1-1 AN ACT
1-2 relating to the required posting of information on a state agency's
1-3 Internet site and to the security, confidentiality, and management
1-4 of certain information.
1-5 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-6 SECTION 1. Subchapter C, Chapter 2054, Government Code, is
1-7 amended by adding Section 2054.063 to read as follows:
1-8 Sec. 2054.063. INFORMATION SECURITY. The department shall
1-9 establish and administer a clearinghouse for information relating
1-10 to all aspects of protecting the security of state agency
1-11 information.
1-12 SECTION 2. Section 2054.092, Government Code, is amended to
1-13 read as follows:
1-14 Sec. 2054.092. CONTENT OF STATE STRATEGIC PLAN. The state
1-15 strategic plan must:
1-16 (1) provide a strategic direction for information
1-17 resources management in state government for the five fiscal years
1-18 following adoption of the plan, including providing a best
1-19 practices model to assist state agencies in adopting effective
1-20 information management methods and obtaining effective information
1-21 resources technologies;
1-22 (2) provide guidance to state agencies in the
1-23 development of the agency strategic plans;
1-24 (3) establish goals and objectives relating to
2-1 information resources management;
2-2 (4) provide long-range policy guidelines for
2-3 information resources in state government, including the
2-4 implementation of national and international standards for
2-5 information resources technologies;
2-6 (5) identify major issues relating to improved
2-7 information resources management, including the identification of
2-8 needed procurement policy initiatives to encourage competition
2-9 between providers of information resources technologies; and
2-10 (6) identify priorities for the implementation of
2-11 information resources technologies according to the relative
2-12 economic and social impact on the state.
2-13 SECTION 3. Section 2054.121, Government Code, as added by
2-14 Section 1, Chapter 1573, Acts of the 76th Legislature, Regular
2-15 Session, 1999, is amended to read as follows:
2-16 Sec. 2054.121. REQUIRED POSTING OF INFORMATION ON INTERNET.
2-17 (a) The department shall adopt a policy that:
2-18 (1) prescribes terms under which a person may use,
2-19 copy information from, or link to a generally accessible Internet
2-20 site maintained by or for a state agency; and
2-21 (2) protects the personal information of members of
2-22 the public who access information from or through a generally
2-23 accessible Internet site maintained by or for a state agency.
2-24 (b) The department shall post the policy on its Internet
2-25 site. A state agency shall prominently post a link to the policy
2-26 statement on a generally accessible Internet site maintained by or
2-27 for the agency.
3-1 (c) The policy shall include a statement:
3-2 (1) generally allowing the use and reproduction of
3-3 information on a state agency's Internet site without the state
3-4 agency's permission, subject to specified conditions;
3-5 (2) generally allowing linking from a web page to a
3-6 page on a state agency's Internet site without the state agency's
3-7 permission, subject to specified conditions;
3-8 (3) prohibiting a state agency from charging a fee to
3-9 access, use, reproduce information on, or link to its Internet site
3-10 except to the extent the state agency is specifically authorized to
3-11 do so by the legislature;
3-12 (4) requiring that the state agency's Internet site be
3-13 credited as the source of information reproduced from the site and
3-14 requiring that the date that the material was reproduced from the
3-15 site be clearly stated;
3-16 (5) prohibiting a state agency from selling or
3-17 releasing an e-mail address of a member of the public unless the
3-18 member of the public affirmatively consents to the sale or release
3-19 of the e-mail address; and
3-20 (6) specifying other policies necessary to protect
3-21 from public disclosure personal information submitted by a member
3-22 of the public to a state agency's Internet site to the extent the
3-23 information is:
3-24 (A) confidential;
3-25 (B) excepted from the requirements of Section
3-26 552.021; or
3-27 (C) protected by other law intended to protect a
4-1 person's privacy interests.
4-2 (d) Each state agency, other than an institution of higher
4-3 education, that receives an aggregate amount of appropriations in
4-4 the General Appropriations Act for a state fiscal biennium that
4-5 exceeds $175 million shall post the following information during
4-6 the biennium on a generally accessible Internet site maintained by
4-7 or for the agency:
4-8 (1) an analysis of all agency expenditures during the
4-9 two preceding state fiscal years that lists each county in the
4-10 state and states for each county the amount of agency expenditures
4-11 made in or for the benefit of the county;
4-12 (2) if the information required to substantially
4-13 comply with Subdivision (1) is not available, an analysis that
4-14 approximates compliance with Subdivision (1) to the greatest
4-15 possible extent by listing agency expenditures according to
4-16 geographic regions of the state, to the extent possible, and by
4-17 each field office of the agency;
4-18 (3) a profile of the governing officer or of each
4-19 member of the governing body of the agency that includes, among
4-20 other information, the office address of the officer or member;
4-21 (4) a listing and description of all contracts with
4-22 vendors that have a value exceeding $100,000 that the agency has
4-23 entered into and that are currently being performed or for which
4-24 performance has not yet begun;
4-25 (5) a brief description of the agency's duties; and
4-26 (6) an electronic link to the agency's rules as
4-27 published in the electronic version of the Texas Administrative
5-1 Code and an electronic link to any written procedure of the agency
5-2 relating to agency hearings that is not contained in the electronic
5-3 version of the Texas Administrative Code.
5-4 SECTION 4. Subchapter F, Chapter 2054, Government Code, is
5-5 amended by adding Section 2054.127 to read as follows:
5-6 Sec. 2054.127. INTERNET WEBSITE DEVELOPMENT: GRANTS AND
5-7 ASSISTANCE. The department shall encourage each state agency to
5-8 seek available grants and to work with public educational
5-9 institutions and members of the business and industry community for
5-10 the purpose of Internet website development and maintenance.
5-11 SECTION 5. Subchapter C, Chapter 552, Government Code, is
5-12 amended by adding Section 552.136 to read as follows:
5-13 Sec. 552.136. CONFIDENTIALITY OF CERTAIN E-MAIL ADDRESSES.
5-14 (a) An e-mail address of a member of the public that is provided
5-15 for the purpose of communicating electronically with a governmental
5-16 body is confidential and not subject to disclosure under this
5-17 chapter.
5-18 (b) Confidential information described by this section that
5-19 relates to a member of the public may be disclosed if the member of
5-20 the public affirmatively consents to its release.
5-21 SECTION 6. This Act takes effect September 1, 2001.
_______________________________ _______________________________
President of the Senate Speaker of the House
I certify that H.B. No. 2589 was passed by the House on April
20, 2001, by a non-record vote; and that the House concurred in
Senate amendments to H.B. No. 2589 on May 22, 2001, by a non-record
vote.
_______________________________
Chief Clerk of the House
I certify that H.B. No. 2589 was passed by the Senate, with
amendments, on May 15, 2001, by the following vote: Yeas 30, Nays
0, 1 present, not voting.
_______________________________
Secretary of the Senate
APPROVED: __________________________
Date
__________________________
Governor