Section 1360-11-01-.07 - DISCLOSURES(1) Except as otherwise allowed by law, the Office of the Secretary of State shall not disclose the confidential address or any other information contained within a program participant's file, other than the substitute address designated by the Secretary of State.(2) Public schools and other governmental entities that require verification of residency for purposes of public school enrollment or public benefits enrollment must submit to the Office of the Secretary of State a completed Request for Residency Verification form to verify a program participant's eligibility for enrollment and/or the eligibility for enrollment of the participant's minor children. The public school or other governmental entity seeking such verification must provide a written statement and/or a map, as required by the Secretary of State, outlining the applicable residential district eligible for enrollment.(3) As authorized by law, properly designated law enforcement agency officials and administrative agency officials may request confirmation of program participation pertaining to a supposed program participant by submitting a Request for Program Participation Confirmation Form to the Office of the Secretary of State. The Office of the Secretary of State shall make a determination and respond to such requests within three (3) business days, unless emergency circumstances exist.(4) The Office of the Secretary of State shall provide an after-hours emergency phone number to the Chief Law Enforcement Official of every state law enforcement agency, county sheriff's office, and municipal police department that may be used only by such chief law enforcement official. In such emergency situations, where there exists a significant threat to the physical health or welfare of the program participant or a member of the program participant's immediate family, the Chief Law Enforcement Official of the requesting agency may request the immediate disclosure of the program participant's confidential address. The Office of the Secretary of State may require the requesting official to verify their identity prior to the release of the program participant's confidential address.(5) As authorized by law, properly designated law enforcement agency officials and administrative agency officials may request disclosure of information pertaining to a program participant by submitting a Request for Disclosure Form to the Office of the Secretary of State. (a) Request for Disclosure Forms submitted by law enforcement officials will be reviewed and addressed by the Secretary of State, or the Secretary's designee, as soon as practicable. A program participant is not entitled to notice of the Secretary's determination prior to the disclosure of the requested information.(b) Request for Disclosure Forms submitted by state or federal administrative agency officials will be reviewed and addressed by the Secretary of State, or the Secretary's designee, as soon as practicable. However, the program participant shall be notified of the nature of the request received and afforded an opportunity to respond to the request in writing stating any objections to the disclosure. 1. The program participant shall have ten (10) business days from the date of the notice issued to the program participant in which to respond to the notice. If no response from the program participant is received after ten (10) business days from the date of notice, then the information requested shall be disclosed to the requesting agency as soon as practicable.2. If the program participant responds to the notice provided, the Secretary or the Secretary's designee shall review the objections received and weigh those objections against the reasons cited by the requesting agency official for the disclosure. The Secretary or the Secretary's designee shall then issue a determination within three (3) business days.3. Any party may appeal the Secretary's decision within ten (10) business days from the notice of the Secretary's determination by submitting a petition for appeal to the Office of the Secretary of State. If no request for appeal is received within ten (10) business days, the Secretary's decision shall be implemented according to its terms.(6) Disclosure of a participant's confidential address, or any other information contained within a program participant's file, shall be limited under the terms of the court's order or, in the absence of a court order, the secretary's determination, to ensure that the disclosure and dissemination of the confidential address will be no greater than necessary for the specific purpose for which it was requested.(7) Individuals granted access to the program participant's confidential information, whether by court order or by virtue of the individual's position as an employee of a governmental entity, are prohibited from knowingly disclosing such information to unauthorized individuals, except as otherwise required by law.(8) No person shall knowingly obtain a program participant's confidential address or telephone number from any governmental agency knowing that the person is not authorized to obtain the confidential information.(9) The Secretary of State may grant a request for disclosure to a state or local government agency upon receipt of a program participant's written and notarized consent to do so. In the event that a program participant submits a written and notarized consent for disclosure relating to a specific request for disclosure, the requested information shall be disclosed as soon as practicable and the program participant shall have no further right to appeal the disclosure.(10) In the event that the state, a county, a municipality, an agency of the state or county or municipality, or an employee of the state or county or municipality negligently or otherwise unlawfully discloses the program participant's confidential address, such entity must immediately upon learning of the disclosure notify the program participant of the disclosure and the full extent of the disclosure.Tenn. Comp. R. & Regs. 1360-11-01-.07
Emergency rules filed October 30, 2018; effective through April 28, 2019. Emergency rules expired effective April 29, 2019. Original rules filed November 21, 2019; effective 2/19/2020.Authority: T.C.A. §§ 40-38-601, et seq.