fast-track records withholding for trained records officers

The text as introduced · 2,465 words

89R1992 TJB-F

By: Bettencourt
S.B. No. 986

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

AN ACT

relating to procedures under the public information law, including

expedited responses and charges for bad faith requests.

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

SECTION 1. Section 552.2615(g), Government Code, is amended

to read as follows:

(g) The time deadlines imposed by this section do not affect

the application of a time deadline imposed on a governmental body

under Subchapter G or K .

SECTION 2. Section 552.263(e), Government Code, is amended

to read as follows:

(e) For purposes of this subchapter and Subchapters [ F and ]

G and K , a request for a copy of public information is considered to

have been received by a governmental body on the date the

governmental body receives the deposit or bond for payment of

anticipated costs or unpaid amounts if the governmental body's

officer for public information or the officer's agent requires a

deposit or bond in accordance with this section.

SECTION 3. Section 552.302, Government Code, is amended to

read as follows:

Sec. 552.302. FAILURE TO MAKE TIMELY REQUEST FOR ATTORNEY

GENERAL DECISION; PRESUMPTION THAT INFORMATION IS PUBLIC. If a

governmental body does not request an attorney general decision as

provided by Section 552.301 or in response to an appeal under

Subchapter K and provide the requestor with the information

required by Sections 552.301(d) and (e-1) or Section 552.405(b) ,

the information requested in writing is presumed to be subject to

required public disclosure and must be released unless there is a

compelling reason to withhold the information.

SECTION 4. Subchapter G, Chapter 552, Government Code, is

amended by adding Section 552.311 to read as follows:

Sec. 552.311. CHARGES FOR BAD FAITH REQUEST. (a) The

attorney general may impose a $1,000 charge to process a request for

an attorney general decision made by a governmental body that the

attorney general determines has made the request in bad faith.

(b) The attorney general may impose on a governmental body a

$500 charge for each business day that occurs after the date the

attorney general issues a written determination that the

governmental body made a request for an attorney general decision

in bad faith and before the date the governmental body provides to

the requestor all information withheld in connection with the bad

faith request.

SECTION 5. Section 552.321(a), Government Code, is amended

to read as follows:

(a) A requestor or the attorney general may file suit for a

writ of mandamus compelling a governmental body to make information

available for public inspection if the governmental body refuses to

request an attorney general's decision as provided by Subchapter G

or Section 552.405 or refuses to supply public information or

information that the attorney general has determined is public

information that is not excepted from disclosure under Subchapter

C.

SECTION 6. Section 552.352, Government Code, is amended by

adding Subsection (d) to read as follows:

(d) It is an affirmative defense to prosecution under

Subsection (a) that the defendant released information under

Subchapter K and did not release confidential information

intentionally, as defined by Section 6.03, Penal Code.

SECTION 7. Section 552.353(b), Government Code, is amended

to read as follows:

(b) It is an affirmative defense to prosecution under

Subsection (a) that the officer for public information reasonably

believed that public access to the requested information was not

required and that:

(1) the officer acted in reasonable reliance on a

court order or a written interpretation of this chapter contained

in an opinion of a court of record or of the attorney general issued

under Subchapter G;

(2) the officer requested a decision from the attorney

general in accordance with Subchapter G or Section 552.405 , and the

decision is pending; or

(3) not later than the 10th calendar day after the date

of receipt of a decision by the attorney general that the

information is public, the officer or the governmental body for

whom the defendant is the officer for public information filed a

petition for a declaratory judgment against the attorney general in

a Travis County district court seeking relief from compliance with

the decision of the attorney general, as provided by Section

552.324, and the cause is pending.

SECTION 8. Chapter 552, Government Code, is amended by

adding Subchapter K to read as follows:

SUBCHAPTER K. EXPEDITED RESPONSE PROCEDURE

Sec. 552.401. APPLICABILITY. (a) This subchapter does not

apply to a request for information that may involve a person's

privacy or property interest under Section 552.305.

(b) This subchapter applies to a governmental body only if:

(1) the governmental body's officer for public

information or the officer's designee holds an active training

certificate issued under Section 552.406; and

(2) the governmental body's authorization to respond

to a request for information under this subchapter is not revoked

under Section 552.407 on the date the request is received.

