West’s bill on legislators getting public records

The text as introduced · 1,781 words

89R4066 BEF-D

By: West
S.B. No. 2566

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

AN ACT

relating to request for public information for legislative

purposes; providing an administrative penalty.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

SECTION 1. Subchapter A, Chapter 552, Government Code, is

amended by amending Section 552.008 and adding Sections 552.0081

and 552.0082 to read as follows:

Sec. 552.008. INFORMATION FOR LEGISLATIVE PURPOSES :

SPECIAL RIGHT OF ACCESS . (a) This chapter does not grant authority

to withhold information from individual members, agencies, or

committees of the legislature to use for legislative purposes.

(b) Each individual member, agency, and committee of the

legislature has a special right of access to public information for

legislative purposes. The special right of access applies to all

public information, including information that is confidential or

excepted from required disclosure under law, unless another statute

expressly excludes the information from the application of this

section.

(c) A governmental body on request by an individual member,

agency, or committee of the legislature shall provide public

information described by Subsection (b) , including confidential

information, to the requesting member, agency, or committee for

inspection or duplication in accordance with this chapter if the

requesting member, agency, or committee states that the public

information is requested under this chapter for legislative

purposes. Except as otherwise provided by this section and Section

552.0081, a governmental body shall treat a request made under this

section in the same manner as a request for public information under

this chapter by a member of the public and shall comply with the

procedures and deadlines provided by this chapter for producing the

information.

(d) A governmental body, by providing public information

under this section that is confidential or otherwise excepted from

required disclosure under law, does not waive or affect the

confidentiality of the information for purposes of state or federal

law or waive the right to assert exceptions to required disclosure

of the information in the future.

(e) An individual member of the legislature may delegate the

exercise of the member's special right of access to public

information under this section in writing to specified legislative

staff employed by the member. Those legislative staff serve as an

extension of the member when exercising the special right of access

on the member's behalf.

(f) A governmental body may not charge a member, agency, or

committee of the legislature for providing copies of information

requested under this section.

(g) This section and Sections 552.0081 and 552.0082 do not

affect:

(1) the right of an individual member, agency, or

committee of the legislature to obtain information from a

governmental body under other law, including under the rules of

either house of the legislature;

(2) the procedures under which the information is

obtained under other law; or

(3) the use that may be made of the information

obtained under other law.

Sec. 552.0081. INFORMATION FOR LEGISLATIVE PURPOSES:

CONFIDENTIALITY AGREEMENT. (a) A [ The ] governmental body that

provides confidential information under Section 552.008 may

require the requesting individual member of the legislature, the

head or chair of the requesting legislative agency or committee, or

the members or employees of the requesting member or entity who will

personally view or handle information [ that is ] received under

Section 552.008 [ this section and ] that is confidential under law

to sign a confidentiality agreement that covers the information and

complies with this section. A governmental body may not require a

member of a committee or an employee of a member, agency, or

committee to sign a confidentiality agreement unless the member or

employee will personally view or handle confidential information

covered by the agreement.

(b) A confidentiality agreement under Subsection (a):

(1) may require [ and requires ] that:

(A) [ (1) ] the information not be disclosed

outside the requesting entity, or within the requesting entity for

purposes other than the purpose for which it was received;

(B) [ (2) ] the information be labeled as

confidential;

(C) [ (3) ] the information be kept securely; or

(D) [ (4) ] the number of copies made of the

information or the notes taken from the information that implicate

the confidential nature of the information be controlled, with all

copies or notes that are not destroyed or returned to the

governmental body remaining confidential and subject to the

confidentiality agreement ; and

(2) may not include other requirements .

(c) The office of the attorney general shall develop and

make available on the office's Internet website for use by

governmental bodies a template of a confidentiality agreement that

complies with Subsection (b).

(d) A member, agency, or committee of the legislature that

receives information subject to a confidentiality agreement under

Subsection (a) may share the information with another member,

agency, or committee of the legislature if:

(1) the other member, agency head, or committee chair

and any members or employees of the other member or entity who will

personally view or handle the information sign the original

confidentiality agreement; and

(2) the member, agency, or committee that originally

received the information notifies the governmental body of each

additional signatory's name and office or employer.

