Texas 2017 - 85th Regular

Texas House Bill HB2742 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

Old	New	Differences
1	1	85R738 TJB-F
2	2	By: Bonnen of Galveston H.B. No. 2742
3	3
4	4
5	5	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
6	6	AN ACT
7	7	relating to the right of members of the legislature, the lieutenant
8	8	governor, committees of the legislature, and legislative agencies
9	9	to access certain governmental information for legislative
10	10	purposes; creating a criminal offense.
11	11	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
12	12	SECTION 1. Subtitle A, Title 3, Government Code, is amended
13	13	by adding Chapter 307 to read as follows:
14	14	CHAPTER 307. RIGHT OF ACCESS TO GOVERNMENTAL INFORMATION FOR
15	15	LEGISLATIVE PURPOSE
16	16	SUBCHAPTER A. GENERAL PROVISIONS
17	17	Sec. 307.001. SHORT TITLE. This chapter may be cited as the
18	18	Legislative Disclosure Act.
19	19	Sec. 307.002. DEFINITION OF GOVERNMENTAL INFORMATION; MEDIA
20	20	CONTAINING GOVERNMENTAL INFORMATION. (a) In this chapter,
21	21	"governmental information" means information that is written,
22	22	produced, collected, assembled, or maintained under a law or
23	23	ordinance or in connection with the transaction of official
24	24	business:
25	25	(1) by a governmental body;
26	26	(2) for a governmental body and the governmental body:
27	27	(A) owns the information;
28	28	(B) has a right of access to the information; or
29	29	(C) spends or contributes public money for the
30	30	purpose of writing, producing, collecting, assembling, or
31	31	maintaining the information; or
32	32	(3) by an individual officer or employee of a
33	33	governmental body in the officer's or employee's official capacity
34	34	and the information pertains to official business of the
35	35	governmental body.
36	36	(b) Information is in connection with the transaction of
37	37	official business if the information is created by, transmitted to,
38	38	received by, or maintained by an officer or employee of the
39	39	governmental body in the officer's or employee's official capacity,
40	40	or a person or entity performing official business or a
41	41	governmental function on behalf of a governmental body, and
42	42	pertains to official business of the governmental body.
43	43	(c) The definition of "governmental information" provided
44	44	by Subsection (a) applies to and includes any electronic
45	45	communication created, transmitted, received, or maintained on any
46	46	device if the communication is in connection with the transaction
47	47	of official business.
48	48	(d) The media on which governmental information is recorded
49	49	include:
50	50	(1) paper;
51	51	(2) film;
52	52	(3) a magnetic, optical, solid state, or other device
53	53	that can store an electronic signal;
54	54	(4) tape;
55	55	(5) Mylar; and
56	56	(6) any physical material on which information may be
57	57	recorded, including linen, silk, and vellum.
58	58	(e) The general forms in which the media containing
59	59	governmental information exist include a book, paper, letter,
60	60	document, e-mail, Internet posting, text message, instant message,
61	61	other electronic communication, printout, photograph, film, tape,
62	62	microfiche, microfilm, photostat, sound recording, map, and
63	63	drawing and a voice, data, or video representation held in computer
64	64	memory.
65	65	Sec. 307.003. DEFINITIONS. In this chapter:
66	66	(1) "Governmental body," "official business," and
67	67	"public funds" have the meanings assigned by Section 552.003.
68	68	(2) "Legislative agency" means:
69	69	(A) the State Auditor's Office;
70	70	(B) the Legislative Budget Board;
71	71	(C) the Texas Legislative Council; or
72	72	(D) the Sunset Advisory Commission, including a
73	73	public member of the commission.
74	74	Sec. 307.004. FINDINGS. The legislature finds that the
75	75	ability of members of the legislature, the lieutenant governor,
76	76	committees of the legislature, and legislative agencies to access,
77	77	for legislative purposes, governmental information maintained by a
78	78	governmental body, including confidential information, is
79	79	consonant with the investigative authority delegated by the Texas
80	80	Constitution to the legislature and is essential to the legislative
81	81	deliberative process. Any impediment to legislative access to that
82	82	information is contrary to the expectations placed by the
83	83	constitution on the legislature and should be regarded as repugnant
84	84	to the essential principles of liberty and free government.
85	85	Sec. 307.005. POLICY. It is the policy of this state that a
86	86	member of the legislature, the lieutenant governor, a committee of
87	87	the legislature, or a legislative agency is entitled to access for
88	88	legislative purposes all governmental information maintained by
89	89	any governmental body, including confidential information.
