Arkansas Attorney General Opinions
Free plain-English summaries of attorney general opinions issued in Arkansas, with full citations and the original source on every page.
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Are leave balances, vacation accruals, and PTO records of an Arkansas city fire department employee subject to release under FOIA?
Yes. AG Tim Griffin concluded that the City of Fayetteville's records custodian was right to release the leave-balance and accrual records for a fire department employee with one redaction. Payroll re…
When the Cabot Police Department received a FOIA request for an officer's suspension letters and a citizen complaint, which had to be released and which could be withheld?
All four documents are properly releasable. A February 2022 suspension letter that does not specify the grounds for suspension is a personnel record subject to disclosure under the Young v. Rice balan…
When the City of Little Rock got a FOIA request for an employee's personnel file and emails, which redactions on her job applications, salary memo, and performance reviews were correct?
The custodian's decision to release administrative personnel records was mostly correct. But the salary-adjustment memo had inconsistent redactions: names, job positions, and salary information should…
When the City of Hampton received a FOIA request for a former police officer's personnel file, which pieces of information could the city release and which had to be blacked out?
Most of the personnel file is releasable. The custodian properly redacted the officer's phone number, address, date of birth, social security number, and the beneficiary name and relationship on LOPFI…
If a public employee's name, salary, hire date, and job title are requested under the Arkansas FOIA, can the agency release them?
Yes. The AG concludes that releasing nonelected public employees' compensation information (name, hire date, base salary, bonus, overtime, gross wages, and position title) is consistent with the FOIA.…
Can Arkansas release a fired forensic chemist's termination letters and personnel records, and what personal information must be redacted before disclosure?
An Arkansas records custodian can release the termination letters of a fired Arkansas State Crime Lab forensic chemist, plus the rest of the personnel file with appropriate redactions. Termination let…
Can a school district in Arkansas redact people's names from settlement agreements and law-firm invoices under the FOIA's personnel-record or employee-evaluation exceptions?
The Vilonia School District improperly redacted information from settlement agreements and law-firm invoices under FOIA's personnel-record (§ 25-19-105(b)(12)) and employee-evaluation (§ 25-19-105(c)(…
Can a police officer block release of his promotion dates and photo because he suspects the FOIA requester wants to harass him?
No, the officer cannot block release. Under Arkansas FOIA, the requester's intent and motives are generally irrelevant when determining whether public records must be disclosed. The fact that Captain …
Can a sheriff's office release the Internal Review of a deputy who 'voluntarily' resigned just before being fired?
Yes. Sebastian County Sheriff's Office can release the Internal Review of former deputy Thomas Gage. A 'forced or coerced resignation' (resigning in the face of impending termination) operates as a co…
Can the Arkansas Public Defender Commission release suspension and termination letters about a former employee facing criminal charges?
Yes. The Arkansas Public Defender Commission's decision to release a former employee's suspension letter, termination letter, and email correspondence (with personal contact information redacted) is c…
Can a former Arkansas Department of Education employee block release of his termination letter?
Yes, the termination letter must be released. When a termination letter includes the grounds for termination, it is classified as an employee evaluation. It must be disclosed if (1) the termination is…
When a workplace investigation produces interview notes about multiple employees, what is releasable under Arkansas FOIA?
Partly consistent. The interview question sheets in the ATRS workplace investigation are 'mixed records' (both personnel records of the interviewee and employee-evaluation records of the complainant o…
Can the City of Conway withhold all records of an internal investigation when the requester is the complainant himself?
No, the blanket withholding is inconsistent with FOIA. A police officer who filed a complaint against his department and chief made a FOIA request for the investigation records. Conway tried to withho…
Can a city refuse to hand over employees' unemployment insurance notices under Arkansas FOIA?
Yes for the two notices reviewed. AG Rutledge concluded the City of Little Rock's withholding of two 'Notice to Last Employer' and 'Notice to Base Period Employer' unemployment-insurance notices was c…
Does Arkansas FOIA let a city release police-officer audio and video recordings from a misconduct investigation, and what about a minor caught on tape?
Yes, generally. AG Rutledge concluded the City of Benton's custodian had properly classified most of the 16 records as evaluation records, that the four-prong evaluation-records release test was met, …
Can a city custodian withhold all employee leave and FMLA records as a privacy invasion before even pulling the records to look at them?
Partly. AG Rutledge agreed that leave and FMLA records were properly classified as personnel records, but concluded that withholding them based on the wording of the request alone (without first ident…
Can a former Arkansas police officer block release of his disciplinary file under FOIA when his old department wants to give it to a requester?
