| 1 | 1 | | 88R2212 SGM-D |
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| 2 | 2 | | By: Schofield H.B. No. 4292 |
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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 entitlement of persons not residing in this state to |
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| 8 | 8 | | public information. |
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| 9 | 9 | | BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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| 10 | 10 | | SECTION 1. Section 552.001(a), Government Code, is amended |
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| 11 | 11 | | to read as follows: |
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| 12 | 12 | | (a) Under the fundamental philosophy of the American |
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| 13 | 13 | | constitutional form of representative government that adheres to |
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| 14 | 14 | | the principle that government is the servant and not the master of |
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| 15 | 15 | | the people, it is the policy of this state that each person whose |
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| 16 | 16 | | primary residence is in this state is entitled, unless otherwise |
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| 17 | 17 | | expressly provided by law, at all times to complete information |
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| 18 | 18 | | about the affairs of government and the official acts of public |
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| 19 | 19 | | officials and employees. The people of this state, in delegating |
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| 20 | 20 | | authority, do not give their public servants the right to decide |
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| 21 | 21 | | what is good for the people to know and what is not good for them to |
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| 22 | 22 | | know. The people of this state insist on remaining informed so that |
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| 23 | 23 | | they may retain control over the instruments they have created. The |
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| 24 | 24 | | provisions of this chapter shall be liberally construed to |
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| 25 | 25 | | implement this policy. |
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| 26 | 26 | | SECTION 2. Section 552.021, Government Code, is amended to |
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| 27 | 27 | | read as follows: |
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| 28 | 28 | | Sec. 552.021. AVAILABILITY OF PUBLIC INFORMATION. Public |
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| 29 | 29 | | information is available to any person whose primary residence is |
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| 30 | 30 | | in this state [the public] at a minimum during the normal business |
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| 31 | 31 | | hours of the governmental body. |
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| 32 | 32 | | SECTION 3. Subchapter B, Chapter 552, Government Code, is |
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| 33 | 33 | | amended by adding Section 552.030 to read as follows: |
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| 34 | 34 | | Sec. 552.030. REQUEST FOR INFORMATION FROM NONRESIDENT. |
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| 35 | 35 | | (a) If a governmental body receives a request for information from |
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| 36 | 36 | | a person whose primary residence is not in this state, the |
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| 37 | 37 | | governmental body may, but is not required to, respond to the |
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| 38 | 38 | | request. |
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| 39 | 39 | | (b) A governmental body may ask a requestor to provide the |
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| 40 | 40 | | physical address at which the requestor resides in order to |
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| 41 | 41 | | establish the requestor's residency. If, not later than the 10th |
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| 42 | 42 | | business day following the date the governmental body's request is |
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| 43 | 43 | | sent to the requestor, the requestor fails to provide information |
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| 44 | 44 | | establishing residency in this state, the governmental body may, |
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| 45 | 45 | | for purposes of the request, treat the requestor as a person whose |
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| 46 | 46 | | primary residence is not in this state. |
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| 47 | 47 | | SECTION 4. Section 552.221(a), Government Code, is amended |
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| 48 | 48 | | to read as follows: |
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| 49 | 49 | | (a) An officer for public information of a governmental body |
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| 50 | 50 | | shall promptly produce public information for inspection, |
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| 51 | 51 | | duplication, or both on application by any person whose primary |
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| 52 | 52 | | residence is in this state to the officer. In this subsection, |
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| 53 | 53 | | "promptly" means as soon as possible under the circumstances, that |
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| 54 | 54 | | is, within a reasonable time, without delay. |
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| 55 | 55 | | SECTION 5. Section 552.222(a), Government Code, is amended |
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| 56 | 56 | | to read as follows: |
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| 57 | 57 | | (a) The officer for public information and the officer's |
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| 58 | 58 | | agent may not make an inquiry of a requestor except: |
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| 59 | 59 | | (1) to establish proper identification; |
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| 60 | 60 | | (2) to confirm that the requestor's primary residence |
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| 61 | 61 | | is in this state; or |
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| 62 | 62 | | (3) [except] as provided by Subsection (b), (c), or |
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| 63 | 63 | | (c-1). |
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| 64 | 64 | | SECTION 6. Section 552.223, Government Code, is amended to |
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| 65 | 65 | | read as follows: |
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| 66 | 66 | | Sec. 552.223. UNIFORM TREATMENT OF REQUESTS FOR |
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| 67 | 67 | | INFORMATION. The officer for public information or the officer's |
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| 68 | 68 | | agent shall treat all requests for information from persons to whom |
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| 69 | 69 | | the officer is required to produce public information under Section |
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| 70 | 70 | | 552.221(a) uniformly without regard to the position or occupation |
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| 71 | 71 | | of the requestor, the person on whose behalf the request is made, or |
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| 72 | 72 | | the status of the individual as a member of the media. |
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| 73 | 73 | | SECTION 7. The changes in law made by this Act apply only to |
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| 74 | 74 | | a request for public information received by a governmental body or |
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| 75 | 75 | | officer for public information on or after the effective date of |
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| 76 | 76 | | this Act. |
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| 77 | 77 | | SECTION 8. This Act takes effect September 1, 2023. |
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