Office of Privacy and Compliance
The Office of Privacy and Compliance is responsible for managing the Open Records Unit, the Bingo Unit, Accreditation, as well as handling privacy issues and ensuring compliance with legal requirements.
OPEN RECORDS UNIT
The Open Records Unit, which includes archives management, is within the Office of Privacy and Compliance. In Fiscal Year 2010, the Open Records Unit processed 2,608 open records request for a total of 26,306 pages. In addition to the requests, the Open Records Unit processed 87 subpoenas, 22 court orders, 29 production of document requests, and 290 Intoxilyzer requests.
The Open Records Unit continues to provide training sessions to various criminal justice agencies throughout the state regarding the Georgia Open Records Act.
Bingo is one of only three legal forms of gambling in Georgia. The other two legal forms of gambling are the Georgia Lottery and raffles. Annually, millions of dollars pass through the hands of Georgia bingo operators. In 1980, the Georgia General Assembly passed legislation that gave the Georgia Bureau of Investigation the authority to enforce and regulate bingo. All bingo operators must be active members of the licensed organization and approved by the GBI before they are allowed to assist with bingo operations.
The Bingo Unit is responsible for managing approximately 170 Bingo organizations across the State of Georgia. During calendar year 2010, Bingo organizations within the State of Georgia received approximately 21 million dollars in gross receipts.
ACCREDITATION UNIT
The Office of Privacy and Compliance also oversees the Accreditation Unit responsible for maintaining national law enforcement accreditation and state law enforcement certification. On November 21, 1998, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation was internationally accredited by the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies (CALEA®). GBI received reaccreditation in 2001, 2004, 2007, and 2010. GBI is also certified by the State of Georgia Law Enforcement Certification Program through the Georgia Association of Chiefs of Police. GBI is scheduled for its next on-site inspection in 2013.
CALEA® is the nonprofit organization that accredits law enforcement agencies internationally. Standards are developed to help law enforcement agencies achieve the following: increase agency capabilities to prevent and control crime; enhance agency effectiveness and efficiency in the delivery of law enforcement services; improve cooperation and coordination with other law enforcement agencies and other components of the criminal justice system; and increase citizen and staff confidence in the goals, objectives, policies and practices of the agency. Participation in the accreditation program is voluntary.
In 2010, GBI was identified as a Flagship Agency. The CALEA® Flagship Agency Program is designed to acknowledge CALEA Accredited public safety agencies that have demonstrated success in the accreditation process. The program also serves to provide other agencies seeking accreditation with examples of “best practices” on how to address compliance, policy development, file maintenance, and other issues relating to the accreditation process. The Flagship Agency designation is effective for the duration of the current award period.
PRIVACY OFFICER
The Director of the Office of Privacy and Compliance serves as the GBI Privacy Officer and is responsible for privacy, civil rights, and civil liberties issues, policy development, policy compliance, the coordination of privacy training related to all GBI Intelligence operations, and the security of information systems.
OTHER DUTIES
The Office of Privacy and Compliance also reviews proposed legislation and provides legal expertise in the areas of policy, legal issues, and personnel law.