Mostly yes for the release. AG Rutledge concluded that the Benton Police Department custodian's decision to release one personnel record and four employee-evaluation letters was consistent with Arkans…
When an Arkansas Department of Health employee objects to her old discipline file being released, what does the AG actually decide?
The AG declined to opine on the specific records because Wylie did not submit them. AG Rutledge instead set out the legal standards (personnel records under the Young v. Rice balancing test, employee-…
When the Arkansas Department of Health releases a discipline file on a high-ranking employee, is that consistent with FOIA?
Yes. AG Rutledge concluded the ADH custodian's decision to release the three records (one personnel record, one mixed personnel/evaluation record, and one evaluation record), as redacted, was consiste…
What does Arkansas's AG do when a former police officer wants his personnel and internal-investigation files kept private from a FOIA requester?
The AG declined to opine on the specific records because Jeffers did not submit them to her office. AG Rutledge instead set out the FOIA framework: the AG's authority is limited to reviewing the custo…
Can a state employee block release of her suspension records under Arkansas FOIA because she's afraid of harassment?
Yes for the release. AG Rutledge concluded the ADH custodian's decision to release the record about Kriesel's suspension was consistent with FOIA. Kriesel's fear of harassment was not a sufficient leg…
What does Arkansas's AG say when an ADH employee objects to a FOIA release of his termination records?
Not inconsistent. AG Rutledge concluded that, based on the face of the records, the ADH custodian's decision to release the requester's termination records was not inconsistent with the FOIA. The reco…
Can a city employee block release of his personnel file, disciplinary file, and ID photo under Arkansas FOIA, and what gets redacted?
On the first question (consistent with FOIA?), the AG set out the standard framework: personnel records released under Young v. Rice balancing, evaluation records released only if the four-prong Thoma…
Can the subject of an Arkansas FOIA request block release of his personnel and disciplinary records by claiming invasion of privacy?
No. AG Rutledge concluded that the subject's stated objection (invasion of privacy) was not, by itself, a legally sufficient reason to withhold otherwise disclosable records. The custodian had to appl…
Can a Little Rock police officer block FOIA release of his 2017 disciplinary records while his appeal is still pending in circuit court?
No to blocking. AG Rutledge concluded that Lieutenant Farley's objection (that his 2017 disciplinary records were under appeal in Pulaski County Circuit Court) was not a sufficient basis to reverse th…
Can a city withhold the entire personnel files of terminated employees who failed drug tests, citing privacy and lack of compelling public interest?
Inconclusive. AG Rutledge could not opine without seeing specific records, but flagged that the custodian had classified the files as personnel records yet applied the test (compelling public interest…
Can a Little Rock job applicant block release of his application under Arkansas FOIA by objecting on privacy grounds?
Yes. AG Rutledge held the custodian's decision to release the Public Works job application (with redactions) was consistent with FOIA. She incorporated the full analysis from her companion opinion 202…
Does Arkansas FOIA allow release of a city employee's job application after personal information is redacted?
Yes. AG Rutledge concluded the City of Little Rock's decision to release the Public Works job application, after redacting sensitive personal information, was generally consistent with FOIA. The recor…
Can the University of Arkansas at Fort Smith release a former employee's termination and disciplinary records under Arkansas FOIA?
Mostly yes. AG Rutledge concluded UAFS's decision to release the responsive personnel and evaluation records (as redacted) was consistent with FOIA. She declined to opine on whether several Bates-stam…
Can the Pine Bluff School District release a teacher's transfer request and application after a blogger files a FOIA request for the personnel file?
Mostly yes. AG Rutledge concluded the Pine Bluff School District's decision to release transfer-related records (as redacted) was generally correct under FOIA. Transfer requests are personnel records …
Should an Arkansas school district release an unverified anonymous email accusing a former employee in response to a FOIA request?
The custodian's classification was correct, but the disclosure decision was questionable. The AG concluded that the anonymous email was a personnel record, but warned that releasing an unsolicited, un…
Can a public employee under internal investigation get the full investigation file under Arkansas FOIA, even when other employees are named in it?
Yes. The Arkansas FOIA gave the requesting employee a right to his own personnel and evaluation records under section 25-19-105(c)(2). Portions also qualifying as other employees' personnel records we…
Can a city release redacted Residency Incentive Program applications under Arkansas FOIA, and what redactions are required?
