3.2. Private records (63G-2-302)

Private records contain information about individuals. GRAMA identifies records that are private and records that are private if properly classified, which represents two tiers of restriction.

63G-2-302 Links to an external site.. Private Records.
(1) The following records are private: . . . .
(2) The following records are private if properly classified by a governmental entity:

Examples of records that are always private, include:

• data on individuals’ medical history, diagnosis, condition, treatment, evaluation, or similar medical data,
• records of publicly funded libraries that will identify a patron,
• employment records that would disclose an individual’s home address, home phone number, Social Security number, insurance coverage, marital status, or payroll deductions, and
• information about individuals which is voluntarily provided as part of that person’s online interaction with government

GRAMA provides another list of private records, which it identifies as private if properly classified. This language offers records officers the opportunity to consider the circumstances of a specific records request and use their best judgment in determining whether to restrict access.

Examples of records that are private if properly classified include:

• records that provide personal status information about employees, such as race, religion, disabilities, and performance evaluations,
• records describing a person’s personal finances,
• other records containing data on individuals when disclosure would constitute a clearly unwarranted invasion of personal privacy.

The last example allows records officers to restrict access in situations not contemplated in GRAMA, but in which they consider that the release of information clearly will be an unwarranted invasion of personal privacy.

These lists represent only a few examples of private records. A complete list can be found in Subsections (1) and (2). A careful review of these lists of private records as described in the law is necessary for those making decisions about private classifications for records access.