Texas 2015 - 84th Regular

Texas Senate Bill SB335 Compare Versions

Version 1 (Old)

Version 2 (New)

Old	New		Differences
1	1		By: Taylor of Collin S.B. No. 335
2		-	(In the Senate - Filed January 23, 2015; February 2, 2015,
3		-	read first time and referred to Committee on Business and Commerce;
4		-	April 9, 2015, reported adversely, with favorable Committee
5		-	Substitute by the following vote: Yeas 8, Nays 0; April 9, 2015,
6		-	sent to printer.)
7		-	Click here to see the committee vote
8		-	COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR S.B. No. 335 By: Creighton
	2	+	Burton
9	3
10	4
11	5		A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
12	6		AN ACT
13	7		relating to the right of officers of counties, county boards of
14	8		school trustees, and county boards of education to obtain
15	9		information, documents, and records.
16	10		BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
17	11		SECTION 1. Chapter 89, Local Government Code, is amended by
18	12		adding Section 89.007 to read as follows:
19	13		Sec. 89.007. SPECIAL RIGHT OF ACCESS TO INFORMATION BY
20	14		OFFICERS OF COUNTIES, COUNTY BOARDS OF SCHOOL TRUSTEES, AND COUNTY
21	15		BOARDS OF EDUCATION. (a) In this section:
22	16		(1) "County governmental body":
23	17		(A) means:
24	18		(i) a county commissioners court;
25	19		(ii) a deliberative body that has
26	20		rulemaking or quasi-judicial power and that is classified as a
27	21		department, agency, or political subdivision of a county;
28	22		(iii) a county board of school trustees;
29	23		(iv) a county board of education; or
30	24		(v) the part, section, or portion of a
31	25		county, county board of school trustees, or county board of
32	26		education described by Section 552.003(1)(A)(xii), Government
33	27		Code, that is a governmental body for purposes of Chapter 552,
34	28		Government Code; and
35	29		(B) does not include:
36	30		(i) the judiciary; or
37	31		(ii) a private entity that spends or is
38	32		supported wholly or partly by public funds.
39	33		(2) "County officer" means:
40	34		(A) an elected or appointed officer who
41	35		supervises, manages, or controls a county governmental body; or
42	36		(B) a member of a board, a commission, a
43	37		committee, or another body consisting of more than one individual
44	38		elected or appointed to supervise, manage, or control a county
45	39		governmental body.
46	40		(3) "Public information" has the meaning assigned by
47	41		Section 552.002, Government Code.
48	42		(b) A county officer has a right of access to information
49	43		that is for purposes of Chapter 552, Government Code, public
50	44		information of the county governmental body that the county officer
51	45		oversees.
52	46		(c) A county governmental body on request by the county
53	47		officer who oversees the governmental body shall provide public
54	48		information, including confidential information or information
55	49		otherwise excepted from disclosure, to the county officer in
56	50		accordance with Chapter 552, Government Code.
57	51		(d) A county governmental body, by providing public
58	52		information under this section that is confidential or otherwise
59	53		excepted from required disclosure under law, does not waive or
60	54		affect the confidentiality of the information for purposes of state
61	55		or federal law or waive the right of the county governmental body to
62	56		assert exceptions to required disclosure of the information in the
63	57		future. The county governmental body may require the requesting
64	58		county officer or a designated employee of the requesting county
65	59		officer who will view or handle information that is received under
66	60		this section and that is confidential under law or otherwise
67	61		excepted from disclosure to sign a confidentiality agreement that
68	62		covers the information and requires that:
69	63		(1) the information not be disclosed outside the
70	64		office of the requesting county officer, or within that office for
71	65		purposes other than the purpose for which it was received;
72	66		(2) the information be labeled as confidential;
73	67		(3) the information be kept securely; or
74	68		(4) the number of copies made of the information or the
75	69		notes taken from the information that implicate the confidential
76	70		nature of the information be controlled, with all copies or notes
77	71		that are not destroyed or returned to the county governmental body
78	72		remaining confidential and subject to the confidentiality
79	73		agreement.
80	74		(e) An individual required by a county governmental body to
81	75		sign a confidentiality agreement under Subsection (d) may seek a
82	76		decision as provided by Subsection (f) about whether the
83	77		information covered by the confidentiality agreement is
84	78		confidential under law or otherwise excepted from disclosure. A
85	79		confidentiality agreement signed under Subsection (d) is void to
86	80		the extent that the agreement covers information that is finally
87	81		determined under Subsection (f) to not be confidential under law or
88	82		otherwise excepted from disclosure.
89	83		(f) A county officer may seek a decision from the attorney
90	84		general about whether the information covered by the
91	85		confidentiality agreement is confidential under law or otherwise
92	86		excepted from disclosure. The attorney general by rule shall
93	87		establish procedures and deadlines for receiving information
94	88		necessary to determine whether the information covered by the
95	89		confidentiality agreement is confidential under law or otherwise
96	90		excepted from disclosure and for receiving briefs from the
97	91		requesting county officer, the county governmental body, and any
98	92		other interested person. The attorney general shall promptly
99	93		render a decision requested under this subsection, determining
100	94		whether the information covered by the confidentiality agreement is
101	95		confidential under law or otherwise excepted from disclosure, not
102	96		later than the 45th business day after the date the attorney general
103	97		receives the request for a decision under this subsection. If the
104	98		attorney general is unable to issue the decision within the 45-day
105	99		period, the attorney general may extend the period for issuing the
106	100		decision by an additional 10 business days by informing the county
107	101		governmental body and the requesting county officer, during the
108	102		original 45-day period, of the reason for the delay. The attorney
109	103		general shall issue a written decision and provide a copy of the
110	104		decision to the requesting county officer, the county governmental
111	105		body, and any interested person who submitted necessary information
112	106		or a brief to the attorney general under this subsection. The
113	107		requesting county officer or the county governmental body may
114	108		appeal a decision of the attorney general under this subsection to a
115	109		district court in the county. A person may appeal a decision of the
116	110		attorney general under this subsection to a district court in the
117	111		county if the person claims a proprietary interest in the
118	112		information affected by the decision or a privacy interest in the
119	113		information that a confidentiality law or judicial decision is
120	114		designed to protect.
121	115		(g) This section does not affect:
122	116		(1) the right of a county officer to obtain
123	117		information from a county governmental body under other law;
124	118		(2) the procedures under which the information is
125	119		obtained under other law; or
126	120		(3) the use that may be made of the information
127	121		obtained under other law.
128	122		(h) This section does not grant authority to a county
129	123		governmental body to withhold information from county officers.
130	124		SECTION 2. Section 89.007, Local Government Code, as added
131	125		by this Act, applies only to a request for information by a county
132	126		officer that is made on or after the effective date of this Act. A
133	127		request for information made before the effective date of this Act
134	128		is governed by the applicable law in effect immediately before the
135	129		effective date of this Act, and that law is continued in effect for
136	130		that purpose.
137	131		SECTION 3. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives
138	132		a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as
139	133		provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this
140	134		Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this
141	135		Act takes effect September 1, 2015.
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