2021 Alaska Statutes
Title 47. Welfare, Social Services, and Institutions
Chapter 10. Children in Need of Aid
Article 1. Children's Proceedings.
Sec. 47.10.093. Disclosure of agency records.

(a) Except as permitted in AS 47.10.092, (b) - (g) and (i) - (l) of this section, and AS 47.17.030(g), all information and social records pertaining to a child who is subject to this chapter or AS 47.17 prepared by or in the possession of a federal, state, or municipal agency or employee in the discharge of the agency's or employee's official duty are privileged and may not be disclosed directly or indirectly to anyone without a court order.

(b) A state or municipal agency or employee shall disclose appropriate confidential information regarding a case to

(1) a guardian ad litem appointed by the court;

(2) a person or an agency requested by the department or the child's legal custodian to provide consultation or services for a child who is subject to the jurisdiction of the court under AS 47.10.010 as necessary to enable the provision of the consultation or services;

(3) an out-of-home care provider as necessary to enable the out-of-home care provider to provide appropriate care to the child, to protect the safety of the child, and to protect the safety and property of family members and visitors of the out-of-home care provider;

(4) a school official as necessary to enable the school to provide appropriate counseling and support services to a child who is the subject of the case, to protect the safety of the child, and to protect the safety of school students and staff;

(5) a governmental agency as necessary to obtain that agency's assistance for the department in its investigation or to obtain physical custody of a child;

(6) a law enforcement agency of this state or another jurisdiction as necessary for the protection of any child or for actions by that agency to protect the public safety;

(7) a member of a multidisciplinary child protection team created under AS 47.14.300 as necessary for the performance of the member's duties;

(8) the state medical examiner under AS 12.65 as necessary for the performance of the duties of the state medical examiner;

(9) a person who has made a report of harm as required by AS 47.17.020 to inform the person that the investigation was completed and of action taken to protect the child who was the subject of the report;

(10) the child support services agency established in AS 25.27.010 as necessary to establish and collect child support for a child who is a child in need of aid under this chapter;

(11) a parent, guardian, or caregiver of a child or an entity responsible for ensuring the safety of children as necessary to protect the safety of a child;

(12) a review panel, including a variance committee established under AS 47.05.360, established by the department for the purpose of reviewing the actions taken by the department in a specific case;

(13) the University of Alaska under the Alaska higher education savings program for children established under AS 47.14.400, but only to the extent that the information is necessary to support the program and only if the information released is maintained as a confidential record by the University of Alaska;

(14) a child placement agency licensed under AS 47.32 as necessary to provide services for a child who is the subject of the case;

(15) a state or municipal agency of this state or another jurisdiction that is responsible for delinquent minors, as may be necessary for the administration of services, protection, rehabilitation, or supervision of a child or for actions by the agency to protect the public safety; however, a court may review an objection made to a disclosure under this paragraph; the person objecting to the disclosure bears the burden of establishing by a preponderance of the evidence that disclosure is not in the child's best interest; and

(16) a sibling of a child who is the subject of the case to allow the siblings to contact each other if it is in the best interests of the child to maintain contact; in this paragraph, “sibling” means an adult or minor who is related to the child who is the subject of the case by blood, adoption, or marriage as a child of one or both of the parents of the child who is the subject of the case; a sibling who is adopted by a person other than the parent of the child who is the subject of the case remains a sibling of the child.

(c) A state or municipal law enforcement agency shall disclose information regarding a case that is needed by the person or agency charged with making a preliminary investigation for the information of the court under AS 47.10.020.

(d) [Repealed, § 55 ch 59 SLA 1996.]

(e) [Repealed, § 55 ch 59 SLA 1996.]

(f) The department may release to a person with a legitimate interest confidential information relating to children not subject to the jurisdiction of the court under AS 47.10.010.

(g) The department and affected law enforcement agencies shall work with school districts and private schools to develop procedures for the disclosure of confidential information to a school official under (b)(4) of this section. The procedures must provide a method for informing the principal or the principal's designee of the school that the student attends as soon as it is reasonably practicable.

(h) [Repealed, § 55 ch 59 SLA 1996.]

(i) The commissioner of health and social services or the commissioner's designee or the commissioner of administration or the commissioner's designee, as appropriate, may disclose to the public, upon request, confidential information, as set out in (j) of this section, when

(1) the parent or guardian of a child who is the subject of one or more reports of harm under AS 47.17 has made a public disclosure concerning the department's involvement with the family;

(2) the alleged perpetrator named in one or more reports of harm under AS 47.17 has been charged with a crime concerning the alleged abuse or neglect; or

(3) abuse or neglect has resulted in the fatality or near fatality of a child who is the subject of one or more reports of harm under AS 47.17.

(j) The department may publicly disclose information pertaining to a child or an alleged perpetrator named in a report of harm described under (i) of this section, or pertaining to a household member of the child or the alleged perpetrator, if the information relates to a determination, if any, made by the department regarding the nature and validity of a report of harm under AS 47.17 or to the department's activities arising from the department's investigation of the report. The commissioner or the commissioner's designee

(1) shall withhold disclosure of the child's name, picture, or other information that would readily lead to the identification of the child if the department determines that the disclosure would be contrary to the best interests of the child, the child's siblings, or other children in the child's household; or

(2) after consultation with a prosecuting attorney, shall withhold disclosure of information that would reasonably be expected to interfere with a criminal investigation or proceeding or a criminal defendant's right to a fair trial in a criminal proceeding.

(k) Except for a disclosure made under (i) of this section, a person to whom disclosure is made under this section may not disclose confidential information about the child or the child's family to a person not authorized to receive it.

(l) The Department of Health and Social Services and the Department of Administration shall adopt regulations to implement and interpret the duties of the respective department under this section, including regulations governing the release of confidential information and identifying a sufficient legitimate interest under (f) of this section.

(m) A person may not bring an action for damages against the state, the commissioner, or the commissioner's designee based on the disclosure or nondisclosure of information under (i) of this section except for civil damages resulting from gross negligence or reckless or intentional misconduct.

(n) A person who discloses confidential information in violation of this section is guilty of a class B misdemeanor.

(o) In this section, “school” means a public or private elementary or secondary school.