LEGISLATIVE BUDGET BOARD Austin, Texas FISCAL NOTE, 89TH LEGISLATIVE REGULAR SESSION April 15, 2025 TO: Honorable Giovanni Capriglione, Chair, House Committee on Delivery of Government Efficiency FROM: Jerry McGinty, Director, Legislative Budget Board IN RE: HB4990 by Canales (Relating to compliance with the public information law, including establishment of an open records hotline to provide information about the requirements of the public information law.), As Introduced Estimated Two-year Net Impact to General Revenue Related Funds for HB4990, As Introduced: a negative impact of ($8,129,308) through the biennium ending August 31, 2027. The bill would make no appropriation but could provide the legal basis for an appropriation of funds to implement the provisions of the bill. General Revenue-Related Funds, Five- Year Impact: Fiscal Year Probable Net Positive/(Negative) Impact toGeneral Revenue Related Funds2026($6,755,936)2027($1,373,372)2028($1,373,372)2029($1,373,372)2030($1,373,372)All Funds, Five-Year Impact: Fiscal Year Probable Savings/(Cost) fromGeneral Revenue Fund1 Change in Number of State Employees from FY 20252026($6,755,936)7.02027($1,373,372)7.02028($1,373,372)7.02029($1,373,372)7.02030($1,373,372)7.0 Fiscal AnalysisThe bill would amend the Government Code relating to compliance with the Public Information Act (PIA). The Office of the Attorney General (OAG) would be responsible for establishing and maintaining a toll-free hotline to provide members of the public and government employees with information regarding open records requests and public information law.Additionally, the bill would allow individuals to file a complaint against a government body which they believe has failed to comply with an open records request as required by law. The OAG would be required to review these complaints and issue written responses within twenty business days. The bill would also add a deadline of ten business days to respond to complaints concerning excessive charges for information requests.
LEGISLATIVE BUDGET BOARD
Austin, Texas
FISCAL NOTE, 89TH LEGISLATIVE REGULAR SESSION
April 15, 2025
TO: Honorable Giovanni Capriglione, Chair, House Committee on Delivery of Government Efficiency FROM: Jerry McGinty, Director, Legislative Budget Board IN RE: HB4990 by Canales (Relating to compliance with the public information law, including establishment of an open records hotline to provide information about the requirements of the public information law.), As Introduced
TO: Honorable Giovanni Capriglione, Chair, House Committee on Delivery of Government Efficiency
FROM: Jerry McGinty, Director, Legislative Budget Board
IN RE: HB4990 by Canales (Relating to compliance with the public information law, including establishment of an open records hotline to provide information about the requirements of the public information law.), As Introduced
Honorable Giovanni Capriglione, Chair, House Committee on Delivery of Government Efficiency
Honorable Giovanni Capriglione, Chair, House Committee on Delivery of Government Efficiency
Jerry McGinty, Director, Legislative Budget Board
Jerry McGinty, Director, Legislative Budget Board
HB4990 by Canales (Relating to compliance with the public information law, including establishment of an open records hotline to provide information about the requirements of the public information law.), As Introduced
HB4990 by Canales (Relating to compliance with the public information law, including establishment of an open records hotline to provide information about the requirements of the public information law.), As Introduced
Estimated Two-year Net Impact to General Revenue Related Funds for HB4990, As Introduced: a negative impact of ($8,129,308) through the biennium ending August 31, 2027. The bill would make no appropriation but could provide the legal basis for an appropriation of funds to implement the provisions of the bill.
Estimated Two-year Net Impact to General Revenue Related Funds for HB4990, As Introduced: a negative impact of ($8,129,308) through the biennium ending August 31, 2027. The bill would make no appropriation but could provide the legal basis for an appropriation of funds to implement the provisions of the bill.
The bill would make no appropriation but could provide the legal basis for an appropriation of funds to implement the provisions of the bill.
