Bill Text: TX SB669 | 2011-2012 | 82nd Legislature | Comm Sub
NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft
Bill Title: Relating to requests to inspect or be provided with copies of information under the public information law.
Spectrum: Bipartisan Bill
Status: (Engrossed - Dead) 2011-05-20 - Committee report sent to Calendars [SB669 Detail]
Download: Texas-2011-SB669-Comm_Sub.html
Bill Title: Relating to requests to inspect or be provided with copies of information under the public information law.
Spectrum: Bipartisan Bill
Status: (Engrossed - Dead) 2011-05-20 - Committee report sent to Calendars [SB669 Detail]
Download: Texas-2011-SB669-Comm_Sub.html
By: Wentworth | S.B. No. 669 | |
(In the Senate - Filed February 14, 2011; | ||
February 23, 2011, read first time and referred to Select Committee | ||
on Open Government; May 2, 2011, reported adversely, with | ||
favorable Committee Substitute by the following vote: Yeas 4, Nays | ||
0; May 2, 2011, sent to printer.) | ||
COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR S.B. No. 669 | By: Wentworth |
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relating to requests to inspect or be provided with copies of | ||
information under the public information law. | ||
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: | ||
SECTION 1. Subdivision (2), Section 552.003, Government | ||
Code, is amended to read as follows: | ||
(2) "Manipulation" means the process of modifying, | ||
reordering, or decoding of information with human intervention. | ||
The term includes a search of one or more e-mail or text message | ||
accounts and the retrieval and transfer of e-mails or text messages | ||
that are responsive to a request for public information into a paper | ||
or other format that can be provided to or inspected by the | ||
requestor. | ||
SECTION 2. Subsection (b), Section 552.221, Government | ||
Code, is amended to read as follows: | ||
(b) An officer for public information complies with | ||
Subsection (a) by: | ||
(1) providing the public information for inspection or | ||
duplication in the offices of the governmental body; [ |
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(2) sending copies of the public information by first | ||
class United States mail if the person requesting the information | ||
requests that copies be provided and pays the postage and any other | ||
applicable charges that the requestor has accrued under Subchapter | ||
F; | ||
(3)(A) informing the person requesting the | ||
information, in writing, that the public information is available | ||
on an Internet website that is: | ||
(i) owned, controlled, or maintained by the | ||
governmental body; and | ||
(ii) accessible to members of the general | ||
public; | ||
(B) providing the person, in writing, the exact | ||
Internet location or uniform resource locator (URL) address where | ||
the person can access the public information; and | ||
(C) if the person informs the governmental body | ||
that the person does not have access to the Internet, providing the | ||
person the choice of: | ||
(i) access to a computer terminal at no | ||
charge so that the person can access the public information on the | ||
Internet website; or | ||
(ii) a copy of the public information in | ||
another medium that is acceptable to the requestor; or | ||
(4)(A) posting the public information on an Internet | ||
website that is: | ||
(i) owned, controlled, or maintained by the | ||
governmental body; and | ||
(ii) accessible to members of the general | ||
public; | ||
(B) informing the person requesting the | ||
information, in writing, that the public information is available | ||
on the Internet website; | ||
(C) providing the person, in writing, the exact | ||
Internet location or uniform resource locator (URL) address where | ||
the person can access the public information; and | ||
(D) if the person informs the governmental body | ||
that the person does not have access to the Internet, providing the | ||
person the choice of: | ||
(i) access to a computer terminal at no | ||
charge so that the person can access the public information on the | ||
Internet website; or | ||
(ii) a copy of the public information in | ||
another medium that is acceptable to the requestor. | ||
SECTION 3. Subsection (a), Section 552.228, Government | ||
Code, is amended to read as follows: | ||
(a) It shall be a policy of a governmental body to provide a | ||
suitable copy of public information within a reasonable time after | ||
the date on which the copy is requested. This policy of a | ||
governmental body is considered to be fulfilled if the governmental | ||
body complies with Section 552.221(b). | ||
SECTION 4. Subsection (a), Section 552.261, Government | ||
Code, is amended to read as follows: | ||
(a) The charge for providing a copy of public information | ||
shall be an amount that reasonably includes all costs related to | ||
reproducing the public information, including costs of materials, | ||
labor, and overhead. Except as provided by Section 552.275(e), if | ||
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for providing the copy of the public information may not include | ||
costs of materials, labor, or overhead, but shall be limited to the | ||
charge for each page of the paper record that is photocopied, unless | ||
the pages to be photocopied are located in: | ||
(1) two or more separate buildings that are not | ||
physically connected with each other; or | ||
(2) a remote storage facility. | ||
SECTION 5. Section 552.263, Government Code, is amended by | ||
adding Subsection (e-1) to read as follows: | ||
