Legal Documents of Baneberry

The following list is not exhaustive and it may not be up-to-date. Users must refer to current and relevant Tennessee and federal code, law, regulation and policy to determine if a record or a portion of a record is confidential. This list is summarized to topics. Refer to current legislation for details.

The following list reflects the records designated as confidential by Tennessee Code Annotated, § 10-7-504 at the time of publication (current through the 2014 regular session and amendments approved at the November 4, 2014 general election). Tennessee Code Annotated, § 10-7-504 is not exclusive, however, and many other statutes, rules, and the common law dealing with a subject also can make a specific record confidential.

In most cases, the law defines who may and may not see "confidential" records for each of the following:

1. Adoption. All related records.

2. Audit/tax records. Business tax statements, reports, audits, and returns. Tennessee Code Annotated, § 67-4-722.

   Audit working papers of the comptroller of the treasury and state, county and local government internal audit staffs conducting audits as authorized by § 4-3-304.

3. Computer. Programs, software, software manuals, and other types of information manufactured or marketed by persons or entities under legal right and sold, licensed, or donated to Tennessee state boards, agencies, political subdivisions, or higher education institutions.

4. Contracting. Proposals received pursuant to personal service, professional service, and consultant service contract regulations, and related records, including evaluations and memoranda are confidential until their purpose has been fulfilled.

   Sealed bids for the purchase of goods and services, and leases of real property, and individual purchase records, including evaluations and memoranda relating to the same are confidential until their purpose has been fulfilled.

5. Employment records. Employment records of state, county, municipal, or other public employees that contain home telephone and personal cell numbers; personal, nongovernment issued, email address; emergency contact information; residential information including the street address, city, state and zip code; bank account information; Social Security numbers; individual health savings account, retirement account, and pension account information; or driver's license information (except where driving or operating a vehicle is part of the employee's job duties). This confidentiality extends to immediate family members, whether or not the immediate family member resides with the employee, or household members.

   Note: Under the law, this information in employment records should be redacted whenever possible and not used to limit or deny access to otherwise public information.

6. Handgun carry permit. Files of the handgun carry permit and the driver license issuance divisions of the department of safety relating to bogus handgun carry permits and bogus driver licenses issued to undercover law enforcement agents.

7. Historical research. Records of historical research value which are given or sold to public archival institutions, public libraries, or libraries of a unit of the Tennessee Board of Regents or the University of Tennessee, when the owner or donor of such records requires that the records are kept confidential.

   Those parts of a record identifying an individual as a person who has been or may in the future be directly involved in the process of executing a sentence of death.

   Credit card numbers, Social Security numbers, account numbers, security codes and other identifying information in the hands of a utility.

   Tax returns, audits, letter rulings, and other taxpayer identifying information. Tennessee Code Annotated, § 67-1-1702.

8. Investigative record. Criminal investigative files of the Department of Agriculture and the Department of Environment and Conservation.

   Investigative record criminal investigative files of the motor vehicle enforcement division of the department of safety relating to stolen vehicles or parts.

   Criminal investigative files and records of the Tennessee Alcoholic Beverage Commission.

   Investigative records of the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation and the office of inspector general.

   Investigative records and reports of the internal affairs division of the department of correction or of the department of children's services.

9. Juveniles. Many records regarding juveniles. Tennessee Code Annotated, §§ 37-1-153, 37-1-154, 37-1-155, 37-1-409, 37-1-612, 37-1-615, 37-2-408.

   Law enforcement photographs and recordings of juveniles. Tennessee Code Annotated, § 37-1-155.

10. Medical record. Medical records of patients in state, county and municipal hospitals and medical facilities.

    Medical records containing the source of body parts for transplantation or any information concerning persons donating body parts.

    Official health certificates, collected and maintained by the state veterinarian.

    Memoranda, work notes or products, case files and communications related to mental health intervention techniques conducted by mental health professionals in a group setting to provide job-related critical incident counseling and therapy to law enforcement officers, county and municipal correctional officers, dispatchers, emergency medical technicians, emergency medical technician-paramedics, and firefighters; both volunteer and professional.

    Mental health intervention techniques for municipal correction officers and dispatchers. Tennessee Code Annotated, § 10-7-504(a)(13)(A).

11. Medical records. Records of any employee's identity, diagnosis, treatment, or referral for treatment that are maintained by any state or local government employee assistance program.

    Certain records of an employer's drug testing program. Tennessee Code Annotated, § 50-9-109. (See Op. Tenn. Atty. Gen. 99-126).

    Information or records held by a local health department regarding sexually transmitted diseases. Tennessee Code Annotated, § 68-10-113.

    Patient medical records of hospitals and local and regional health departments. Tennessee Code Annotated, § 68-11-305.

    Nursing home patient records. Tennessee Code Annotated, § 68-11-804.

    Records granting consent to abortion for a minor and other records regarding abortion.

12. Opinions. State agency records containing opinions of value of real and personal property intended to be acquired for a public purpose.
13. Pending actions. Certain books, records and other materials in the possession of the Office of the Attorney General relating to any pending or contemplated legal or administrative proceeding.

14. Personal information. Personal information contained in motor vehicle records.

    Unpublished telephone numbers in the possession of emergency communications districts.

    The telephone number, address and any other information which could be used to locate the whereabouts of a domestic violence shelter, family safety center or rape crisis center.

    Identifying information, such as unlisted telephone numbers, in the possession of a private or public utility service provider that could be used to locate an individual, when the utility has been provided with a copy of a valid protection document and confidentiality has been requested.

    Records in paternity proceedings that might be used to locate a victim or alleged victim of domestic violence.

    Credit card numbers of persons doing business with the state or political subdivision thereof and any related personal identification numbers (PIN) or authorization codes.

15. Planning/risk. Capital plans, marketing information, proprietary information and trade secrets submitted to the Tennessee Venture Capital Network.

    Riot, escape and emergency transport plans which are incorporated in a policy and procedures manual of county jails and workhouses or prisons operated by the Department of Correction.

    Records of a utility that would identify areas of vulnerability or allow disruption of utility service.

    Records that identify areas of structural or operational vulnerability of a utility service provider or that would permit unlawful disruption to, or interference with, the services provided by a utility service provider.

    Contingency plans of a governmental entity prepared to respond to or prevent any violent incident, bomb threat, ongoing act of violence at a school or business, ongoing act of violence at a place of public gathering, threat involving a weapon of mass destruction, or terrorist incident.

16. Police/fire. Certain personal information of undercover police officers and their immediate family or household members.

    Certain personal information relative to law enforcement officers, in addition to that made confidential otherwise, when the information is requested for professional, business or official purpose, and the chief determines there is a reason not to disclose the information.

17. Proprietary information. Proprietary information provided to the Alcoholic Beverage Commission.
18. Security. Records, documents and papers in the possession of the military department which involve national or state security.

19. Students. Records of students in public educational institutions.

    Certain student information.

20. Teachers. Records containing the results of individual teacher evaluations administered pursuant to the policies, guidelines, and criteria adopted by the State Board of Education under § 49-1-302.
21. Utility. The private records of any utility shall be treated as confidential and shall not be open for inspection by members of the public.
22. Whistleblower. Whistleblowing reports of violations of the Education Trust in Reporting Act. Tennessee Code Annotated, § 49-50-1408.

23. Work product. Memoranda, notes, case files, or work products of victim-offender mediation centers.

    Work product of the municipal attorney. (Ord. #215-1, June 2015)