Maryland Attorney General Opinions
Free plain-English summaries of attorney general opinions issued in Maryland, with full citations and the original source on every page.
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Does Maryland's Public Information Act apply to delayed public broadcasts of encrypted police radio dispatch calls?
The opinion concluded that live, unencrypted police radio chatter picked up by a scanner is not itself a public record, but a recording made to facilitate a delayed public broadcast of that radio traf…
Are the records of a government-created advisory committee open to the public under Maryland's Public Information Act?
The opinion concluded that a committee a government creates to advise it on public matters, such as a town's stormwater committee, is very likely a 'unit or instrumentality' under the Public Informati…
Can Maryland release the personal email addresses of citizens who sign up for a county newsletter under the Public Information Act?
Maryland's Attorney General concluded that the Public Information Act does not let a records custodian unilaterally withhold citizens' personal email addresses just because releasing them might harm t…
Can the public get a mug shot from a Maryland police department under the Public Information Act?
Maryland's Attorney General concluded that a booking photo (mug shot) held by a police department is not the kind of protected criminal history record information that must be kept confidential. It is…
If a newspaper files a Public Information Act request for a Maryland fire department's ambulance dispatch record, does the medical information in that record have to be released, and can a parent whose parental rights were legally terminated authorize its release?
The medical details must be withheld, but the identity of who was transported can be released. The opinion concluded a Fire Department ambulance dispatch record is not a 'medical record' under Marylan…
Does Maryland's Open Meetings Act ban board members from discussing public business by e-mail, and are those e-mails public records?
The Attorney General concluded that members of a public body exchanging e-mail did not trigger the Open Meetings Act unless a quorum was engaged in a simultaneous, real-time exchange, but any e-mail r…
Could someone use Maryland's Public Information Act to see the licensing paperwork a private group home operator keeps on file, even though the state never actually collected copies of it?
No. The opinion concluded that licensing-related records a private child care facility applicant kept on its own premises, and that the Department of Human Resources reviewed on site rather than colle…
Who is responsible for administering the optional retirement program for Maryland public college employees?
The opinion concluded that no single entity 'sponsored' Maryland's Optional Retirement Program for public college employees; responsibility was divided by statute among the Board of Trustees of the Re…
Could a company that tracks down owners of unclaimed property get the dollar value of what each person is owed from Maryland's abandoned property records?
Maryland's Attorney General concluded that the Comptroller's Unclaimed Property Section had to withhold the monetary value or description of a person's abandoned property because that information coun…
Could Maryland law enforcement withhold a crime victim's name and address from a public records request?
Maryland's Attorney General concluded that a crime victim's name and address were a public record subject to disclosure under the Public Information Act, that no law gave victims an enforceable right …
Can Maryland spray pesticides for gypsy moth control on private property without the owner's consent?
In a 1988 opinion, Maryland's Attorney General concluded that the Secretary of Agriculture had broad discretionary authority to run the State's gypsy moth control program, including deciding which pes…
Does Maryland's Public Information Act require a county ethics commission to release officials' complete financial disclosure statements, including home addresses and gift information?
In this 1986 opinion, the Attorney General concluded that all of the information Calvert County officials and employees were required to submit on the county's ethics financial disclosure form, includ…
Can the public find out what's in a Maryland business's tax registration application, or is that information confidential?
In this 1986 opinion, the Attorney General concluded that most information on Maryland's Combined Registration Application, including a taxpayer's identity and finances, was confidential tax return in…
Can the public find out how many complaints have been filed against a specific mortgage company in Maryland?
In this 1986 opinion, the Attorney General concluded that the number and status of consumer complaints filed against a company licensed as a mortgage banker or mortgage broker were disclosable to the …
Can the public find out how a Maryland social services agency handled a specific child abuse case, especially after a child has died?
In this 1986 opinion, the Attorney General concluded that records and reports concerning a specific child abuse case are generally confidential under Article 88A, section 6(b) and federal law, but tha…
Can a hospital get a copy of the recording of a patient's involuntary commitment hearing in Maryland?
In this 1986 opinion, the Attorney General concluded that a tape recording of an involuntary mental health admission hearing could be disclosed only to the patient or the patient's authorized represen…
Are 911 emergency call recordings public records that anyone can request in Maryland?
In this 1986 opinion, the Attorney General concluded that tape recordings of calls to Maryland's 911 emergency system were public records generally subject to disclosure under the Public Information A…
Did Maryland's public records law protect unsolicited letters commenting on a government job applicant's qualifications, not just letters the applicant asked someone to write?
In this 1983 opinion, the Maryland Attorney General concluded that the Public Information Act's exemption for "letters of reference" covered both letters an applicant solicited and unsolicited letters…
Could a criminal defendant in Maryland claim personal ownership of the trial transcript held by the Public Defender's office?
In this 1983 opinion, the Maryland Attorney General concluded that a trial transcript in the custody of the Public Defender was a public record under the Maryland Public Information Act, not the priva…
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Attorney general opinions in Maryland are written by the Maryland 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.