City of Malakoff seeks AG opinion on open records request

By Michael V. Hannigan/HCNow

The City of Malakoff is asking Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton for an opinion regarding a public information request.

The public information request was submitted late last month by Malakoff resident Brian Paris.

In a letter from the City’s attorney, Henry T. Skelton, to the Office of the Attorney General’s Open Records Division dated June 13, the City asked for an attorney general decision on whether six items should be excluded:

  • Verification of valid employee I-9s
  • Gross yearly salary amount for City employees
  • Date of termination and/or employment and reason for termination
  • Degrees, credentials, certifications, licenses held by City employees
  • Legally required reporting against licensure
  • Designation of job title or position funded by a grant, or special taxing jurisdiction

On all points, the City argues the information should not be made public based on the “confidentiality provisions of the Public Information Act and under the common law privacy and personal privacy provisions of the United States Constitution.”

The letter to the Office of the Attorney General Open Records Division is included below.