41-167. Request for disclosure

A. Except as otherwise provided by law, a state or local government entity requesting disclosure of a program participant's actual address pursuant to this section shall make the request in writing on the entity's letterhead and shall provide the secretary of state with the following information:

1. The name of the program participant for whom the state or local government entity seeks disclosure of the actual address.

2. A statement, with explanation, setting forth the reason that the state or local government entity needs the program participant's actual address and a statement that the state or local government entity cannot meet its statutory or administrative obligations without disclosure of the program participant's actual address.

3. A particular statement of facts showing that other methods to locate the program participant or the program participant's actual address have been tried and have failed or that the methods reasonably appear to be unlikely to succeed.

4. A statement that the state or local government entity has adopted a procedure setting forth the steps the state or local government entity will take to protect the confidentiality of the program participant's actual address.

5. Any other information as the secretary of state may reasonably request in order to identify the program participant in the records of the secretary of state.

B. The secretary of state shall provide the program participant with notice of a request for disclosure received pursuant to subsection A, and, to the extent possible, the participant shall be afforded an opportunity to be heard regarding the request.

C. Except as otherwise provided in subsection D, the secretary of state shall provide the program participant with written notification if a request for a disclosure is granted or denied pursuant to this section.

D. A notice or opportunity to be heard shall not be provided to the program participant if the request for disclosure is made by a state or local law enforcement agency conducting a criminal investigation involving alleged criminal conduct by the program participant or if providing notice to the program participant would jeopardize an ongoing criminal investigation or the safety of law enforcement personnel.

E. The secretary of state shall promptly conduct a review of all requests received pursuant to this section. The director of the address confidentiality program, or the director's designee, shall ensure that state and local government entities have twenty-four hour access to the director or the director's designee for the purposes of a request for disclosure. In conducting a review, the secretary of state shall consider all information received pursuant to subsection A, paragraphs 1 and 2 and any other appropriate information that the secretary of state may require.

F. The secretary of state shall grant a state or local government entity's request for disclosure and disclose a program participant's actual address pursuant to this section if:

1. The state or local government entity has a bona fide statutory or administrative need for the actual address.

2. The actual address will only be used for the purpose stated in the request.

3. Other methods to locate the program participant or the program participant's actual address have been tried and have failed or the methods reasonably appear to be unlikely to succeed.

4. The state or local government entity has adopted a procedure for protecting the confidentiality of the actual address of the program participant.

G. On granting a request for disclosure pursuant to this section, the secretary of state shall provide the state or local government entity with the disclosure that contains:

1. The program participant's actual address.

2. A statement setting forth the permitted use of the actual address and the names or classes of persons permitted to have access to and use of the actual address.

3. A statement that the state or local government entity is required to limit access to and use of the actual address to the permitted use and persons set forth in the disclosure.

4. The date on which the permitted use expires, if expiration is appropriate, after which the state or local government entity may no longer maintain, use or have access to the actual address.

H. A state or local government entity whose request is granted by the secretary of state pursuant to this section shall:

1. Limit the use of the program participant's actual address to the purposes set forth in the disclosure.

2. Limit the access to the program participant's actual address to the persons or classes of persons set forth in the disclosure.

3. Cease to use and dispose of the program participant's actual address on the expiration of the permitted use, if applicable.

4. Except as otherwise set forth in the disclosure, maintain the confidentiality of a program participant's actual address.

I. On denial of a state or local government entity's request for disclosure, the secretary of state shall provide prompt written notification to the state or local government entity stating that the state or local government entity's request has been denied and setting forth the specific reasons for the denial.

J. A state or local government entity may file written exceptions with the secretary of state no more than fifteen days after written notification is provided pursuant to subsection I. The exceptions shall restate the information contained in the request for disclosure, state the grounds on which the state or local government entity asserts that the request for disclosure should be granted and specifically respond to the secretary of state's specific reasons for denial.

K. Unless the state or local government entity filing exceptions agrees otherwise, the secretary of state shall make a final determination regarding the exceptions within thirty days after the filing of exceptions pursuant to subsection J. Before making a final determination regarding the exceptions, the secretary of state may request additional information from the state or local government entity or the program participant and conduct a hearing. If the final determination of the secretary of state is that the denial of the state or local government entity's request for disclosure was properly denied, the secretary of state shall provide the state or local government entity with written notification of this final determination stating that the state or local government entity's request has again been denied and setting forth the specific reasons for the denial. If the final determination of the secretary of state is that the denial of the state or local government entity's request for disclosure has been improperly denied, the secretary of state shall grant the state or local government entity's request for disclosure in accordance with this section. The final determination of the secretary of state shall constitute final entity action.

L. The record before any judicial review of a final entity action pursuant to subsection K shall consist of the state or local government entity's request for disclosure, the secretary of state's written response, the state or local government entity's exceptions, the hearing transcript, if any, and the secretary of state's final determination.

M. During any period of review, evaluation or appeal, the state or local government entity, to the extent possible, shall accept and use the program participant's substitute address.

N. Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, the secretary of state shall establish an expedited process for disclosure to be used by a court, clerk of the court, criminal justice official or agency or a probation department for situations where disclosure is related to a criminal proceeding or investigation involving a program participant or any other court proceeding. An official or agency receiving information pursuant to this subsection shall certify to the secretary of state that the official or agency has a system in place to protect the confidentiality of a program participant's actual address from the public and from personnel who are not involved in the trial, hearing, proceeding or investigation.

O. This section does not prevent the secretary of state from granting a request for disclosure to a state or local government entity pursuant to this section on receipt of a program participant's written consent to do so.