Bill Text: TX HB28 | 2013 | 83rd Legislature 2nd Special Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Relating to the confidentiality of information held by a public retirement system.
Sponsorship: Partisan Bill (Republican 1)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2013-07-10 - Referred to Pensions [HB28 Detail]
Download: Texas-2013-HB28-Introduced.html
| 83S20012 SGA-F | ||
| By: Callegari | H.B. No. 28 | |
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| relating to the confidentiality of information held by a public | ||
| retirement system. | ||
| BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: | ||
| SECTION 1. Section 552.0038, Government Code, is amended by | ||
| adding Subsections (a-1) and (c-1) and amending Subsections (c), | ||
| (d), (f), and (i) to read as follows: | ||
| (a-1) For the purposes of this section, "individual record" | ||
| includes any information that could reasonably be expected to | ||
| identify an individual, including the individual's name, address, | ||
| telephone number, e-mail address, social security number, record of | ||
| membership in the public retirement system, record of contributions | ||
| or distributions, account balance, status of any application for | ||
| benefits, medical records, financial records, beneficiary | ||
| information, and communications with the retirement system. | ||
| (c) Except as provided by this section, unless written | ||
| authorization for release is provided to the public retirement | ||
| system by the individual or the individual's authorized | ||
| representative, the following information is confidential and is | ||
| not subject to public disclosure: | ||
| (1) an individual record, as defined by Subsection | ||
| (a-1), of any person, living or deceased, who is or was a member, | ||
| annuitant, retiree, beneficiary, alternate payee, program | ||
| participant, or other person eligible for benefits from a public | ||
| retirement system under a retirement plan or program administered | ||
| by the public retirement system that is in the custody of the | ||
| retirement system or in the custody of an administering firm, a | ||
| carrier, or another governmental agency, including the | ||
| comptroller, acting in cooperation with or on behalf of the | ||
| retirement system; and | ||
| (2) any information identifying by name, address, age, | ||
| date of birth, employer, dates of employment, or dates of | ||
| participation the amount of a monthly allowance or benefit paid to | ||
| the individual [ |
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| (c-1) Except as otherwise provided by this section, the | ||
| public [ |
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| governmental agency is not required to accept or comply with a | ||
| request for [ |
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| under Subsection (c). This section should not be interpreted as | ||
| preventing disclosure of aggregate information that could not | ||
| reasonably be expected to identify an individual. An entity that | ||
| receives a request for the disclosure of information under this | ||
| section should consider the request in context with other publicly | ||
| available information in making the determination as to whether a | ||
| record could reasonably be expected to identify an individual | ||
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| (d) A public retirement system may release individual | ||
| records, in accordance with the provisions of the statute or | ||
| ordinance establishing the system and the rules or policies of the | ||
| system, to the following entities: | ||
| (1) [ |
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| retiree, beneficiary, alternate payee, program participant, or | ||
| person eligible for benefits from the retirement system; | ||
| (2) [ |
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| representative acting on behalf of the member, annuitant, retiree, | ||
| beneficiary, alternate payee, program participant, or person | ||
| eligible for benefits; | ||
| (3) [ |
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| attorney acting on behalf of the retirement system; | ||
| (4) [ |
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| legitimate need for the information to perform the purposes of the | ||
| retirement system; or | ||
| (5) [ |
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| under applicable law. | ||
| (f) The records of an individual member, annuitant, | ||
| retiree, beneficiary, alternate payee, program participant, or | ||
| person eligible for benefits from the retirement system remain | ||
| confidential after release to an individual or entity [ |
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| authorized by this section. The records may become part of the | ||
| public record of an administrative or judicial proceeding related | ||
| to a contested case, and the member, annuitant, retiree, | ||
| beneficiary, alternate payee, program participant, or person | ||
| eligible for benefits waives the confidentiality of the records, | ||
| including medical records, unless the records are closed to public | ||
| access by a protective order issued under applicable law. | ||
| (i) To the extent of a substantive or procedural conflict | ||
| between this section and any other law with respect to the | ||
| confidential information held by a public retirement system or | ||
| other entity described by Subsection (c) concerning an individual | ||
| member, annuitant, retiree, beneficiary, alternate payee, program | ||
| participant, or person eligible for benefits from the retirement | ||
| system: | ||
| (1) [ |
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| protection for the privacy of information concerning that | ||
| individual member, annuitant, retiree, beneficiary, alternate | ||
| payee, program participant, or person eligible for benefits | ||
| prevails; and | ||
| (2) the procedural provision of this chapter prevails. | ||
| SECTION 2. Section 552.0038(h), Government Code, is | ||
| repealed. | ||
| SECTION 3. Section 552.0038, Government Code, as amended by | ||
| this Act, applies only to a request for information received by a | ||
| public retirement system or other entity described by Subsection | ||
| (c) of that section that is received on or after the effective date | ||
| of this Act. A request for information that is received before the | ||
| effective date of this Act is governed by the law in effect on the | ||
| date the request is received, and that law is continued in effect | ||
| for that purpose. | ||
| SECTION 4. 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 on the 91st day after the last day of the | ||
| legislative session. | ||