(e) A member, committee, or agency of the legislature

requested or required by a governmental body to sign a

confidentiality agreement under Subsection (a) may seek a written

decision from the attorney general about whether the agreement

complies with the requirements of Subsection (b). The attorney

general shall promptly render the decision not later than the 10th

business day after the date the attorney general received the

request for the decision and provide a copy of the decision to the

requestor and the governmental body. A confidentiality agreement

is void if the attorney general's decision determines that the

agreement fails to comply with the requirements of Subsection (b).

(f) [ (b-1) ] A member, committee, or agency of the

legislature requested or required by a governmental body to sign a

confidentiality agreement under Subsection (a) [ (b) ] may seek a

decision as provided by Subsection (g) [ (b-2) ] about whether the

information covered by the confidentiality agreement is

confidential under law. A confidentiality agreement [ signed under

Subsection (b) ] is void to the extent [ that ] the agreement covers

information that is finally determined under Subsection (g) [ (b-2) ]

to not be confidential under law.

(g) This subsection applies to a request for a decision

under Subsection (f) [ (b-2) The member, committee, or agency of

the legislature may seek a decision from the attorney general about

the matter ]. The attorney general by rule shall establish

procedures and deadlines for receiving briefs or other information

necessary to decide whether the information covered by a

confidentiality agreement is confidential under law [ the matter and

briefs ] from the requestor, the governmental body, and any other

interested person. The attorney general shall promptly render a

decision requested under Subsection (f) [ this subsection ],

determining whether the information covered by the confidentiality

agreement is confidential under law, not later than the 45th

business day after the date the attorney general received the

request [ for a decision under this subsection ]. The attorney

general shall issue a written decision on the matter and provide a

copy of the decision to the requestor, the governmental body, and

any interested person who submitted necessary information or a

brief to the attorney general about the matter. The requestor or

the governmental body may appeal a decision of the attorney general

under this subsection to a Travis County district court. A person

may appeal a decision of the attorney general under this subsection

to a Travis County district court if the person claims a proprietary

interest in the information affected by the decision or a privacy

interest in the information that a confidentiality law or judicial

decision is designed to protect.

[ (c) This section does not affect:

[ (1) the right of an individual member, agency, or

committee of the legislature to obtain information from a

governmental body under other law, including under the rules of

either house of the legislature;

[ (2) the procedures under which the information is

obtained under other law; or

[ (3) the use that may be made of the information

obtained under other law. ]

Sec. 552.0082. INFORMATION FOR LEGISLATIVE PURPOSES:

COMPLAINT PROCEDURES; ADMINISTRATIVE PENALTY. (a) A member of the

legislature who believes a governmental body is violating or has

violated Section 552.008 or 552.0081 may file a complaint with the

attorney general. The complaint must be in writing and include any

documents relevant to the complaint.

(b) The attorney general shall promptly investigate the

allegations made in the complaint and, not later than the 45th day

after the date the complaint was received, provide written findings

on the allegations made in the complaint to the member of the

legislature and the governmental body.

(c) If the attorney general determines under Subsection (b)

that a governmental body is violating or has violated Section

552.008 or 552.0081, the attorney general:

(1) shall require:

(A) the governmental body to provide to the

requesting member all public information originally requested by

the member not later than the 10th business day after the date the

written finding of the violation is issued; and

(B) the public information officer for the

governmental body to complete additional training on the

requirements of Sections 552.008 and 552.0081; and

(2) may impose an administrative penalty against the

governmental body under Subsection (d).

(d) The attorney general may impose an administrative

penalty against a governmental body that commits a serious or

repeat violation of Section 552.008 or 552.0081 or refuses to

provide public information as required by Subsection (c)(1)(A).

The amount of the administrative penalty may not exceed $5,000 per

violation per day. The governmental body may appeal the

administrative penalty to a district court in Travis County.

(e) A member of the legislature or governmental body that is

party to a complaint may appeal the written findings under

Subsection (b) to a district court in Travis County. The deadline

under Subsection (c)(1)(A) for producing information is stayed

pending the appeal unless otherwise ordered by the court.

SECTION 2. The changes in law made by this Act apply only to

a request for public information for legislative purposes under

Chapter 552, Government Code, received by a governmental body on or

after the effective date of this Act. A request received before the

effective date of this Act is governed by the law in effect when the

complaint was received, and the former law is continued in effect

for that purpose.

SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2025.