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FW: Public information on-line: Privacy vs. Right-to-Know -- anyo ne have a policy?



The following is a summary -- of sorts --  of a discussion that has been
taking place on the records management listserv and it may certainly be of
interest to the archives listserv as well.  (Nina Osier's link to an article
on absentee voter lists came to me from the archives listserv and it
prompted my reply.  Definitely a "hot topic" this close to November 7th.)

>  -----Original Message-----
> From:         Bergeron, Paul
> Sent: Friday, November 03, 2000 6:54 AM
> To:   'recmgmt-l@lists.ufl.edu'
> Subject:      Public information on-line: Privacy vs. Right-to-Know --
> anyone have a policy?
>
> Well, a neighboring community pulled its voter registration and assessing
> records off the internet, yesterday.  Interested records folks may want to
> check out today's edition of  http://www.nashuatelegraph.com when it goes
> up later this morning.
>
> I am including a link to yesterday's piece on a local software conference
> which discussed privacy issues and public information.
>
> I should note that I have already benefited from list discussion on this
> topic.  I particularly liked Dwight Wallis' comment: "Another way to look
> at this is to ask how posting to an internet site coincides or conflicts
> with the original intent of gathering the information in the first
> place...I think there should be a reasonable expectation on the part of
> the public that personal information provided for a particular purpose
> should be
> managed by the government in a manner that supports that purpose, and
> reduces the likelihood of misuse, either by the government or by others."
>
> Our community is particularly sensitive to the management and distribution
> of electronic information.  We are a high-tech community, 37 miles from
> Boston just over the border in tax-"friendly" NH.  Last year, a young lady
> in our community was murdered by a stalker who had obtained Social
> Security and employment information about her over the internet.  The
> girl's stepfather doesn't blame the internet for the young lady's death,
> but he does believe that the sale of personal information should be
> prohibited and that the companies that sell this information should be
> held accountable.
>
> With that said, Dwight's point could help us develop "policy."  We need
> birthplace and date of birth information to determine whether or not
> someone should be added to a voter checklist.  Once that determination has
> been made, there is little reason to offer this information on the
> internet as part of a voter checklist.  The "original intent" for
> gathering the information was to create a list of registered voters; once
> the list is created, the material used to make the final determination
> becomes irrelevant.  It is the list of names that is the product.  Sure,
> the voter registration card is public information...and if someone wants
> to come into my office and look up place of birth or birthdate...fine.
>
> And Bill Roach's argument that we are posting notices on the internet by
> choice, not under the order of a FOI request is quite on target and raises
> the issues of accountability and liability: "Those (FOI) requests are made
> by a single organization or individual and ask for specific information.
> Posting all of the information means the poster has decided that the
> information should be produced. Negating the neutral stand..."
>
> Finally, as Ginny Jones said, "The primary criteria for what to put on a
> site is not so much set by policy
> as by the economics of time, productivity, server room and cost. We are
> allotted limited space for our site and we base what we put on the site on
> prior experience with requests for info from our customers."
>
> So why go to the trouble of loading and maintaining information on a
> website if it costs you more in time, money and resources that you would
> otherwise expend servicing those same requests for information
> over-the-counter?
>
> I will add this point about assessing records here in Nashua, NH.  We
> posted the assessment records immediately after a revaluation (no photos
> or floor plans).  The website took 69,000 hits in the first two weeks.
> That saved a lot of telephone calls and walk-ins!  So there is certainly a
> lot of benefit to be gained, too.
>
> Whether or not the city establishes a web selection policy, I intend to
> develop some guidelines for my own office...if only to justify our
> selection process in the event of litigation or press attack.  (My library
> science courses taught me the political benefits of a selection policy.
> It seems to me the same logic would apply here.)
>
> Thank you for the continuing input!
>
> http://www.nashuatelegraph.com/main.asp?FromHome=1&TypeID=1&ArticleID=2012
> 4&SectionID=25&SubSectionID=354
>
>
> Paul R. Bergeron
> City Clerk
> 229 Main Street
> Nashua, NH 03060
> Telephone: 603/594-3305
> Fax: 603/594-3464
> http://www.gonashua.com/
>
>

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