90	90	Sec. 307.006. CONSTRUCTION OF CHAPTER. This chapter shall
91	91	be liberally construed in favor of granting a request for
92	92	governmental information.
93	93	Sec. 307.007. APPLICABILITY OF OTHER LAW. (a) Chapter 552
94	94	does not apply to a request for governmental information made under
95	95	this chapter.
96	96	(b) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, including
97	97	Section 552.0038(i) or a similar provision that provides a manner
98	98	by which to resolve a conflict between provisions of law, the
99	99	provisions of this chapter prevail to the extent of any conflict
100	100	with another provision of law.
101	101	Sec. 307.008. EFFECT OF CHAPTER. (a) This chapter does not
102	102	affect:
103	103	(1) the right of a member of the legislature, the
104	104	lieutenant governor, a committee of the legislature, or a
105	105	legislative agency to obtain information under other law;
106	106	(2) the procedures under which the information is
107	107	obtained under other law; or
108	108	(3) the use that may be made of the information
109	109	obtained under other law.
110	110	(b) This chapter does not grant authority to withhold
111	111	governmental information from a member of the legislature, the
112	112	lieutenant governor, a committee of the legislature, or a
113	113	legislative agency.
114	114	SUBCHAPTER B. RIGHT OF ACCESS TO INFORMATION FOR LEGISLATIVE
115	115	PURPOSE
116	116	Sec. 307.051. RIGHT OF ACCESS TO INFORMATION. (a) Except
117	117	as provided by Subsection (c), each member of the legislature, the
118	118	lieutenant governor, each committee of the legislature, and each
119	119	public member of a legislative agency has a right of access, for
120	120	legislative purposes, to governmental information of a
121	121	governmental body.
122	122	(b) Except for a public member described by Subsection (a)
123	123	and except as provided by Subsection (c), a legislative agency has a
124	124	right of access, for legislative purposes, to governmental
125	125	information of a governmental body other than another legislative
126	126	agency.
127	127	(c) A member of the legislature, the lieutenant governor, a
128	128	committee of the legislature, or a legislative agency is not
129	129	entitled to access to governmental information from:
130	130	(1) a member of the legislature;
131	131	(2) the lieutenant governor;
132	132	(3) a committee of the legislature;
133	133	(4) a public member of a legislative agency; or
134	134	(5) a legislative agency if the information relates
135	135	to:
136	136	(A) a request by a member of the legislature, the
137	137	lieutenant governor, a committee of the legislature, or a public
138	138	member of a legislative agency for information, advice, or opinions
139	139	from an officer or employee of the agency;
140	140	(B) information, advice, or opinions given
141	141	privately by an officer or employee of the agency to a member of the
142	142	legislature, the lieutenant governor, a committee of the
143	143	legislature, or a public member of a legislative agency; or
144	144	(C) information of a member of the legislature,
145	145	the lieutenant governor, a committee of the legislature, or a
146	146	public member of a legislative agency held by the agency.
147	147	Sec. 307.052. PROVISION OF INFORMATION. (a) Following a
148	148	request for access to information authorized by Section 307.051, a
149	149	governmental body shall provide the requested information,
150	150	including confidential information or information otherwise
151	151	excepted from disclosure, to the requestor.
152	152	(b) The requestor must state that the request is made for a
153	153	legislative purpose. The requestor is not required to specify the
154	154	legislative purpose for which the information is requested.
155	155	(c) A governmental body must provide the requested
156	156	information to the requestor promptly, but not later than:
157	157	(1) the fifth business day, or as soon as practicable
158	158	as agreed to by the governmental body and the requestor, following
159	159	the date the request is received if the request is received when the
160	160	legislature is convened in regular or special session; or
161	161	(2) the 10th business day following the date the
162	162	request is received if the request is received when the legislature
163	163	is not convened in regular or special session.
164	164	(d) A governmental body must provide the requested
165	165	information in the manner requested by the requestor.
166	166	(e) A governmental body must provide the requested
167	167	information without charge, except that a requestor is entitled to
168	168	only one paper copy of the information without charge.
169	169	Sec. 307.053. GOVERNMENTAL BODY GUIDANCE. On request of
170	170	the recipient of confidential information from a governmental body
171	171	under this subchapter, the governmental body shall provide guidance
172	172	to the recipient regarding how the information may be generalized
173	173	or modified so that the information as generalized or modified:
174	174	(1) is no longer confidential and subject to a
175	175	confidentiality agreement; and
176	176	(2) may be disclosed for a legislative purpose outside
177	177	the office of the recipient.
