HBA-KDB, RKM H.B. 35 77(R)BILL ANALYSIS Office of House Bill AnalysisH.B. 35 By: McClendon State Affairs 8/14/2001 Enrolled BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Holding public meetings through the use of videoconference calls offers the potential for lowering the costs associated with traveling to the meetings and for increasing participation in the meetings. However, state law prior to the 77th Legislature stated that a videoconference call could only be used in a public meeting if a quorum of the governmental body was physically present at one location of the meeting. House Bill 35 authorizes a meeting of a governmental body that extends into three or more counties to be held by videoconference call only if a majority of the quorum of the governmental body is physically present at one location of the meeting. RULEMAKING AUTHORITY It is the opinion of the Office of House Bill Analysis that this bill does not expressly delegate any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, department, agency, or institution. ANALYSIS House Bill 35 amends the Government Code to provide that a meeting of a state governmental body or a governmental body that extends into three or more counties may be held by a video conference call only if a majority of the quorum of the governmental body is physically present at one location of the meeting. The bill provides that the notice of such a meeting must specify as a location of the meeting each location where a majority of the quorum of the governmental body will be physically present and specify the intent to have a majority of the quorum of the governmental body present at that location. EFFECTIVE DATE September 1, 2001.