By:  Lindsay                                          S.B. No. 1396

                                A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

                                       AN ACT

 1-1     relating to an exception to the open meetings law for certain

 1-2     deliberations of the board of a hospital district.

 1-3           BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

 1-4           SECTION 1.  Section 551.085, Government Code, is amended to

 1-5     read as follows:

 1-6           Sec. 551.085.  GOVERNING BOARD [OF DIRECTORS] OF MUNICIPAL

 1-7     HOSPITAL, HOSPITAL DISTRICT, OR MUNICIPAL HOSPITAL AUTHORITY.  This

 1-8     chapter does not require the governing board [of directors] of a

 1-9     municipal hospital, [or of a] municipal hospital authority, or

1-10     hospital district created under general or special law to conduct

1-11     an open meeting to deliberate:

1-12                 (1)  pricing or financial planning information relating

1-13     to a bid or negotiation for the arrangement or provision of [in

1-14     which the hospital offers] services or product lines [as a contract

1-15     service provider] to another person if disclosure of the

1-16     information would give advantage to competitors of the hospital or

1-17     hospital district; or

1-18                 (2)  information relating to a proposed new service or

1-19     product line of the hospital or hospital district before the

1-20     hospital publicly announces the service or product line.

1-21           SECTION 2.  This Act takes effect September 1, 1997.

1-22           SECTION 3.  The importance of this legislation and the

1-23     crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an

 2-1     emergency and an imperative public necessity that the

 2-2     constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several

 2-3     days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.