(e-1) If a requestor modifies the request in response to the | ||
requirement of a deposit or bond authorized by this section, the | ||
modified request is considered a separate request for the purposes | ||
of this chapter and is considered received on the date the | ||
governmental body receives the written modified request. | ||
SECTION 6. Subchapter F, Chapter 552, Government Code, is | ||
amended by adding Section 552.276 to read as follows: | ||
Sec. 552.276. MULTIPLE REQUESTS TO A GOVERNMENTAL BODY. | ||
(a) Notwithstanding Sections 552.261, 552.262, 552.271, and | ||
552.272, a governmental body may require payment of the actual | ||
costs incurred in responding to a request for public information | ||
if, on the date the governmental body receives the request, the | ||
requestor has submitted to the governmental body seven or more | ||
written requests for information during the preceding 31 calendar | ||
days. | ||
(b) If a governmental body requires payment of actual costs | ||
in connection with a request for public information described by | ||
Subsection (a), the governmental body shall provide the requestor | ||
with a written estimate of the total cost, including materials, | ||
personnel time, and overhead expenses, necessary to comply with the | ||
request. The written estimate must be provided to the requestor on | ||
or before the 10th day after the date on which the public | ||
information was requested. | ||
(c) If a governmental body provides a requestor with the | ||
written statement under Subsection (b), the governmental body is | ||
not required to produce public information for inspection or | ||
duplication or to provide copies of public information in response | ||
to the requestor's request unless on or before the 10th day after | ||
the date the governmental body provided the written statement under | ||
that subsection, the requestor submits a statement in writing to | ||
the governmental body in which the requestor commits to pay the | ||
actual costs incurred in complying with the requestor's request. | ||
(d) If the requestor fails or refuses to submit the written | ||
statement under Subsection (c), the requestor is considered to have | ||
withdrawn the requestor's pending request for public information. | ||
(e) An officer for public information or the officer's agent | ||
may require a deposit or bond for payment of unpaid amounts owing to | ||
the governmental body in relation to previous requests in which the | ||
requestor agreed to make a payment as provided by Subsection (c) | ||
before responding to a new request. The officer for public | ||
information or the officer's agent may not seek payment of those | ||
unpaid amounts through any other means. | ||
(f) The governmental body must fully document the existence | ||
and amount of those unpaid amounts or the amount of any anticipated | ||
costs, as applicable, before requiring a deposit or bond under this | ||
section. The documentation is subject to required public | ||
disclosure under this chapter. | ||
(g) The attorney general by rule shall define "actual costs" | ||
for the purpose of this section. | ||
(h) This section does not prohibit a governmental body from | ||
providing a copy of public information without charge or at a | ||
reduced rate under Section 552.267 or from waiving a charge for | ||
providing a copy of public information under that section. | ||
(i) This section does not apply if the requestor is an | ||
individual who, for a substantial portion of the individual's | ||
livelihood or for substantial financial gain, gathers, compiles, | ||
prepares, collects, photographs, records, writes, edits, reports, | ||
investigates, processes, or publishes news or information for and | ||
is seeking the information for: | ||
(1) a radio or television broadcast station that holds | ||
a broadcast license for an assigned frequency issued by the Federal | ||
Communications Commission; | ||
(2) a newspaper that is qualified under Section | ||
2051.044 to publish legal notices or is a free newspaper of general | ||
circulation and that is published at least once a week and available | ||
and of interest to the general public in connection with the | ||
dissemination of news; | ||
(3) a newspaper of general circulation that is | ||
published on the Internet by a news medium engaged in the business | ||
of disseminating news or information to the general public; or | ||
(4) a magazine that is published at least once a week | ||
or on the Internet by a news medium engaged in the business of | ||
disseminating news or information to the general public. | ||
(j) This section does not apply if the requestor is an | ||
elected official of the United States, this state, or a political | ||
subdivision of this state. | ||
(k) This section does not apply if the requestor is a | ||
representative of a publicly funded legal services organization | ||
that is exempt from federal income taxation under Section 501(a), | ||
Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended, by being listed as an | ||
exempt entity under Section 501(c)(3) of that code. | ||
SECTION 7. The changes in law made by this Act apply only to | ||
a request for information that is received by a governmental body or | ||
an officer for public information on or after the effective date of | ||
this Act. A request for information that was received before the | ||
effective date of this Act is governed by the law in effect on the | ||
date the request was received, and the former law is continued in | ||
effect for that purpose. | ||
SECTION 8. This Act takes effect September 1, 2011. | ||
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