178	178	Sec. 307.054. CONFIDENTIALITY NOT WAIVED. A governmental
179	179	body, by providing governmental information under this subchapter
180	180	that is confidential or otherwise excepted from disclosure under
181	181	law, does not waive or affect the confidentiality of the
182	182	information for purposes of state or federal law or waive the right
183	183	of the governmental body to assert exceptions to disclosure of the
184	184	information in the future.
185	185	Sec. 307.055. CONFIDENTIALITY AGREEMENT. (a) A
186	186	governmental body may require a requestor of information under this
187	187	subchapter or a designated employee of the requestor who will view
188	188	or handle information that is received under this subchapter and
189	189	that is confidential or otherwise excepted from disclosure under
190	190	law to sign a confidentiality agreement that covers the
191	191	information.
192	192	(b) Except for a requirement prescribed by federal law, a
193	193	confidentiality agreement may only require that:
194	194	(1) the information not be disclosed outside the
195	195	office of the requestor unless the information is generalized or
196	196	modified in accordance with the guidance provided by the
197	197	governmental body under Section 307.053;
198	198	(2) the information be labeled as confidential;
199	199	(3) the information be kept securely; or
200	200	(4) the number of copies made of the information or the
201	201	notes taken from the information that implicate the confidential
202	202	nature of the information be controlled, with all copies or notes
203	203	that are not destroyed or returned remaining confidential and
204	204	subject to the confidentiality agreement.
205	205	(c) A governmental body must submit a confidentiality
206	206	agreement authorized by this section to the requestor not later
207	207	than the third business day following the date the request is
208	208	received or the governmental body waives the right to require the
209	209	requestor to sign the agreement.
210	210	(d) A confidentiality agreement signed under Subsection (a)
211	211	is void to the extent that the agreement covers information that is
212	212	finally determined under Section 307.056 to not be confidential or
213	213	otherwise excepted from disclosure under law.
214	214	Sec. 307.056. DECISION BY ATTORNEY GENERAL REGARDING
215	215	CONFIDENTIALITY OR DISCLOSURE. (a) A requestor of information
216	216	under this subchapter who is required to sign a confidentiality
217	217	agreement under Section 307.055 may seek a decision from the
218	218	attorney general about whether the information covered by the
219	219	agreement is confidential or otherwise excepted from disclosure
220	220	under law.
221	221	(b) The attorney general by rule shall establish procedures
222	222	and deadlines for:
223	223	(1) receiving information necessary to determine
224	224	whether the information covered by a confidentiality agreement is
225	225	confidential or otherwise excepted from disclosure under law; and
226	226	(2) receiving briefs from the requestor, a
227	227	governmental body providing information under this subchapter, and
228	228	any other interested person.
229	229	(c) The attorney general shall render the decision not later
230	230	than the 45th business day after the date the attorney general
231	231	receives the request for a decision. If the attorney general is
232	232	unable to issue the decision within the 45-day period, the attorney
233	233	general may during that 45-day period extend the period for issuing
234	234	the decision by an additional 10 business days by informing the
235	235	requestor, the governmental body, and any interested person who
236	236	submitted necessary information or a brief to the attorney general
237	237	of the reason for the delay.
238	238	(d) The attorney general shall issue a written decision and
239	239	provide a copy of the decision to the requestor, the governmental
240	240	body, and any interested person who submitted necessary information
241	241	or a brief to the attorney general under this section.
242	242	(e) The requestor or the governmental body may appeal a
243	243	decision of the attorney general under Subsection (d) to a district
244	244	court of Travis County. A person may appeal a decision of the
245	245	attorney general under Subsection (d) to a district court of Travis
246	246	County if the person claims a proprietary interest in the
247	247	information affected by the decision or a privacy interest in the
248	248	information that a confidentiality law or judicial decision is
249	249	designed to protect.
250	250	SUBCHAPTER C. ENFORCEMENT
251	251	Sec. 307.101. SUIT FOR WRIT OF MANDAMUS. (a) A requestor
252	252	of information under this chapter, or the attorney general on
253	253	request of the requestor, may file suit for a writ of mandamus
254	254	compelling a governmental body to provide information requested
255	255	under this chapter to which the requestor has a right of access.
256	256	(b) A suit filed by a requestor under this section to compel
257	257	the provision of information must be filed in a district court of
258	258	the county in which the main offices of the governmental body are
259	259	located. A suit filed by the attorney general under this section
260	260	must be filed in a district court of Travis County.
