| 1 | 1 | | 81R2294 JTS-F |
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| 2 | 2 | | By: Madden H.B. No. 561 |
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| 3 | 3 | | |
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| 4 | 4 | | |
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| 5 | 5 | | A BILL TO BE ENTITLED |
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| 6 | 6 | | AN ACT |
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| 7 | 7 | | relating to the authority of county auditors with respect to |
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| 8 | 8 | | computer software and data of other local officers or departments. |
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| 9 | 9 | | BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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| 10 | 10 | | SECTION 1. Subchapter A, Chapter 112, Local Government |
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| 11 | 11 | | Code, is amended by adding Section 112.011 to read as follows: |
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| 12 | 12 | | Sec. 112.011. INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY AND SOFTWARE |
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| 13 | 13 | | PROGRAMS; LIMITATION ON AUDITOR AUTHORITY. In exercising authority |
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| 14 | 14 | | granted under this subchapter, a county auditor in a county with a |
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| 15 | 15 | | population of 190,000 or more may not mandate the use of information |
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| 16 | 16 | | technology components or software programs used by county |
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| 17 | 17 | | departments, district clerks, district attorneys, county officers, |
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| 18 | 18 | | or precinct officers. |
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| 19 | 19 | | SECTION 2. Section 115.001, Local Government Code, is |
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| 20 | 20 | | amended to read as follows: |
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| 21 | 21 | | Sec. 115.001. EXAMINATION OF RECORDS. (a) The county |
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| 22 | 22 | | auditor shall [have continual access to and shall] examine and |
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| 23 | 23 | | investigate the correctness of: |
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| 24 | 24 | | (1) the books, accounts, reports, vouchers, and other |
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| 25 | 25 | | financial records of any officer; |
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| 26 | 26 | | (2) the orders of the commissioners court relating to |
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| 27 | 27 | | county finances; and |
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| 28 | 28 | | (3) the vouchers given by the trustees of all common |
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| 29 | 29 | | school districts of the county. |
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| 30 | 30 | | (b) In exercising authority granted under this section, a |
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| 31 | 31 | | county auditor may not directly access or manipulate real-time data |
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| 32 | 32 | | on a computer maintained by a county department or a district clerk, |
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| 33 | 33 | | district attorney, county officer, or precinct officer except as |
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| 34 | 34 | | authorized by a written agreement between the auditor and the |
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| 35 | 35 | | entity responsible for compiling or maintaining the applicable |
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| 36 | 36 | | data. |
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| 37 | 37 | | SECTION 3. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives |
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| 38 | 38 | | a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as |
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| 39 | 39 | | provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this |
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| 40 | 40 | | Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this |
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| 41 | 41 | | Act takes effect September 1, 2009. |
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