Sec. 552.402. REQUEST FOR ATTORNEY GENERAL DECISION NOT

REQUIRED. Subject to Section 552.404, a governmental body that

receives a written request for information and complies with the

requirements of this subchapter may withhold any information it

makes a good faith determination is excepted from required public

disclosure under this chapter without the necessity of requesting a

decision from the attorney general under Subchapter G.

Sec. 552.403. RESPONSE REQUIREMENTS. (a) A governmental

body that withholds information under this subchapter must respond

to the requestor not later than the 10th business day after the date

the governmental body receives a written request for that

information by providing the requestor with:

(1) a list of the exceptions under Subchapter C and, if

applicable, the judicial decisions or constitutional or statutory

laws the governmental body determines are applicable to the

information being withheld;

(2) all information the governmental body determines

is not excepted from disclosure, including, if applicable,

partially redacted information with the redacted portions clearly

marked and labeled with the exceptions the governmental body relied

on to redact the information;

(3) a description of the volume and type of

information withheld; and

(4) a notice form promulgated by the attorney general

that includes, at a minimum:

(A) a unique identification number assigned by

the governmental body;

(B) a description of the appeal procedure;

(C) an appeal form the requestor must use to

appeal the withholding of information under this subchapter;

(D) a reference to the requestor's rights under

this chapter;

(E) the name of the individual who has received

training under Section 552.406; and

(F) a confirmation from the individual named in

Paragraph (E) that the individual reviewed and approved the

response.

(b) The governmental body shall retain, at a minimum, an

electronic or paper copy of the notice it provides to the requestor

under Subsection (a)(4) for the length of time the governmental

body retains the request for information.

Sec. 552.404. APPEAL. (a) On receipt of a response by a

governmental body under Section 552.403, the requestor may appeal

the withholding of information in the response not later than the

30th calendar day after the date the requestor receives the

response.

(b) The requestor must submit the appeal to the governmental

body that responded under Section 552.403 on the appeal form

provided to the requestor under Section 552.403(a)(4).

(c) The appeal is considered a new request and is subject to

the procedural requirements of Section 552.405.

(d) A governmental body may not seek to narrow or clarify an

appeal made under this section under Section 552.222(b).

(e) A governmental body may not respond to a requestor under

Section 552.232 in response to an appeal made under this section.

(f) Notwithstanding Sections 552.024(c)(2), 552.1175(f),

552.130(c), 552.136(c), and 552.138(c), a governmental body must

request an attorney general decision to withhold information

described by those provisions in response to an appeal.

Sec. 552.405. REQUEST FOR ATTORNEY GENERAL DECISION IN

RESPONSE TO APPEAL. (a) Except as provided by this subchapter:

(1) an appeal made under Section 552.404 is subject to

the provisions of this chapter; and

(2) an attorney general's decision requested under

this section is considered to be a decision under Subchapter G.

(b) A governmental body that receives an appeal under

Section 552.404 shall, within a reasonable time, but not later than

the fifth business day after the date the governmental body

receives the appeal, submit to the attorney general:

(1) a request for an attorney general's decision;

(2) a copy of the original written request for

information;

(3) a signed statement as to the date on which the

written response required by Section 552.403 was provided to the

requestor, or evidence sufficient to establish that date;

(4) a copy of the appeal form received by the

governmental body;

(5) a signed statement as to the date on which the

appeal was received by the governmental body, or evidence

sufficient to establish the date;

(6) the exceptions that apply and written comments

stating the reasons why the stated exceptions apply that would

allow the information to be withheld;

(7) if the governmental body provided partially

redacted information to the requestor in its initial response under

Section 552.403, an unredacted copy of the information the

governmental body provided to the requestor with the copy clearly

marked indicating the released portions and the withheld portions

labeled with the exceptions the governmental body relied on to

withhold the information; and

(8) a copy of the specific information the

governmental body seeks to withhold, or representative samples of

the information, labeled to indicate which exceptions apply to

which parts of the copy.

