[Code of Federal Regulations]
[Title 34, Volume 1]
[Revised as of July 1, 2004]
From the U.S. Government Printing Office via GPO Access
[CITE: 34CFR99.31]

[Page 323-325]
 
                           TITLE 34--EDUCATION
 
PART 99_FAMILY EDUCATIONAL RIGHTS AND PRIVACY--Table of Contents
 
 Subpart D_May an Educational Agency or Institution Disclose Personally 
            Identifiable Information From Education Records?
 
Sec. 99.31  Under what conditions is prior consent not required to 
disclose information?

    (a) An educational agency or institution may disclose personally 
identifiable information from an education record of a student without 
the consent required by Sec. 99.30 if the disclosure meets one or more 
of the following conditions:
    (1) The disclosure is to other school officials, including teachers, 
within the agency or institution whom the agency or institution has 
determined to have legitimate educational interests.
    (2) The disclosure is, subject to the requirements of Sec. 99.34, 
to officials of another school, school system, or institution of 
postsecondary education where the student seeks or intends to enroll.
    (3) The disclosure is, subject to the requirements of Sec. 99.35, 
to authorized representatives of--
    (i) The Comptroller General of the United States;
    (ii) The Attorney General of the United States;
    (iii) The Secretary; or
    (iv) State and local educational authorities.
    (4)(i) The disclosure is in connection with financial aid for which 
the student has applied or which the student has received, if the 
information is necessary for such purposes as to:
    (A) Determine eligibility for the aid;
    (B) Determine the amount of the aid;
    (C) Determine the conditions for the aid; or
    (D) Enforce the terms and conditions of the aid.

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    (ii) As used in paragraph (a)(4)(i) of this section, financial aid 
means a payment of funds provided to an individual (or a payment in kind 
of tangible or intangible property to the individual) that is 
conditioned on the individual's attendance at an educational agency or 
institution.

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1232g(b)(1)(D))

    (5)(i) The disclosure is to State and local officials or authorities 
to whom this information is specifically--
    (A) Allowed to be reported or disclosed pursuant to State statute 
adopted before November 19, 1974, if the allowed reporting or disclosure 
concerns the juvenile justice system and the system's ability to 
effectively serve the student whose records are released; or
    (B) Allowed to be reported or disclosed pursuant to State statute 
adopted after November 19, 1974, subject to the requirements of Sec. 
99.38.
    (ii) Paragraph (a)(5)(i) of this section does not prevent a State 
from further limiting the number or type of State or local officials to 
whom disclosures may be made under that paragraph.
    (6)(i) The disclosure is to organizations conducting studies for, or 
on behalf of, educational agencies or institutions to:
    (A) Develop, validate, or administer predictive tests;
    (B) Administer student aid programs; or
    (C) Improve instruction.
    (ii) The agency or institution may disclose information under 
paragraph (a)(6)(i) of this section only if:
    (A) The study is conducted in a manner that does not permit personal 
identification of parents and students by individuals other than 
representatives of the organization; and
    (B) The information is destroyed when no longer needed for the 
purposes for which the study was conducted.
    (iii) If this Office determines that a third party outside the 
educational agency or institution to whom information is disclosed under 
this paragraph (a)(6) violates paragraph (a)(6)(ii)(B) of this section, 
the educational agency or institution may not allow that third party 
access to personally identifiable information from education records for 
at least five years.
    (iv) For the purposes of paragraph (a)(6) of this section, the term 
organization includes, but is not limited to, Federal, State, and local 
agencies, and independent organizations.
    (7) The disclosure is to accrediting organizations to carry out 
their accrediting functions.
    (8) The disclosure is to parents, as defined in Sec. 99.3, of a 
dependent student, as defined in section 152 of the Internal Revenue 
Code of 1986.
    (9)(i) The disclosure is to comply with a judicial order or lawfully 
issued subpoena.
    (ii) The educational agency or institution may disclose information 
under paragraph (a)(9)(i) of this section only if the agency or 
institution makes a reasonable effort to notify the parent or eligible 
student of the order or subpoena in advance of compliance, so that the 
parent or eligible student may seek protective action, unless the 
disclosure is in compliance with--
    (A) A Federal grand jury subpoena and the court has ordered that the 
existence or the contents of the subpoena or the information furnished 
in response to the subpoena not be disclosed; or
    (B) Any other subpoena issued for a law enforcement purpose and the 
court or other issuing agency has ordered that the existence or the 
contents of the subpoena or the information furnished in response to the 
subpoena not be disclosed.
    (iii)(A) If an educational agency or institution initiates legal 
action against a parent or student, the educational agency or 
institution may disclose to the court, without a court order or 
subpoena, the education records of the student that are relevant for the 
educational agency or institution to proceed with the legal action as 
plaintiff.
    (B) If a parent or eligible student initiates legal action against 
an educational agency or institution, the educational agency or 
institution may disclose to the court, without a court order or 
subpoena, the student's education records that are relevant for the 
educational agency or institution to defend itself.
    (10) The disclosure is in connection with a health or safety 
emergency,

[[Page 325]]

under the conditions described in Sec. 99.36.
    (11) The disclosure is information the educational agency or 
institution has designated as ``directory information'', under the 
conditions described in Sec. 99.37.
    (12) The disclosure is to the parent of a student who is not an 
eligible student or to the student.
    (13) The disclosure, subject to the requirements in Sec. 99.39, is 
to a victim of an alleged perpetrator of a crime of violence or a non-
forcible sex offense. The disclosure may only include the final results 
of the disciplinary proceeding conducted by the institution of 
postsecondary education with respect to that alleged crime or offense. 
The institution may disclose the final results of the disciplinary 
proceeding, regardless of whether the institution concluded a violation 
was committed.
    (14)(i) The disclosure, subject to the requirements in Sec. 99.39, 
is in connection with a disciplinary proceeding at an institution of 
postsecondary education. The institution must not disclose the final 
results of the disciplinary proceeding unless it determines that--
    (A) The student is an alleged perpetrator of a crime of violence or 
non-forcible sex offense; and
    (B) With respect to the allegation made against him or her, the 
student has committed a violation of the institution's rules or 
policies.
    (ii) The institution may not disclose the name of any other student, 
including a victim or witness, without the prior written consent of the 
other student.
    (iii) This section applies only to disciplinary proceedings in which 
the final results were reached on or after October 7, 1998.
    (15)(i) The disclosure is to a parent of a student at an institution 
of postsecondary education regarding the student's violation of any 
Federal, State, or local law, or of any rule or policy of the 
institution, governing the use or possession of alcohol or a controlled 
substance if--
    (A) The institution determines that the student has committed a 
disciplinary violation with respect to that use or possession; and
    (B) The student is under the age of 21 at the time of the disclosure 
to the parent.
    (ii) Paragraph (a)(15) of this section does not supersede any 
provision of State law that prohibits an institution of postsecondary 
education from disclosing information.
    (b) Paragraph (a) of this section does not forbid an educational 
agency or institution from disclosing, nor does it require an 
educational agency or institution to disclose, personally identifiable 
information from the education records of a student to any parties under 
paragraphs (a)(1) through (11), (13), (14), and (15) of this section.

(Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1232g(a)(5)(A), (b)(1), (b)(2)(B), (b)(6), (h), 
and (i))

[53 FR 11943, Apr. 11, 1988; 53 FR 19368, May 27, 1988, as amended at 58 
FR 3189, Jan. 7, 1993; 61 FR 59296, Nov. 21, 1996; 65 FR 41853, July 6, 
2000]