Irvine Municipal Code Div. 10 Privacy of Individuals' Personal Information

This division shall be known and referred to as the City of Irvine Personal Information Privacy Act.

(Ord. No. 08-16, § 1, 11-4-08)

This division is adopted to guide the City in its determinations on a case-by-case basis whether to disclose or to withhold individuals' personal information upon a public request for such information when the information is requested by the City for a limited specific purpose and with the representation that the information will be maintained in confidence.

(Ord. No. 08-16, § 2, 11-4-08)

It is found and declared that:

A. The California Constitution provides that all people in the State enjoy the right of privacy, which is a fundamental and compelling interest. All people also enjoy a right of privacy under the United States Constitution.

B

The California Public Records Act recognizes the rights of individuals to information concerning the conduct of the people's business.

C. At the same time, the California Public Records Act acknowledges the rights of individuals to privacy.

D. Under the California Public Records Act, a public agency is permitted to withhold documents and information from disclosure that are exempted or prohibited pursuant to federal or State law.

E. Under the California Public Records Act, a public agency is also permitted to withhold documents and information from disclosure where, on a case-by-case basis, the public agency determines that the public interest in disclosure is outweighed by the public interest in nondisclosure.

F. Constitutional rights of privacy encompass the ability to control the circulation of individuals' personal information, including, but not limited to, names, home addresses, telephone numbers and e-mail addresses.

G. A principal factor in ascertaining protected rights of privacy with regard to personal information provided by an individual is whether the individual has a reasonable expectation of privacy for such information. In turn, objectively reasonable expectations of privacy are informed by broadly based and widely accepted community norms.

H. The voters of the City of Irvine have had, have and will continue to have an expectation of privacy with regard to the personal information that individuals provide to the City of Irvine at the specific request of the City where the request expressly states that the information will be used by the City only for a specific, limited purpose and that the information will be maintained in confidence and will not be shared with others, and where the information is unrelated to the conduct of the City's official business and does not shed light on the City's actions or the performance of its duties and responsibilities.

I. The voters of the City of Irvine have had, have and will continue to have an interest in preventing unsolicited and unwanted mail, telephone calls and e-mail messages.

J. There would be a chilling effect on individuals' willingness to avail themselves of or participate in City programs and services if personal information that they are requested by the City to provide in connection with such activities with a representation of confidentiality is ultimately not limited to the specific purpose for which it is requested and instead is made available to others for uncontrolled purposes.

(Ord. No. 08-16, § 3, 11-4-08)

A. Consistent with the requirements of the United States and the California Constitutions and the California Public Records Act (Government Code § 6250 et seq.), and as determined on a case-by-case basis, the City of Irvine shall undertake to preserve the privacy of individuals' personal information to the fullest extent possible and permissible.

B. When evaluating the public interests in disclosure and in nondisclosure of individuals' personal information pursuant to a request under the California Public Records Act, the constitutional rights of privacy should be abridged only when there is a compelling public need to do so.

C. In assessing an individual's reasonable expectation of privacy, the City shall consider and place significant weight on the following factors, among others as relevant: whether the personal information was provided by the individual at the specific request of the City and, if so, whether the City specifically represented that the information was requested for a limited, specified purpose; whether the City specifically represented that the information would be maintained in confidence and would not be made available to other persons; and whether the information is related to the conduct of the City's official business or sheds light on the City's actions or the performance of its duties and responsibilities. On the other hand, where an individual voluntarily injects himself or herself into the public arena and prepares and transmits a written or electronic communication to a City official or employee on a topic of official City business, a pending decision or determination, or a subject otherwise within the City's jurisdiction, and the communication contains personal information, there may be no reasonable expectation of privacy in the absence of other important considerations.

(Ord. No. 08-16, § 4, 11-4-08)