261	261	Sec. 307.102. DISTRIBUTION OR MISUSE OF CONFIDENTIAL
262	262	INFORMATION. (a) A person who is a recipient of confidential
263	263	information under Subchapter B commits an offense if the person
264	264	knowingly:
265	265	(1) uses the confidential information for a purpose
266	266	other than the purpose for which the information was received or for
267	267	a purpose unrelated to the law that permitted the person to obtain
268	268	access to the information, including solicitation of political
269	269	contributions or solicitation of clients;
270	270	(2) permits inspection of the confidential
271	271	information by a person who is not authorized to inspect the
272	272	information; or
273	273	(3) discloses the confidential information to a person
274	274	who is not authorized to receive the information.
275	275	(b) An offense under this section is a misdemeanor
276	276	punishable by:
277	277	(1) a fine of not more than $1,000;
278	278	(2) confinement in the county jail for not more than
279	279	six months; or
280	280	(3) both the fine and confinement.
281	281	(c) A violation under this section constitutes official
282	282	misconduct.
283	283	(d) It is a defense to prosecution for an offense under this
284	284	section that the information the actor used, permitted inspection
285	285	of, or disclosed was generalized or modified in accordance with the
286	286	guidance provided by a governmental body under Section 307.053.
287	287	SECTION 2. Section 58.0072(e), Family Code, is amended to
288	288	read as follows:
289	289	(e) The Texas Juvenile Justice Department shall grant
290	290	access to juvenile justice information for legislative purposes
291	291	under Chapter 307 [Section 552.008], Government Code.
292	292	SECTION 3. Section 321.0138(g), Government Code, is amended
293	293	to read as follows:
294	294	(g) This section does not affect any other law relating to
295	295	release of information for legislative purposes, including Chapter
296	296	307 [Section 552.008, Government Code].
297	297	SECTION 4. Section 552.012(d), Government Code, is amended
298	298	to read as follows:
299	299	(d) The attorney general shall ensure that the training is
300	300	made available. The office of the attorney general may provide the
301	301	training and may also approve any acceptable course of training
302	302	offered by a governmental body or other entity. The attorney
303	303	general shall ensure that at least one course of training approved
304	304	or provided by the attorney general is available on videotape or a
305	305	functionally similar and widely available medium at no cost. The
306	306	training must include instruction in:
307	307	(1) the general background of the legal requirements
308	308	for open records and public information;
309	309	(2) the applicability of this chapter to governmental
310	310	bodies;
311	311	(3) procedures and requirements regarding complying
312	312	with a request for information under this chapter;
313	313	(4) the role of the attorney general under this
314	314	chapter; [and]
315	315	(5) penalties and other consequences for failure to
316	316	comply with this chapter; and
317	317	(6) the requirements of Chapter 307.
318	318	SECTION 5. The following provisions of the Government Code
319	319	are repealed:
320	320	(1) Section 552.008;
321	321	(2) Section 552.264; and
322	322	(3) Sections 552.352(a-1) and (a-2).
323	323	SECTION 6. Not later than January 1, 2018, the attorney
324	324	general shall adopt rules establishing the procedures and deadlines
325	325	required by Section 307.056(b), Government Code, as added by this
326	326	Act.
327	327	SECTION 7. A request for information under Section 552.008,
328	328	Government Code, that is pending on December 31, 2017, is governed
329	329	by the applicable law in effect at the time the request was
330	330	received, and that law is continued in effect for that purpose.
331	331	SECTION 8. The repeal by this Act of Sections 552.352(a-1)
332	332	and (a-2), Government Code, does not apply to an offense committed
333	333	under those provisions before the effective date of the repeal. An
334	334	offense committed before the effective date of the repeal is
335	335	governed by Sections 552.352(a-1) and (a-2), Government Code, as
336	336	they existed on the date the offense was committed, and the former
337	337	law is continued in effect for that purpose. For purposes of this
338	338	section, an offense was committed before the effective date of the
339	339	repeal if any element of the offense, including obtaining access to
340	340	confidential information under former Section 552.008, Government
341	341	Code, occurred before that date.
342	342	SECTION 9. (a) Except as provided by Subsection (b) of this
343	343	section, this Act takes effect January 1, 2018.
344	344	(b) Section 6 of this Act takes effect immediately if this
345	345	Act receives a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each
346	346	house, as provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution.
347	347	If this Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate
348	348	effect, Section 6 of this Act takes effect September 1, 2017.