Formal Opinions

Opinion Letter No. 01-04 October 29, 2001 Disclosure of Sexual Harassment Complaint Investigation Records The Research Corporation of the University of Hawaii ("RCUH") administers research projects for the University of Hawaii. During one project, an Equal Employment Opportunity complaint was...

Opinion Letter No. 01-03 September 17, 2001 Disclosure of Inmate Information A private company, Verifacts, Inc., asked the Department of Public Safety ("PSD") for a copy of inmate data that PSD maintains in its database. The Department of the Attorney General...

Opinion Letter No. 01-02 April 12, 2001 Real Property Tax Information Made Confidential by Ordinance The Office of Information Practices' Opinion Letter No. 01-02 addressed a proposed bill for an ordinance to make certain tax assessment records of the City and...

Opinion Letter No. 01-01 April 9, 2001 Sunshine Law Applied to Neighborhood Vision Teams In the Office of Information Practices' Opinion Letter No. 01-01, the OIP construed an ambiguity in the Sunshine Law liberally to carry out the Sunshine Law’s purpose...

Opinion Letter No. 00-03 October 31, 2000 Historic Preservation Records Public A record requester made several requests for records of the Department of Land and Natural Resources State Historic Preservation Division ("SHPD") over the course of several months. SHPD provided some records,...

Opinion Letter No. 00-02 May 23, 2000 DHS Fair Hearing Decisions A requester asked (1) whether fair hearing decisions issued by the Department of Human Services ("DHS") as to whether a claimant is eligible for general assistance benefits ("Decisions") must...

Opinion Letter No. 00-01 April 12, 2000 Public Disclosure of Legislative Materials [Please note that opinions discussing the deliberative process privilege have been materially affected by the Hawaii Supreme Court’s majority opinion in Peer News LLC v. City and County of...

Opinion Letter No. 99-09 December 3, 1999 Persons Named in Criminal Law Enforcement Investigations The Department of Land and Natural Resources Conservation and Resources Enforcement Division ("DOCARE") is vested with criminal law enforcement powers under chapter 199, Hawaii Revised Statutes. DOCARE provided...

Opinion Letter No. 99-08 November 29, 1999 Identities of Complainants to DLNR Harbor Staff The Department of Land and Natural Resources ("DLNR") harbor staff often receives complaints from members of the public about individuals living on board vessels without proper permits,...

Opinion Letter No. 99-07 November 23, 1999 Identities of Complainants to DOH The Department of Health ("DOH") often receives complaints from members of the public on possible civil law violations. The DOH received a request for records that would disclose...