(c) A governmental body that receives an appeal under

Section 552.404 shall, within a reasonable time, but not later than

the fifth business day after the date the governmental body

receives the appeal, send a copy of the comments submitted under

Subsection (b)(6) to the requestor. If the written comments

disclose or contain the substance of the information requested, the

copy of the comments provided to the requestor must be a redacted

copy.

Sec. 552.406. TRAINING. (a) The public information

officer for a governmental body that responds to a request under

this subchapter or the officer's designee must have completed in

the four years preceding the response a course of training of not

less than 16 hours regarding the responsibilities of the

governmental body under this subchapter.

(b) The attorney general shall ensure that the training is

made available. The attorney general shall maintain at least one

updated course of training that is available in an online

presentation format. The online training may be broken into

separate sections. The online training must provide a means to

verify that the trainee observed and comprehended the full online

training session or, if applicable, each section of the training.

(c) At a minimum, the training must include instruction in:

(1) the general background of the legal requirements

for the governmental body's use of this subchapter and related law;

(2) the applicability of this subchapter to

governmental bodies;

(3) the procedures and requirements for complying with

an appeal under this subchapter;

(4) the role of the attorney general under this

subchapter; and

(5) penalties and other consequences for failing to

comply with this subchapter.

(d) The office of the attorney general shall provide a

certificate to a person who completes the training required by this

section and keep records of the training certificates issued. A

governmental body shall maintain the training certificate of any

individual who provides a confirmation under Section

552.403(a)(4)(F) and make the certificate available for public

inspection.

Sec. 552.407. REVOCATION. (a) If the attorney general

determines that a governmental body failed to comply with the

requirements of this chapter, the office of the attorney general,

in its sole discretion, may revoke the governmental body's

authorization to respond under this subchapter or the training

certificate issued to an individual responsible for the

governmental body's failure.

(b) The attorney general shall create a notice of revocation

form. The attorney general shall inform a governmental body that

the attorney general has revoked the governmental body's

eligibility under Subsection (a) or an individual that the attorney

general has revoked the individual's training certificate by

sending the notice of revocation form by certified mail or by

another written method of notice that requires the return of a

receipt.

(c) The notice of revocation provided to a governmental body

must inform the governmental body of the length of time the

revocation is in effect. The length of time the governmental body's

revocation is in effect may not exceed six months from the date the

governmental body receives the notice of revocation form.

(d) The notice of revocation form provided to an individual

must inform the individual that the attorney general has revoked

the individual's training certificate under Subsection (a). The

individual must repeat the course of training under Section 552.406

to obtain a new training certificate.

(e) If an individual is employed by a governmental body when

the governmental body's authorization to respond under this

subchapter is revoked under Subsection (a), and the individual

obtains employment at a different governmental body with

authorization to respond under this subchapter, the individual may

not provide a confirmation under Section 552.403(a)(4)(F) until the

revocation period for the initial governmental body has expired.

(f) The office of the attorney general shall publish on its

Internet website:

(1) a list that provides the first and last names of

individuals who hold an active training certificate issued under

Section 552.406, the date each individual's training was completed,

and the date each individual's training certificate expires; and

(2) a list of the governmental bodies that are not

authorized to respond to a request under this subchapter because

their authorization has been revoked under Subsection (a).

Sec. 552.408. REPORT ON IMPLEMENTATION OF SUBCHAPTER. (a)

For the state fiscal year beginning September 1, 2025, the attorney

general shall collect data detailing the number of:

(1) requests for decisions in response to appeals the

attorney general receives under Section 552.405;

(2) individuals who complete training under Section

552.406;

(3) governmental bodies that have their authorization

to respond under this subchapter revoked under Section 552.407; and

(4) individuals who have their training certificates

revoked under Section 552.407.

(b) Not later than February 1, 2027, the attorney general

shall make the data collected under Subsection (a) available on the

attorney general's Internet website for open records.

(c) This section expires September 1, 2027.

SECTION 9. The changes in law made by this Act apply only to

a request for information that is received by a governmental body 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 that was in effect on the date the request was received,

and the former law is continued in effect for that purpose.

SECTION 10. This Act takes effect September 1, 2025.