Current through Reg. 49, No. 38; September 20, 2024
(a)
Except as provided by this section or otherwise permitted by law, prior to the
release of confidential investigation or case records, the Department of Family
and Protective Services (DFPS) shall redact the records to remove the name,
address, and any other information in the record which tends to reveal the
identity of any individual as a reporter. In the event that an individual who
was a reporter also provided a witness statement or other evidence during the
course of the investigation, that individual's identity as a witness, as well
as the information provided by that individual in the role of witness, will be
released, provided that any information that would identify that individual as
the reporter is redacted from the record prior to its release.
(b) DFPS shall withhold the release of any
records obtained from another source, if the release of that record to the
requestor is prohibited under state or federal law. Information which may be
withheld under this section includes, but is not limited to, the following:
(1) "individually identifiable health
information," as defined by §1171 of the Social Security Act, to the
extent that DFPS is prohibited from releasing such information to the requestor
by Chapter 181 of the Health and Safety Code, and related regulations adopted
pursuant to Chapter 181;
(2) HIV
information unless release to the requestor is authorized under Chapter 81 of
the Health and Safety Code;
(3)
criminal history or arrest records obtained from a law enforcement entity
unless their release to the requestor is authorized under state or federal
law;
(4) adult or juvenile
probation records, as well as juvenile arrest records, unless their release to
the requestor is authorized under state or federal law; and
(5) the results of a polygraph exam, unless
their release to the requestor is authorized under §
1703.306
of the Occupations Code, or other state or federal law.
(c) Notwithstanding any other provision in
this chapter, DFPS may withhold any information in its records if:
(1) in the judgment of DFPS, the release of
that information would endanger the life or safety of any individual, in which
event DFPS shall keep a record of any information so withheld and shall
document the specific factual basis for its belief that the release of the
information would be likely to endanger the life or safety of an individual;
or
(2) DFPS has been notified by a
law enforcement official that release of the information to the requestor would
interfere with an ongoing criminal investigation, in which event DFPS shall
document in its records the name of the law enforcement official who notified
DFPS that release of the information would interfere with an ongoing criminal
investigation.
(d)
Information withheld from a requestor under this section, as well as the
documented basis for withholding information under subsection (c) of this
section, may be released only upon a court order pursuant to the provisions in
§
261.201(b)
of the Family Code.
(e) DFPS may
release reporter information, including the identity of a reporter, to the
following:
(1) a court having family law
jurisdiction as necessary to resolve an issue relating to the custody of,
access to, or possession of a child;
(2) a person or entity with the statutory
duty to investigate or prosecute a report of child abuse or neglect, failure to
report child abuse or neglect, or false reporting of child abuse or
neglect;
(3) a person or entity
that provides legal representation to DFPS; or
(4) a social study evaluator, guardian ad
litem, or court-appointed volunteer advocate appointed by the court under
Chapter 107 of the Family Code to make recommendations to the court concerning
the best interest of a child.
