SEPTEMBER 2024

Check out our new video resource about the duties of responsible authorties

The Data Practices Office has a new resource video available, titled "What All Responsible Authorities Need to Know," that provides an overview of the various duties and obligations of a government entity's responsible authority. Under Minnesota Statutes, Chapter 13, each government entity has a responsible authority who is the individual charged with ensuring the entity is meeting the specific requirements of the Data Practices Act. These duties include establishing data practices policies and procedures, appointing staff members to carry out specific data practices roles, and training entity staff on the requirements of the law, among other duties. DPO's new video offers guidance for responsible authorities about these various obligations, but it also provides helpful information for anyone interested in the Data Practices Act. "What All Responsible Authorities Need to Know" is available now on the Data Practices Office YouTube page.

Upcoming Data Practices Trainings

Government Personnel Data Remote Workshop

The Data Practices Office will be hosting a Dos and Don'ts of Government Personnel Data remote workshop on Wednesday, September 25 from 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. that provides an overview of the Data Practices Acts requirements related to personnel data under section 13.43. The workshop includes:

• Background information on classifications of data about government employees
• Requirements for data related to employee investigations and discipline
• An opportunity to apply your knowledge in hands-on exercises

The workshop will be held remotely on WebEx, and it will not require in-person attendance. The cost to attend this workshop is $250 per person.

Registration information for this workshop is available on our website.

Advisory Opinion Updates

Entity Response to Challenge to Accuracy and Completeness of Data

In Advisory Opinion 24-001, a data subject asked whether the Department of Human Services complied with section 13.04, subd. 4 when it extended a deadline to respond to a challenge that data about him were accurate and complete. The Commissioner noted that section 13.04, subd. 4(c) requires a government entity to respond to a data challenge within 30 days by either correcting the disputed data or informing the data subject that it has determined the data are correct. The plain language of the subdivision does not permit an entity to extend this 30-day deadline. Therefore, the Commissioner opined that DHS did not comply with the Data Practices Act when it extended the deadline to respond to the data subject's challenge.

Data Access Policies

In Advisory Opinion 24-002, a member of the public asked whether a city responded appropriately to a request for its data access policies. The Commissioner opined that the city did not respond appropriately because it appeared that the city did not have data access policies at the time of the request from the member of the public.

Elected Officials' Correspondence

In Advisory Opinion 24-003, a school district asked whether emails and similar written correspondence regarding school district business that were sent between school board members were classified as private data under Minnesota Statutes, section 13.601, subdivision 2. The Commissioner opined that the private classification under section 13.601, subd. 2 applied to communications between elected officials and members of the public rather than just between elected officials. Additionally, section 13.601, subd. 2 does not apply to elected officials' correspondence when they are communicating in an official capacity. Therefore, school board members' emails are presumptively public unless specific data are classified as not public under another section of the Data Practices Act, other state statute, or federal law.