North Carolina § 126-23 - Certain records to be kept by State agencies open to inspection.

§ 126-23. Certain records to be kept by State agencies open to inspection.

Each department, agency, institution, commission and bureau of the State shall maintain a record of each of its employees, showing the following information with respect to each such employee: Name. Age. Date of original employment or appointment to State service. The terms of any contract by which the employee is employed whether written or oral, past and current, to the extent that the agency has the written contract or a record of the oral contract in its possession. Current position. Title. Current salary. Date and amount of each increase or decrease in salary with that department, agency, institution, commission, or bureau. Date and type of each promotion, demotion, transfer, suspension, separation, or other change in position classification with that department, agency, institution, commission, or bureau. Date and general description of the reasons for each promotion with that department, agency, institution, commission, or bureau. Date and type of each dismissal, suspension, or demotion for disciplinary reasons taken by the department, agency, institution, commission, or bureau. If the disciplinary action was a dismissal, a copy of the written notice of the final decision of the head of the department setting forth the specific acts or omissions that are the basis of the dismissal. The office or station to which the employee is currently assigned. For the purposes of this section, the term "salary" includes pay, benefits, incentives, bonuses, and deferred and all other forms of compensation paid by the employing entity. Subject only to rules and regulations for the safekeeping of the records, adopted by the State Human Resources Commission, every person having custody of such records shall permit them to be inspected and examined and copies thereof made by any person during regular business hours. Except as provided in subsection (d) of this section, any person who is denied access to any such record for the purpose of inspecting, examining or copying the same shall have a right to compel compliance with the provisions of this section by application to a court of competent jurisdiction for a writ of mandamus or other appropriate relief. Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, persons in the custody of, or under the supervision of, the Division of Adult Correction and Juvenile Justice and persons in the custody of local confinement facilities are not entitled to access to the records made public under this section and are prohibited from obtaining those records, absent a court order authorizing access to, or custody, or possession. An attorney investigating allegations of unlawful misconduct or abuse by a Division of Adult Correction and Juvenile Justice employee may request, and shall be provided with, information sufficient to identify the full name or names of the employee alleged to be involved in the misconduct or abuse in the current position of the employee within the Division; or, the last position held by the employee and the last date of employment by the Division. The attorney may not give the offender copies of departmental records or official documents absent a court order authorizing access to, or custody, or possession. History (1975, c. 257, s. 1; c. 667, s. 2; 2007-508, s. 4; 2010-169, s. 18(a); 2011-145, s. 19.1(h); 2011-324, s. 1.1(b); 2013-382, s. 9.1(c); 2017-186, s. 2(ttttt).) Editor's Note. - Session Laws 2011-324, s. 1.1(a), provides: "The General Assembly finds that allowing inmates, probationers, parolees, and post-release supervisees to access public employees' personnel files that are public records under State law exposes those public employees to the risk of harassment and even violence. The General Assembly further finds that such offenders, due to their status as inmates, probationers, parolees, and post-release supervisees, are not entitled to the same privileges and rights exercised by members of the general public and should be prohibited from accessing public employees' personnel files in the interest of protecting those public employees from harm." Session Laws 2013-382, s. 9.1(b), provides: "The following entities and positions created by Chapter 126 of the General Statutes are hereby renamed by this act: "(1) The State Personnel Commission is renamed the 'North Carolina Human Resources Commission.' "(2) The Office of State Personnel is renamed the 'North Carolina Office of State Human Resources.' "(3) The State Personnel Director is renamed the 'Director of the North Carolina Office of State Human Resources.' " Session Laws 2013-382, s. 9.1(c), provides: "Modification of References. - The Revisor of Statutes shall delete any references in the General Statutes to the State Personnel Act, State Personnel Commission, the State Personnel Director, and the Office of State Personnel (or any derivatives thereof) and substitute references to the North Carolina Human Resources Act, the State Human Resources Commission, the Director of the Office of State Human Resources, and the Office of Human Resources (or the appropriate derivative thereof) to effectuate the renaming set forth in this section wherever conforming changes are necessary." Session Laws 2013-382, s. 9.2, provides: "No action or proceeding pending on the effective date of this section [August 21, 2013], brought by or against the State Personnel Commission, the Director of the Office of State Personnel, or the Office of State Personnel, shall be affected by any provision of this section, but the same may be prosecuted or defended in the new name of the Commission, Director, and Office. In these actions and proceedings, the renamed Commission, Director, or Office shall be substituted as a party upon proper application to the courts or other public bodies." Session Laws 2013-382, s. 9.3, provides: "Any business or other matter undertaken or commanded by the former State Personnel Commission, State Personnel Director, or Office of State Personnel regarding any State program, office, or contract or pertaining to or connected with their respective functions, powers, obligations, and duties that are pending on the date this act becomes effective [August 21, 2013] may be conducted and completed by the Commission, Director, or Office in the same manner and under the same terms and conditions and with the same effect as if conducted and completed by the formerly named commission, director, or office." Session Laws 2016-108, s. 2(a) provides: "The February 5, 2008, Attorney General's advisory opinion entitled 'Advisory Opinion: Confidentiality of Retirement Benefit Information; Session Law 2007-508' concluded that information about retirement benefits was intended to be included among those records required to be maintained for public inspection by each department, agency, institution, commission, and bureau of the State and that as a result the Retirement Systems Division of the Department of the State Treasurer makes that information available for public inspection and examination. The General Assembly finds that the interests of clarity require statutory language providing guidance to the Retirement Systems Division in determining and maintaining consistency as to what information should be made available about the retirement accounts of State and local employees." Session Laws 2016-108, s. 9, is a severability clause. Effect of Amendments. - Session Laws 2007-508, s. 4, effective August 30, 2007, inserted "the terms of any contract by which the employee is employed whether written or oral, past and current, to the extent that the board has the written contract or a record of the oral contract in its possession" in the middle of the first sentence, and added the second sentence. Session Laws 2010-169, s. 18(a), effective October 1, 2010, designated the three formerly undesignated paragraphs as subsections (a), (b), and (c); and rewrote subsection (a). Session Laws 2011-145, s. 19.1(h), effective January 1, 2012, in subsections (d) and (e), substituted "Division of Adult Correction" for "Department of Correction" and in subsection (e), substituted "Division" for "Department" twice. Session Laws 2011-324, s. 1.1(b), effective June 27, 2011, added the exception at the beginning of the last sentence in subsection (c); and added subsections (d) and (e). Session Laws 2013-382, s. 9.1(c), effective August 21, 2013, substituted "State Human Resources Commission" for "State Personnel Commission" in the first sentence of subsection (c). Session Laws 2017-186, s. 2(ttttt), effective December 1, 2017, inserted "and Juvenile Justice" in subsections (d) and (e). Legal Periodicals. - For comment, "You Can't Always Get What You Want: A Look at North Carolina's Public Records Law," see 72 N.C.L. Rev. 1527 (1994). For article, "Fired by Liars: Due Process Implications in the Recent Changes to North Carolina's Public Disclosure Laws," see 89 N.C.L. Rev. 2228 (2011).