| 1 | 1 | | 86R348 SRS-D |
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| 2 | 2 | | By: Paxton, Hughes S.B. No. 838 |
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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 Internet broadcast of certain open meetings. |
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| 8 | 8 | | BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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| 9 | 9 | | SECTION 1. Subchapter B, Chapter 551, Government Code, is |
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| 10 | 10 | | amended by adding Section 551.024 to read as follows: |
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| 11 | 11 | | Sec. 551.024. INTERNET BROADCAST AND ARCHIVE OF OPEN |
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| 12 | 12 | | MEETINGS. (a) This section applies only to a governmental body |
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| 13 | 13 | | that is an agency within the executive or legislative branch of |
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| 14 | 14 | | state government to which the total appropriation made in the |
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| 15 | 15 | | General Appropriations Act from general revenue for any fiscal year |
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| 16 | 16 | | beginning on or after September 1, 2019, including any amount of |
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| 17 | 17 | | general revenue transferred to the governmental body under that Act |
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| 18 | 18 | | for that fiscal year, is greater than $40 million and for which the |
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| 19 | 19 | | bill pattern for the General Appropriations Act for the same fiscal |
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| 20 | 20 | | year designates 250 or more full-time employees. |
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| 21 | 21 | | (b) A governmental body that becomes subject to this section |
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| 22 | 22 | | under Subsection (a) for a fiscal year shall comply with this |
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| 23 | 23 | | section in each following fiscal year. |
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| 24 | 24 | | (c) A governmental body subject to this section shall |
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| 25 | 25 | | broadcast over the Internet live video and audio of each open |
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| 26 | 26 | | meeting of the governmental body. The governmental body shall |
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| 27 | 27 | | provide access to the broadcast on the governmental body's Internet |
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| 28 | 28 | | website. |
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| 29 | 29 | | (d) Not later than the seventh day after the date an open |
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| 30 | 30 | | meeting is broadcast under this section, the governmental body |
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| 31 | 31 | | shall make available through the governmental body's Internet |
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| 32 | 32 | | website archived video and audio of the open meeting. The |
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| 33 | 33 | | governmental body shall maintain the archived video and audio of |
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| 34 | 34 | | the open meeting on the governmental body's Internet website until |
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| 35 | 35 | | the second anniversary of the date the archived video and audio was |
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| 36 | 36 | | first made available on the website. |
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| 37 | 37 | | (e) The governmental body shall provide on the governmental |
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| 38 | 38 | | body's Internet website the same notice of the open meeting that the |
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| 39 | 39 | | governmental body is required to post under Subchapter C. The |
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| 40 | 40 | | notice must be posted on the governmental body's Internet website |
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| 41 | 41 | | within the time required for posting notice under Subchapter C. |
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| 42 | 42 | | (f) The governmental body may use for an Internet broadcast |
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| 43 | 43 | | of an open meeting of the governmental body a room made available to |
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| 44 | 44 | | the governmental body on request in any state building, as defined |
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| 45 | 45 | | by Section 2165.301. |
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| 46 | 46 | | (g) The governmental body is exempt from the requirements of |
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| 47 | 47 | | this section to the extent a catastrophe, as defined by Section |
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| 48 | 48 | | 551.0411, or a technical breakdown prevents the governmental body |
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| 49 | 49 | | from complying with this section. Following the catastrophe or |
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| 50 | 50 | | technical breakdown, the governmental body shall make all |
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| 51 | 51 | | reasonable efforts to make the required video and audio of the open |
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| 52 | 52 | | meeting available in a timely manner. |
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| 53 | 53 | | (h) The governmental body shall consider contracting |
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| 54 | 54 | | through competitive bidding with a private individual or entity to |
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| 55 | 55 | | broadcast and archive an open meeting subject to this section to |
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| 56 | 56 | | minimize the cost of complying with this section. |
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| 57 | 57 | | SECTION 2. Section 551.024, Government Code, as added by |
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| 58 | 58 | | this Act, applies only to an open meeting held on or after September |
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| 59 | 59 | | 1, 2021. |
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| 60 | 60 | | SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2019. |
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