| TO: | Honorable Joe Straus, Speaker of the House, House of Representatives |
| FROM: | John S. O'Brien, Director, Legislative Budget Board |
| IN RE: | HR2880 by Ortiz, Jr. (Suspending limitations on conference committee jurisdiction, S.B. No. 1182.) |
The bill amends the Texas Public Information Code, under the request for public information provisions, by adding a section which exempts information pertaining to certain biological agents and toxins, identified in federal law, from categories of publicly accessible information. Excepted information regarding select biological and toxic agent agents includes their specific location within an approved facility, personal identifying information of an individual whose name appears in documentation relating to the chain of custody, and the identity of authorized individuals.
The bill would not allow exceptions from disclosure of the identity of the select agents present at a facility, the identity of an individual faculty member or employee whose name appears on published research, and otherwise public information relating to contracts of a governmental body. The bill would also require that information relating to the identity of out of state residents be subject to disclosure only to the extent the information would be subject to disclosure under the laws of the state of which the person is a resident.
State agencies affected have stated that there is no cost implication to the state in making these technical changes to the Texas Public Information Code.
| Source Agencies: | 401 Adjutant General's Department, 405 Department of Public Safety, 537 State Health Services, Department of, 710 Texas A&M University System Administrative and General Offices, 720 The University of Texas System Administration, 758 Texas State University System, 769 University of North Texas System Administration, 783 University of Houston System Administration
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| LBB Staff: | JOB, SD, KJG, PJK, KK, CL, MH, GD
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