Mostly consistent with FOIA. Little Rock's classification of Residency Incentive Program applications as personnel records and its decision to release them with redactions was consistent with the Act,…
Should an Arkansas school district release a sexual harassment complainant's personnel records under the FOIA, and must the complainant's name be redacted?
AG Rutledge concluded that the Fayetteville Public School District properly classified a sexual harassment complaint as the complainant's personnel record subject to FOIA disclosure. But the complaina…
Can a Pine Bluff School District employee block disclosure of her personnel records by pointing to a pending internal review or a school district policy?
AG Rutledge concluded that the Pine Bluff School District properly classified the employee's records as personnel records subject to FOIA disclosure. The employee's stated objections (the requester's …
When the Arkansas Real Estate Commission gets a FOIA request for an employee's personnel file, must the home address, personnel number, and APERS retirement ID be redacted?
AG Rutledge concluded that the Arkansas Real Estate Commission properly classified the employee's records as personnel records subject to FOIA disclosure, but ordered additional redactions: home addre…
When the Arkansas Real Estate Commission gets a FOIA request for an employee's personnel file, what specifically must be redacted before disclosure?
AG Rutledge concluded that the Arkansas Real Estate Commission properly classified the employee's records as personnel records subject to FOIA disclosure, but ordered additional redactions: personnel …
Can an Arkansas state agency release a former employee's resignation letter under FOIA, even when the employee says the requester is harassing them?
Yes. The AG concluded that a fill-in-the-blank resignation notice is a personnel record subject to disclosure under Arkansas FOIA. The privacy interest is at most de minimis, and there is no 'harassme…
Under the Arkansas FOIA, what records can a Little Rock police officer get from the city's investigation file on a complaint they filed against a superior, when no discipline resulted?
Mostly the records the officer themselves submitted, plus the original complaint as the personnel record of both employees. Most of the rest are employee-evaluation records of the superior, and becaus…
How does Arkansas FOIA apply to a request for the personnel file of a recently-terminated state employee, split into seven categories of records, including some that the agency wanted to withhold for lack of compelling public interest?
The AG reviewed seven categories and concluded that the custodian's classifications were largely correct, but flagged additional redactions in Categories 1, 2, 4, and 5 (personnel numbers, banking inf…
Under Arkansas FOIA, can a police department release the names of sworn officers who were 'relieved of duty,' including officers who were later exonerated?
Yes. A list of officers who suffered adverse employment action, with no additional detail about the reason, is a personnel record (not an employee-evaluation record). Under the Young v. Rice balancing…
Can MEMS (Metropolitan Emergency Medical Services) release the names, job titles, departments, and salaries of all employees under Arkansas FOIA, even when 33 employees object?
Yes. MEMS is subject to Arkansas FOIA. Name, job title, department, and salary are personnel records that must be released unless disclosure would be a 'clearly unwarranted invasion of personal privac…
Can an Arkansas custodian withhold internal investigation records of an employee who was initially terminated but ended up resigning under a negotiated settlement?
Yes. Because the termination was lifted by settlement and the employee resigned voluntarily, the disciplinary proceeding never reached 'final administrative resolution.' Without finality, the FOIA's f…
When an Arkansas custodian releases a law enforcement officer's termination letter under FOIA, can the custodian redact the terminated employee's name?
No. Once an employee evaluation record meets the four-part test for release, redacting the subject's name is inconsistent with FOIA because the identity is central to the public's compelling interest.…
Can a former Arkansas public employee block release of her termination letter under FOIA, and can she get her own personnel and evaluation records from her former employer?
The AG could not review the release of the termination letter because the custodian had already disclosed it. The employee's request for her own records is allowed: under A.C.A. § 25-19-105(c)(2), cur…
Can a police department release an officer's name and job title to a FOIA requester, even if the officer objects?
Yes, based on this opinion. A public employee's name and job position are personnel records under Arkansas's FOIA, and releasing them almost never counts as a clearly unwarranted invasion of privacy, …
Can a city release employee names, resumes, job titles, and salaries in response to an Arkansas FOIA request?
Generally yes, based on the prior opinions referenced here. Although the Attorney General declined to rule on this specific city's request due to a procedural timing problem, the office pointed to est…
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Attorney general opinions in Arkansas are written by the Arkansas Attorney General's office in response to questions from state agencies, legislators, and prosecutors. They are not binding like court decisions, but courts and agencies treat them as persuasive guidance on how state law applies. Every opinion above has a plain-English question and short answer, plus a link to the full original text.