By:  Wentworth, Zaffirini                              S.B. No. 170
                                A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
 1-1                                   AN ACT
 1-2     relating to the application of the open meetings law to  attendance
 1-3     at a legislative committee meeting by a quorum of another
 1-4     governmental body.
 1-5           BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
 1-6           SECTION 1.  Subchapter A, Chapter 551, Government Code, is
 1-7     amended by adding Section 551.0035 to read as follows:
 1-8           Sec. 551.0035.  ATTENDANCE BY GOVERNMENTAL BODY AT
 1-9     LEGISLATIVE COMMITTEE MEETING.  (a)  This section applies only to
1-10     the attendance by a quorum of a governmental body at a meeting of a
1-11     committee of the legislature.  This section does not apply to
1-12     attendance at the meeting by members of the legislative committee
1-13     holding the meeting.
1-14           (b)  The attendance by a quorum of a governmental body at a
1-15     meeting of a committee of the legislature is not considered to be a
1-16     meeting of that governmental body if the deliberations at the
1-17     meeting by the members of that governmental body consist only of
1-18     publicly testifying at the meeting, publicly commenting at the
1-19     meeting, and publicly responding at the meeting to a question asked
1-20     by a member of the legislative committee.
1-21           SECTION 2.  This Act takes effect immediately if it receives
1-22     a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as
1-23     provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution.  If this
1-24     Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this
1-25     Act takes effect September 1, 2001.