NORTH CAROLINA GENERAL ASSEMBLY

1975 SESSION

 

 

CHAPTER 701

HOUSE BILL 926

 

 

AN ACT TO AMEND CHAPTER 153A AND 160A OF THE GENERAL STATUTES TO PROTECT THE RIGHT OF PRIVACY OF COUNTY AND CITY EMPLOYEES.

 

The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:

 

Section 1.  A new section is added to G.S. Chapter 153A to read as follows:

"§ 153A-98.  Privacy of employee personnel records. — (a) Notwithstanding the provisions of G.S. 132-6 or any other general law or local act concerning access to public records, personnel files maintained by a county are subject to inspection and may be disclosed only as provided by this section.

(b)        The following information with respect to each county employee is a matter of public record: name; age; date of original employment or appointment to the county service; current position title; current salary; date and amount of the most recent increase or decrease in salary; date of the most recent promotion, demotion, transfer, suspension, separation or other change in position classification; and the office to which the employee is currently assigned. The board of county commissioners shall determine in what form and by whom this information will be maintained. Any person may have access to this information for the purpose of inspection, examination, and copying, during regular business hours, subject only to such rules and regulations for the safekeeping of public records as the board of commissioners may have adopted. Any person denied access to this information may apply to the appropriate division of the General Court of Justice for an order compelling disclosure, and the court shall have jurisdiction to issue such orders.

(c)        All information contained in a county employee's personnel file, other than the information made public by subsection (b) of this section, is confidential and shall be open to inspection only in the following instances:

(1)        The employee or his duly authorized agent may examine all portions of his personnel file except (i) letters of reference solicited prior to employment, and (ii) information concerning a medical disability, mental or physical, that a prudent physician would not divulge to his patient.

(2)        A licensed physician designated in writing by the employee may examine the employee's medical record.

(3)        A county employee having supervisory authority over the employee may examine all material in the employee's personnel file.

(4)        By order of a court of competent jurisdiction, any person may examine such portion of an employee's personnel file as may be ordered by the court.

(5)        An official of an agency of the State or federal government, or any political subdivision of the State, may inspect any portion of a personnel file when such inspection is deemed by the official having custody of such records to be inspected to be necessary and essential to the pursuance of a proper function of the inspecting agency, but no information shall be divulged for the purpose of assisting in a criminal prosecution of the employee, or for the purpose of assisting in an investigation of the employee's tax liability.

(d)        The board of commissioners of a county that maintains personnel files containing information other than the information mentioned in subsection (b) of this section shall establish procedures whereby an employee who objects to material in his file on grounds that it is inaccurate or misleading may seek to have the material removed from the file or may place in the file a statement relating to the material.

(e)        Any public official or employee who knowingly and wilfully permits any person to have access to any confidential information contained in an employee personnel file, except as expressly authorized by this section, is guilty of a misdemeanor and upon conviction shall be fined in an amount not to exceed five hundred dollars ($500.00).

(f)         Any person, not specifically authorized by this section to have access to a personnel file designated as confidential, who shall knowingly and wilfully examine in its official filing place, remove or copy any portion of a confidential personnel file shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and upon conviction shall be fined in the discretion of the court but not in excess of five hundred dollars ($500.00)."

Sec. 2.  A new section is added to G.S. Chapter 160A to read as follows:

"§ 160A-168.  Privacy of employee personnel records. — (a) Notwithstanding the provisions of G.S. 132-6 or any other general law or local act concerning access to public records, personnel files maintained by a city are subject to inspection and may be disclosed only as provided by this section.

(b)        The following information with respect to each city employee is a matter of public record: name; age; date of original employment or appointment to the service; current position title; current salary; date and amount of the most recent increase or decrease in salary; date of the most recent promotion, demotion, transfer, suspension, separation, or other change in position classification; and the office to which the employee is currently assigned. The city council shall determine in what form and by whom this information will be maintained. Any person may have access to this information for the purpose of inspection, examination, and copying, during regular business hours, subject only to such rules and regulations for the safekeeping of public records as the city council may have adopted. Any person denied access to this information may apply to the appropriate division of the General Court of Justice for an order compelling disclosure, and the court shall have jurisdiction to issue such orders.

(c)        All information contained in a city employee's personnel file, other than the information made public by subsection (b) of this section, is confidential and shall be open to inspection only in the following instances:

(1)        The employee or his duly authorized agent may examine all portions of his personnel file except (i) letters of reference solicited prior to employment, and (ii) information concerning a medical disability, mental or physical, that a prudent physician would not divulge to his patient.

(2)        A licensed physician designated in writing by the employee may examine the employee's medical record.

(3)        A city employee having supervisory authority over the employee may examine all material in the employee's personnel file.

(4)        By order of a court of competent jurisdiction, any person may examine such portion of an employee's personnel file as may be ordered by the court.

(5)        An official of an agency of the State or federal government, or any political subdivision of the State, may inspect any portion of a personnel file when such inspection is deemed by the official having custody of such records to be inspected to be necessary and essential to the pursuance of a proper function of the inspecting agency, but no information shall be divulged for the purpose of assisting in a criminal prosecution (of the employee), or for the purpose of assisting in an investigation of (the employee's) tax liability.

(d)        The city council of a city that maintains personnel files containing information other than the information mentioned in subsection (b) of this section shall establish procedures whereby an employee who objects to material in his file on grounds that it is inaccurate or misleading may seek to have the material removed from the file or may place in the file a statement relating to the material.

(e)        Any public official or employee who knowingly and wilfully permits any person to have access to any confidential information contained in an employee personnel file, except as expressly authorized by this section, is guilty of a misdemeanor and upon conviction shall be fined in an amount not to exceed five hundred dollars ($500.00).

(f)         Any person, not specifically authorized by this section to have access to a personnel file designated as confidential, who shall knowingly and wilfully examine in its official filing place, remove or copy any portion of a confidential personnel file shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and upon conviction shall be fined in the discretion of the court but not in excess of five hundred dollars ($500.00)."

Sec. 3.  This act shall become effective on January 1, 1976.

In the General Assembly read three times and ratified, this the 23rd day of June, 1975.