By: Burns H.B. No. 1765
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to the redaction of certain information from a document
posted on the Internet by a county clerk or district clerk on
request of a person to whom the information relates or the judicial
security division of the Office of Court Administration of the
Texas Judicial System.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 552.117, Government Code, is amended by
amending Subsection (b) and adding Subsection (b-1) to read as
follows:
(b) Except as provided by Subsection (b-1), all [All]
documents filed with a county clerk and all documents filed with a
district clerk are exempt from this section.
(b-1) A county clerk or district clerk shall on request of a
person to whom this section applies redact information described by
Subsection (a) from the electronic image of a document posted by the
clerk on an Internet website that relates to the person making the
request if the clerk has the ability to electronically redact the
information from the electronic image of the posted document. A
county clerk or district clerk shall on request of the judicial
security division of the Office of Court Administration of the
Texas Judicial System redact information described by Subsection
(a) in the manner and under the conditions prescribed by this
subsection. A clerk that redacts an electronic image of a posted
document under this subsection shall include on the website a
statement advising members of the public that one or more documents
posted on the website have been redacted as required by state law.
SECTION 2. Section 552.1175, Government Code, is amended by
amending Subsection (e) and adding Subsection (e-1) to read as
follows:
(e) Except as provided by Subsection (e-1), all [All]
documents filed with a county clerk and all documents filed with a
district clerk are exempt from this section.
(e-1) A county clerk or district clerk shall on request of a
person to whom this section applies redact information described by
Subsection (b) from the electronic image of a document posted by the
clerk on an Internet website that relates to the person making the
request if the clerk has the ability to electronically redact the
information from the electronic image of the posted document. A
county clerk or district clerk shall on request of the judicial
security division of the Office of Court Administration of the
Texas Judicial System redact information described by Subsection
(b) in the manner and under the conditions prescribed by this
subsection. A clerk that redacts an electronic image of a posted
document under this subsection shall include on the website a
statement advising members of the public that one or more documents
posted on the website have been redacted as required by state law.
SECTION 3. 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, this
Act takes effect September 1, 2023.