Re; HB 452

Questions sent to GBI Thursday, July 6 response received Sunday, July 9, 2017

Nelly Miles
Director
Office of Public Affairs
Georgia Bureau of Investigation
Phone: 404-270-8330
www.gbi.georgia.gov
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1) Will you please advise whether it is true that GBI has in place policy that will not allow sending the EID/LENS release info to the Georgia Sheriff’s Association as directed in HB 452?  This is not true.

2) Will you please advise whether it is true that GBI has in place policy that will not allow posting the EID/LENS info on its website as directed in HB 452? This is not true. It is not a GBI policy but a policy dictated by the Federal government.

3) Will you please provide a short statement on the reasoning for the GBI policy if it is contrary the language of HB 452? (is it GBI’s official position that federal does not allow sharing EID/LENS info with the Georgia Sheriff’s Association and/or the Georgia public?)

This new law contains a provision, “to the extent permitted by federal law.” The GBI was informed by the Department of Homeland Security/ICE that the State of Georgia does not have the authority to publicly release the information mandated in the state law (HB452). Title 8 of Code of Federal Regulations, Part 236.6, titled “Information Regarding Detainees,” was cited:

“No person, including any state or local government entity or any privately operated detention facility, that houses, maintains, provides services to, or otherwise holds any detainee on behalf of the Service (Service means U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, and/or U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, whether by contract or otherwise), and no other person who by virtue of any official or contractual relationship with such person obtains information relating to any detainee, shall disclose or otherwise permit to be made public the name of, or other information relating to, such detainee. Such information shall be under the control of the Service and shall be subject to public disclosure only pursuant to the provisions of applicable federal laws, regulations and executive orders. Insofar as any documents or other records contain such information, such documents shall not be public records. This section applies to all persons and information identified or described in it, regardless of when such persons obtained such information, and applies to all requests for public disclosure of such information, including requests that are the subject of proceedings pending as of April 17, 2002.”

4) When did your office begin receiving the EID/LENS program data?
GBI Response: Georgia began receiving LENS notifications in August 2015.

6) Is this subscription program provided by GBI or federal authorities? If federal, which agency? See below/above.

7) How does a sheriff begin the subscription service? See below.

8) Is the subscription service available to all local law enforcement, or only sheriffs?
GBI Response: The following notification (pasted below – dak) was posted to the GCIC website on 6/26/2017.

And also to follow up, we received a list of subscribers from the LENS team. You can contact them for that information at LENS-Subscriptions@ice.dhs.gov .

Thanks!

Nelly Miles
Director
Office of Public Affairs
Georgia Bureau of Investigation

From: D.A. KING [mailto:Dking1952@comcast.net]
Sent: Friday, July 7, 2017 5:08 PM
To: Miles, Nelly <Nelly.Miles@gbi.ga.gov>
Subject: Additional question – Re: Media request – update on HB 452

Ms. Miles,
One more question, for now, please: What counties are the sheriffs from that have subscribed to EID/LENS info?

dak