Enrolled Bill Summary

            House Bill 156 amends the Government Code to apply open meetings requirements to gatherings called and conducted by, and attended by a quorum of members of, a governmental body, during which the members receive information from, give information to, receive questions from, or ask questions of a third party about the public business or public policy over which the governmental body has supervision or control. The act deletes provisions specifying that conferences conducted only to receive information from employees, and not for the deliberation of public business, do not require open meetings. It provides, however, that the Texas growth fund board of trustees is not required to confer openly with its employees or a third party if the conferral involves certain fund investment matters the disclosure of which might give advantage to the competitor of a business that is the object of an investment or potential investment. The act declares that it is an affirmative defense to prosecution for an illegal closed meeting if action is taken in reasonable reliance on a court order or the written opinion of the governmental body's legal counsel, the attorney general, or a court of record.