By Shapiro                                              S.B. No. 49

      75R271 PEP-D                           

                                A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

 1-1                                   AN ACT

 1-2     relating to the confidentiality of requests for information under

 1-3     the sex offender registration law.

 1-4           BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

 1-5           SECTION 1.  Section 5(c), Article 6252-13c.1, Revised

 1-6     Statutes, is amended to read as follows:

 1-7           (c)  A local law enforcement authority shall release public

 1-8     information described under Subsection (b) of this section to any

 1-9     person who submits to the authority a written request for the

1-10     information.  The authority may charge the person a fee not to

1-11     exceed the amount reasonably necessary to cover the administrative

1-12     costs associated with the authority's release of information to the

1-13     person under this subsection.  The written request and any

1-14     information contained in the request, including the name and

1-15     address of the person who submits the request, are confidential and

1-16     are exempt from disclosure under the open records law, Chapter 552,

1-17     Government Code.

1-18           SECTION 2.        This Act takes effect September 1, 1997.

1-19           SECTION 3.  The importance of this legislation and the

1-20     crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an

1-21     emergency and an imperative public necessity that the

1-22     constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several

1-23     days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.