C.S.H.B. 1191 78(R)    BILL ANALYSIS


C.S.H.B. 1191
By: Allen
State Affairs
Committee Report (Substituted)



BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE 

Currently, the public information law provides that most information
collected, assembled, or maintained by a governmental entity is subject to
public disclosure.  However, in recent years, the threat of terrorism has
become an increasing concern for Texans.  State and local emergency
managers, law enforcement officials, and other government entities are
growing increasingly concerned that the public disclosure of highly
sensitive information could compromise their ability to plan for an
effective response to a terrorist threat or attack.  The purpose of
C.S.H.B. 1191 is to make confidential certain specific, highly sensitive
information related to emergency response providers, vulnerability
assessments, construction or assembly of weapons, and encryption and
security keys for communications systems.   

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

It is the opinion of the committee that this bill does not expressly grant
any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, department,
agency, or institution. 

ANALYSIS

C.S.H.B. 1191 amends Subchapter H, Chapter 418 of the Government Code to
require information to be confidential if it is collected, assembled, or
maintained by or for a governmental entity for the purpose of preventing,
detecting, or investigating an act of terrorism or related criminal
activity and: _relates to an emergency response provider's staffing
requirements or tactical plans, or consists of a list of the emergency
response provider's pager and telephone numbers (including mobile and
cellular telephone numbers); 
_relates to a vulnerability risk assessment of persons or property,
including critical infrastructure; or 
_ relates to the details of encryption codes or security keys for a public
communications system. 

The term "emergency response provider" is defined to include a law
enforcement agency, a firefighting agency, or an emergency services
agency. 

C.S.H.B. 1191 requires information to be confidential if it is collected,
assembled, or maintained by or for a governmental entity and: 

_is more than likely to assist in the construction or assembly of an
explosive weapon or a chemical, biological, or nuclear weapon of mass
destruction; or 
_indicates the specific location of a chemical, biological agent, toxin,
or radioactive material that is more than likely to be used in the
construction or assembly of such a weapon. 

C.S.H.B. 1191 authorizes the executive or administrative head of a
governmental entity to voluntarily disclose or otherwise make available
such confidential information to another person or entity during a state
of disaster if the executive or administrative head believes that the
other person or entity has a legitimate need for the information.  The
bill provides that such disclosure or making available of the information
during a state of disaster does not waive or affect the confidentiality of
the information.   

EFFECTIVE DATE

 
Upon passage, or, if the Act does not receive the necessary vote, the Act
takes effect September 1, 2003. 


COMPARISON OF ORIGINAL TO SUBSTITUTE

C.S.H.B. 1191 removes the provision in the original which created a
specific exception from the requirements of the public information law in
Chapter 552.021 of the Government Code for information that relates to the
details of a security system that is used to protect public or private
property.