Recently, the question has been asked, once again, whether the Notice of Intent to Home School–a form filed by every home school family in the State of Arkansas–is subject to Freedom of Information Act requests.

This question was actually answered by Mike Beebe in 2004, when he was Attorney General. The answer is “No.”

The Freedom of Information Act allows citizens to request copies of state documents. The act’s intent is to provide greater transparency and accountability in our government.

You can read then-Attorney General Beebe’s full response on the issue here. Suffice it to say student information contained within the Notice of Intent to Home School is protected by law, and cannot be requested by under the Freedom of Information Act. At most, statistical information extrapolated from the Notice of Intent (e.g. number of home school families, etc.) might be subject to an FOI request, but that’s it. No personally identifiable information.

Attorney General opinions are not equal to state or federal law, but they do clarify legislative intent, and give lawmakers and state agencies legal backing when weighing tough questions.