished the releasing authority.
(f) A representative, other than a legal
representative, specifically authorized in writing by the next-of-kin if the
client or former client is insane or dead. The purpose for which the
information is to be used and the nature of the service to be performed will be
furnished the releasing authority.
(g) Other governmental persons when the
requesting person has a proper and legitimate need for the transcript of or
information from the client case record. The following applies:
(i) If the releasing authority has doubt that
the requesting person has a proper and legitimate need for the information, the
latter will be requested to specify the purpose for which the information will
be used.
(ii) When appropriate, the
requesting person will be informed that the information will be withheld
pending receipt of written consent of the client concerned.
(h) Qualified persons for the
purposes of welfare research and study.
(i) Federal or State courts or other
administrative bodies when required by law or pursuant to lawful court orders
calling for production of the records or information in connection with civil
litigation or other legal proceedings.
F. Release of Information on Agency Programs.
(1) Instructions in Sections B, C, D and E,
above, do not preclude:
(a) Release of
appropriate information concerning the current status of assistance and service
programs conducted by the agency.
(b) Release of statistical data involving
assistance and service programs of the agency.
(2) Nothing herein will be construed to
preclude the release of information from records when required by
law.
Disclaimer: These regulations may not be the most recent version. South Carolina may have more current or accurate information. We make no warranties or guarantees about the accuracy, completeness, or adequacy of the information contained on this site or the information linked to on the state site. Please check official sources.
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