General Revenue-Related Funds, Five- Year Impact:
2026 ($6,755,936)
2027 ($1,373,372)
2028 ($1,373,372)
2029 ($1,373,372)
2030 ($1,373,372)
All Funds, Five-Year Impact:
2026 ($6,755,936) 7.0
2027 ($1,373,372) 7.0
2028 ($1,373,372) 7.0
2029 ($1,373,372) 7.0
2030 ($1,373,372) 7.0
Fiscal Analysis
The bill would amend the Government Code relating to compliance with the Public Information Act (PIA). The Office of the Attorney General (OAG) would be responsible for establishing and maintaining a toll-free hotline to provide members of the public and government employees with information regarding open records requests and public information law.Additionally, the bill would allow individuals to file a complaint against a government body which they believe has failed to comply with an open records request as required by law. The OAG would be required to review these complaints and issue written responses within twenty business days. The bill would also add a deadline of ten business days to respond to complaints concerning excessive charges for information requests.
Additionally, the bill would allow individuals to file a complaint against a government body which they believe has failed to comply with an open records request as required by law. The OAG would be required to review these complaints and issue written responses within twenty business days. The bill would also add a deadline of ten business days to respond to complaints concerning excessive charges for information requests.
Methodology
The OAG anticipates a significant increase in the number of complaints received. The agency also anticipates that the establishment of a new formal process would increase the administrative workload of handling complaints. According to the OAG, under current law, the only complaints the OAG is required to process are related to the amount a governmental body can charge under the Public Information Act. The bill would require additional processing for informal requests that currently have no written correspondence. The agency currently employs 2.0 FTEs to resolve these informal complaints.The agency anticipates there would be a need for additional staff to expedite the complaints process to accommodate the new deadlines and to address the projected increase in the number of complaints. The OAG indicates the need for 7.0 new FTEs to manage the increased workload resulting from the bill, including: (1) Assistant Attorney General IV, (3) Assistant Attorneys General II, (1) Administrative Assistant II, (1) Director II, and (1) Programmer IV.The total cost of salaries, wages and benefits for these positions is estimated at $868,214 per fiscal year. Ongoing costs for travel and other operating expenses are estimated at $57,990 per fiscal year. Additionally, there is an estimated onetime equipment cost of $21,364 in fiscal year 2026.
The agency anticipates there would be a need for additional staff to expedite the complaints process to accommodate the new deadlines and to address the projected increase in the number of complaints. The OAG indicates the need for 7.0 new FTEs to manage the increased workload resulting from the bill, including: (1) Assistant Attorney General IV, (3) Assistant Attorneys General II, (1) Administrative Assistant II, (1) Director II, and (1) Programmer IV.The total cost of salaries, wages and benefits for these positions is estimated at $868,214 per fiscal year. Ongoing costs for travel and other operating expenses are estimated at $57,990 per fiscal year. Additionally, there is an estimated onetime equipment cost of $21,364 in fiscal year 2026.
The OAG indicates the need for 7.0 new FTEs to manage the increased workload resulting from the bill, including: (1) Assistant Attorney General IV, (3) Assistant Attorneys General II, (1) Administrative Assistant II, (1) Director II, and (1) Programmer IV.The total cost of salaries, wages and benefits for these positions is estimated at $868,214 per fiscal year. Ongoing costs for travel and other operating expenses are estimated at $57,990 per fiscal year. Additionally, there is an estimated onetime equipment cost of $21,364 in fiscal year 2026.
Technology
The OAG assumes additional technology resources would be required to process complaints within the timeframe required by the bill. There would be a onetime technology cost associated with upgrading the agency's mail intake system, which would include: system development costs for filing a complaint, defining business rules and timelines, and automating the generation of notices and responses. The OAG estimates this onetime cost to be $5,770,440 in fiscal year 2026.Ongoing costs for software licenses, cloud environment, data center services and voice lines are anticipated to be $37,928 in fiscal year 2026, and $447,168 in each subsequent fiscal year.
Local Government Impact
No significant fiscal implication to units of local government is anticipated.
Source Agencies: b > td > 302 Office of the Attorney General
302 Office of the Attorney General
LBB Staff: b > td > JMc, RStu, LCO, JKe, NV
JMc, RStu, LCO, JKe, NV