BILL ANALYSIS

S.B. 679

By: Nelson

Transportation

Committee Report (Unamended)

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE

Recently enacted legislation authorized municipal governmental bodies to post their meeting notices electronically. Interested parties note that, although most airports in Texas are owned and operated by municipalities, which already have this authorization, there are instances where two or more governmental entities have created a joint airport board, consisting of members appointed by the governing authority of each participating entity, to exercise on their behalf all the powers of each with respect to an airport, air navigation facility, or airport hazard area acting jointly. The parties contend that, absent any express grant of authority to such a joint airport board, the board would not fall under the applicability of that law and that legislation is needed to make state law relating to the electronic posting of meeting notices applicable to such an airport. S.B. 679 seeks to address this issue.

CRIMINAL JUSTICE IMPACT

It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly create a criminal offense, increase the punishment for an existing criminal offense or category of offenses, or change the eligibility of a person for community supervision, parole, or mandatory supervision.

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

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

ANALYSIS

S.B. 679 amends the Government Code to expand the definition of "governmental body," for purposes of the state's open meetings law, to include a joint airport board and to require such a joint airport board to post notice of each meeting of the board on a physical or electronic bulletin board at a place convenient to the public in the board's administrative offices and concurrently on the board's website.

EFFECTIVE DATE

On passage, or, if the bill does not receive the necessary vote, September 1, 2015.