ATTORNEY GENERAL Under provisions set out in the Texas Constitution, the Texas Government Code, Title 4, sec.402.042 and numerous statutes, the attorney general is authorized to write advisory opinions for state and local officials. These advisory opinions are requested by agencies or officials when they are confronted with unique or unusually difficult legal questions. The attorney general also determines, under authority of the Texas Open Records Act, whether information requested for release from governmental agencies may be held from public disclosure. Requests for opinions, opinions, and open record decisions are summarized for publication in the Texas Register. The Attorney General responds to many requests for opinions and open records decisions with letter opinions. A letter opinion has the same force and effect as a formal Attorney General Opinion, and represents the opinion of the Attorney General unless and until it is modified or overruled by a subsequent letter opinion, a formal Attorney General Opinion, or a decision of a court of record. To request copies of opinions, phone (512) 462-0011. To inquire about pending requests for opinions, phone (512) 463-2110. Letter Opinions LO-95-074 (ID#-30899). Request from The Honorable Sonya Letson, County Attorney, Potter County, 303 Courthouse, Amarillo, Texas 79101, concerning whether the Government Code, sec.25.0005 or the Government Code, sec.25.1902 controls the amount of salary Potter County must pay the judges of its county courts at law and related question. Summary of Opinion. In the context of the Government Code, sec.25. 1902(h), which provides that the judge of a county court at law in Potter County "may be paid an annual salary that is at least equal to the amount that is $1,000 less than the total salary paid the district judge in the county," the term "total salary" does not include the state's or county's contributions pursuant to the Federal Insurance Contributions Act, 26 United States Code, Chapter 21. On the other hand, the Government Code, sec.25.0005(a), which generally requires a county commissioners court in a county that collects fees and costs pursuant to the Government Code, sec.51.702 to pay a statutory county court judge "an amount that is at least equal to the amount that is $1,000 less than the total annual salary received by a district judge in the county," expressly defines the phrase "total annual salary" to include FICA contributions. Thus, the minimum salary sec.25.0005(a) establishes is higher than the minimum salary provided in sec.25.1902(h). But see Act of May 16, 1995, 74th Legislature, Regular Session, Chapter 242, sec.1, 1995 Texas Session Law Service 2151, 2151 (repealing sec.25.1902(h)). Assuming that the Potter County commissioners court has set the salary of its statutory county court judges at the level the Government Code, sec.25.0005(a) stipulates, it has complied with the law. TRD-9515562 LO-95-075 (ID#-34011). Request from The Honorable Barry B. Telford, Chair, Committee on Pensions and Investments, Texas House of Representatives, P.O. Box 2910, Austin, Texas 78768- 2910, concerning whether, subsequent to the merger of a municipality's pension plan for volunteer fire fighters, established under Texas Civil Statutes, Article 6243e, with the Volunteer Fire Fighters' Relief and Retirement Fund, established under Texas Civil Statutes, Article 6243e.3, the state board of trustees of the Volunteer Fire Fighters' Relief and Retirement Fund may require the municipality to contribute additional funds to pay benefits for retired fire fighters who receive benefits under Texas Civil Statutes, Article 6243e. Summary of Opinion. Texas Civil Statutes, Article 6243e.3, sec.11, provides the procedure by which a municipality that has established a local pension plan for its volunteer fire fighters under Texas Civil Statutes, Article 6243e may merge the plan with the statewide pension system established pursuant to Article 6243e.3. For purposes of Article 6243e.3, sec.11(h), "unfunded prior-service cost" includes only the cost the governing body of such a municipality must pay the 411 system fund for nonretired, active fire fighters who have accrued benefits under the local, Article 6243e plan. "Unfunded prior-service cost" does not include benefits retired fire fighters or their spouses receive under the Article 6243e plan. Pursuant to sec.11(h), a municipality's unfunded prior-service cost must be calculated at the time the municipality's Article 6243e plan and the statewide Article 6243e.3 system merge. The board of trustees of the statewide pension system fund are not authorized, subsequent to the merger, to seek additional funds from the municipality for unfunded prior-service cost. The board may, however, require the municipality to pay, on an annual basis, the amount retirees or spouses are entitled to receive under the municipality's Article 6243e plan. TRD-9515563 LO-95-076 (ID#-33343). Request from Honorable James L. Anderson, Jr., Aransas County Attorney, 301 North Live Oak Street, Rockport, Texas 78382, concerning whether the Aransas County Navigation District Number 1 may convert from a Chapter 62, Water Code, navigation district into a Chapter 63, Water Code, district. Summary of Opinion. The Water Code, sec.63.039 authorizes the Aransas County Navigation District Number 1, which we understand to be a navigation district operating under Article XVI, Section 59 of the Texas Constitution and organized pursuant to Water Code, Chapter 62, to convert to a "self-liquidating district operating under" Chapter 63. In doing so, however, the district must comply with the Water Code, sec.sec.63.040-63.044. TRD-9515564 LO-95-077 (RQ-834). Request from Robert S. Martin, Director and Librarian, Texas State Library, P.O. Box 12927, Austin, Texas 78711-2927, concerning whether the State Library and Archives Commission may deny federal grant monies to a municipal library that annually lends more than 20,000 items to individuals not residing in the municipality based solely upon the municipal library's provision of services to nonresidents. Summary of Opinion. The Texas State Library and Archives Commission is not authorized by the Government Code, sec.441.009, or any other federal or state statute or regulation, to deny a federally funded Major Urban Resource Library grant to a municipal library merely because the library has failed to provide library services to nonresidents in compliance with the commission's grant guidelines. TRD-9515565 Open Records Decision ORD-634 (RQ-775). Request from JoAnn S. Wright, School Attorney, Arlington Independent School District, 1203 West Pioneer Parkway, Arlington, Texas 76013-6246, concerning whether a school district may deny a request for information that is protected as "education records" under the federal Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act without seeking a determination from the attorney general under Government Code, sec.552.301. Summary of Decisions. An educational agency or institution may withhold from public disclosure personally identifiable nondirectory information in "education records" as defined in the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974 ("FERPA"), 20 U.S.C. sec.1232g, which information is excepted from required public disclosure by Government Code sec.552.026, without the necessity of requesting an attorney general decision as to that exception. Furthermore, an educational agency or institution may withhold from public disclosure information that is protected by FERPA and excepted from required public disclosure by Government Code sec.552.101 as "information considered to be confidential by law," without the necessity of requesting an attorney general decision as to that exception. Finally, an educational agency or institution that is also state-funded may withhold from public disclosure information that is excepted from required public disclosure by Government Code sec.552.114 as a "student record," insofar as the "student record" is protected by FERPA, without the necessity of requesting an attorney general decision as to that exception. An educational agency or institution that seeks an attorney general decision under the Texas Open Records Act should, before submitting "education records" to this office, either obtain parental consent to the disclosure of personally identifiable nondirectory information in the records or edit the records to make sure that they contain no personally identifiable nondirectory information. TRD-9516058 Requests for Opinion (RQ-855). Request from Vernon M. Arrell, Commissioner, Texas Rehabilitation Commission, 4900 North Lamar Boulevard, Austin, Texas 78751-2399 and Mary Elder, Executive Director, Texas Interagency Council on Early Childhood Intervention, 1100 West 49th Street, Austin, Texas 78756-3199, concerning purchase of liability insurance for state officers and employees under the 1996-97 General Appropriations Act; reconsideration of Attorney General Opinion DM-346 (1995). TRD-9515561