By: Wentworth S.B. No. 1630
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to the availability of information under the public
information law.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Subdivision (1), Section 552.003, Government
Code, is amended to read as follows:
(1) "Governmental body":
(A) means:
(i) a board, commission, department,
committee, institution, agency, or office that is within or is
created by the executive or legislative branch of state government
and that is directed by one or more elected or appointed members;
(ii) a county commissioners court in the
state;
(iii) a municipal governing body in the
state;
(iv) a deliberative body that has
rulemaking or quasi-judicial power and that is classified as a
department, agency, or political subdivision of a county or
municipality;
(v) a school district board of trustees;
(vi) a county board of school trustees;
(vii) a county board of education;
(viii) the governing board of a special
district;
(ix) the governing body of a nonprofit
corporation organized under Chapter 67, Water Code, that provides a
water supply or wastewater service, or both, and is exempt from ad
valorem taxation under Section 11.30, Tax Code;
(x) a local workforce development board
created under Section 2308.253;
(xi) a nonprofit corporation that is
eligible to receive funds under the federal community services
block grant program and that is authorized by this state to serve a
geographic area of the state; and
(xii) the part, section, or portion of an
organization, corporation, commission, committee, institution, or
agency that spends or that is supported in whole or in part by
public funds; and
(B) does not include:
(i) the judiciary; or
(ii) a nonprofit corporation that is
organized for the purposes of a chamber of commerce and provides
economic development services to a governmental body.
SECTION 2. (a) Section 552.008, Government Code, is
amended by adding Subsections (b-1) and (b-2) to read as follows:
(b-1) A member, committee, or agency of the legislature
required by a governmental body to sign a confidentiality agreement
under Subsection (b) may seek a decision as provided by Subsection
(b-2) about whether the information covered by the confidentiality
agreement is confidential under law. A confidentiality agreement
signed under Subsection (b) is void to the extent that the agreement
covers information that is finally determined under Subsection
(b-2) to not be confidential under law.
(b-2) The member, committee, or agency of the legislature
may seek a decision from the attorney general about the matter. The
attorney general by rule shall establish procedures and deadlines
for receiving information necessary to decide the matter and briefs
from the requestor, the governmental body, and any other interested
person. The attorney general shall promptly render a decision
requested under this subsection, determining whether the
information covered by the confidentiality agreement is
confidential under law, not later than the 45th business day after
the date the attorney general received the request for a decision
under this subsection. The attorney general shall issue a written
decision on the matter and provide a copy of the decision to the
requestor, the governmental body, and any interested person who
submitted necessary information or a brief to the attorney general
about the matter. The requestor or the governmental body may appeal
a decision of the attorney general under this subsection to a Travis
County district court. A person may appeal a decision of the
attorney general under this subsection to a Travis County district
court if the person claims a proprietary interest in the
information affected by the decision or a privacy interest in the
information that a confidentiality law or judicial decision is
designed to protect.
(b) Subsections (b-1) and (b-2), Section 552.008,
Government Code, as added by this section, take effect September 1,
2010.
SECTION 3. Section 552.105, Government Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 552.105. EXCEPTION: INFORMATION RELATED TO LOCATION
OR PRICE OF PROPERTY. (a) Information is excepted from the
requirements of Section 552.021 if it is information relating to:
(1) the location of real or personal property for a
public purpose prior to public announcement of the project; or
(2) appraisals or purchase price of real or personal
property for a public purpose prior to the formal award of contracts
for the property.
(b) Section 552.022 does not apply to information described
by Subsection (a).
SECTION 4. Subsection (b), Section 552.221, Government
Code, is amended to read as follows:
(b) An officer for public information complies with
Subsection (a) by:
(1) providing the public information for inspection or
duplication in the offices of the governmental body; [or]
(2) sending copies of the public information by first
class United States mail if the person requesting the information
requests that copies be provided and pays the postage and any other
applicable charges that the requestor has accrued under Subchapter
F; or
(3)(A) informing the person requesting the
information, in writing, that the public information is available
on an Internet website that is:
(i) owned, controlled, or maintained by the
governmental body; and
(ii) accessible to members of the general
public;
(B) providing the person, in writing, the exact
Internet location or uniform resource locator (URL) address where
the person can access the public information; and
(C) offering the person access to a computer
terminal at no charge so that the person can access the public
information on the Internet website.
SECTION 5. Section 552.228, Government Code, is amended by
adding Subsection (a-1) to read as follows:
(a-1) The policy of a governmental body under Subsection (a)
is considered to be fulfilled if the governmental body complies
with Section 552.221(b). If a person who is provided public
information for inspection under Section 552.221(b)(1) or access to
a computer terminal under Section 552.221(b)(3)(C) to access public
information on an Internet website subsequently requests copies of
the public information, the provisions of Subchapter F apply. This
subsection does not apply to real property record title
information, including tax parcel identification numbers.
SECTION 6. Except as otherwise provided by this Act, this
Act takes effect immediately if it receives a vote of two-thirds of
all the members elected to each house, as provided by Section 39,
Article III, Texas Constitution. If this Act does not receive the
vote necessary for immediate effect, then except as otherwise
provided by this Act, this Act takes effect September 1, 2009.
COMMITTEE AMENDMENT NO. 1
Amend S.B. 1630 as follows:
On page 2, line 20, after "body", insert "in a county of more
than one million."
Gallego