73R7810 JD-F
By Goodman H.B. No. 272
Substitute the following for H.B. No. 272:
By ____________________ C.S.H.B. No. 272
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
1-1 AN ACT
1-2 relating to accessibility of vehicle accident reports.
1-3 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-4 SECTION 1. Section 47, Uniform Act Regulating Traffic on
1-5 Highways (Article 6701d, Vernon's Texas Civil Statutes), is amended
1-6 to read as follows:
1-7 Sec. 47. Accident Reports. (a) Except as provided by
1-8 Subsection (b) of this section, all <All> accident reports made as
1-9 required by this Act or Section 4, Texas Motor Vehicle
1-10 Safety-Responsibility Act (Article 6701h, Vernon's Texas Civil
1-11 Statutes), and its subsequent amendments, by persons involved in
1-12 accidents, by garages, or by peace officers shall be without
1-13 prejudice to the individual so reporting and shall be privileged
1-14 and for the confidential use of the Department and <or other State>
1-15 agencies of the United States, this state, or local governments of
1-16 this state having use for the records for accident prevention
1-17 purposes<, except that the Department may disclose the identity of
1-18 a person involved in an accident when such identity is not
1-19 otherwise known or when such person denies his presence at such
1-20 accident, provided that accident reports submitted by peace
1-21 officers after January 1, 1970, are public records open for
1-22 inspection>.
1-23 (b)(1) For a period of 180 days after the date of an
1-24 accident, the Department or a law enforcement agency employing a
2-1 peace officer who made an accident report is required to release a
2-2 copy of the report on request to:
2-3 (A) an agency described by Subsection (a) of
2-4 this section;
2-5 (B) the law enforcement agency that employs the
2-6 peace officer who investigated the accident and forwarded the
2-7 report to the Department;
2-8 (C) a court in which a case involving one of the
2-9 persons involved in the accident is pending pursuant to a lawful
2-10 subpoena;
2-11 (D) a driver, passenger, or other person
2-12 involved;
2-13 (E) the guardian or conservator of a person
2-14 involved;
2-15 (F) a parent of a person involved who is a
2-16 minor;
2-17 (G) an authorized representative of a driver,
2-18 passenger, or other person involved;
2-19 (H) a representative of the insurance company of
2-20 a driver, passenger, or other person involved;
2-21 (I) a representative of a person killed or
2-22 injured in the accident;
2-23 (J) an owner of property damaged as a result of
2-24 the accident or a representative of the insurance company of the
2-25 owner;
2-26 (K) a person who may be subject to civil
2-27 liability as a result of the accident;
3-1 (L) a member of a wire service or press
3-2 association, a professional journalist, or an agent or employee of
3-3 a news medium;
3-4 (M) an attorney who represents an individual
3-5 described by this subsection;
3-6 (N) a person who employs or who is considering
3-7 employing a driver involved; or
3-8 (O) a representative of an insurance company
3-9 that provides or that is considering providing coverage for a
3-10 driver involved.
3-11 (2) The Department or a law enforcement agency is
3-12 authorized to request information on a written form to be
3-13 determined by the Department or agency for the purpose of
3-14 determining whether the person or entity requesting the information
3-15 is eligible to receive such information as provided by Subdivision
3-16 (1) of this subsection.
3-17 (3) The Department or a law enforcement agency is
3-18 prohibited from releasing a copy of the accident report before the
3-19 expiration of the period specified by Subdivision (1) of this
3-20 subsection, except as provided by that subdivision.
3-21 (c) After the period provided by Subsection (b)(1) of this
3-22 section, an accident report prepared by a peace officer and
3-23 submitted to the Department after January 1, 1970, is a public
3-24 record open for inspection.
3-25 (d) The <After January 1, 1970, the> Department or a law
3-26 enforcement agency shall provide a copy or copies of any peace
3-27 officer's report that may be released as provided by this section
4-1 on <submitted after that date to any person upon> written request
4-2 and payment of a Four Dollar ($4) fee. Such copy may be certified
4-3 by the Department or a law enforcement agency for an additional fee
4-4 of Two Dollars ($2). In the event no report is on file the
4-5 Department may certify such fact for a fee of Four Dollars ($4).
4-6 (e) All fees collected by the Department under this Section
4-7 shall be placed in the Operators and Chauffeurs License Fund and
4-8 are hereby appropriated to be used by the Department in the
4-9 administration of this Act.
4-10 (f) In this section:
4-11 (1) "Magazine" means a publication containing news
4-12 that:
4-13 (A) is published and distributed periodically
4-14 and has been for at least one year;
4-15 (B) has a paid circulation; and
4-16 (C) has been entered at a United States post
4-17 office as second class matter.
4-18 (2) "News" means written, oral, pictorial, electronic,
4-19 or other information or communication, whether or not recorded,
4-20 concerning local, national, or worldwide events or other matters of
4-21 public concern.
4-22 (3) "News agency" means a commercial organization that
4-23 collects and supplies news to subscribing newspapers, magazines,
4-24 and news broadcasters.
4-25 (4) "News medium" means a newspaper, magazine, news
4-26 agency, press association, wire service, radio station, television
4-27 station, broadcasting network, or broadcast news service that has
5-1 as one of its regular functions the processing and researching of
5-2 news intended for dissemination to the public.
5-3 (5) "Newspaper" means a publication that:
5-4 (A) is printed and distributed ordinarily at
5-5 least once a week and has been printed and distributed on that
5-6 basis for at least one year;
5-7 (B) contains news, editorials, features,
5-8 advertising, or other matter regarded as being of current interest;
5-9 (C) has a paid circulation; and
5-10 (D) has been entered at a United States post
5-11 office as second class matter.
5-12 (6) "Press association" means an association of
5-13 newspapers or magazines, or both, formed to gather and distribute
5-14 news to its members.
5-15 (7) "Professional journalist" means an individual who
5-16 is a regular employee or is otherwise affiliated with a news medium
5-17 and who engages in gathering, preparing, collecting, writing,
5-18 editing, filming, taping, or photographing news intended for the
5-19 medium, and includes an individual engaged in analyzing, commenting
5-20 on, or broadcasting news by radio or television transmission.
5-21 (8) "Wire service" means a news agency that sends out
5-22 syndicated news copy by wire to subscribing newspapers, magazines,
5-23 or news broadcasters.
5-24 SECTION 2. This Act takes effect September 1, 1993, and
5-25 applies to all requests made on or after that date for copies of
5-26 accident reports. A request that was made before the effective
5-27 date of this Act for an accident report is governed by the law as
6-1 it existed at the time the request was made, and the former law is
6-2 continued in effect for that purpose.
6-3 SECTION 3. The importance of this legislation and the
6-4 crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
6-5 emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
6-6 constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
6-7 days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.