86R23014 BEF-D
 
  By: Phelan, Guerra, Murr, Meyer, Canales H.B. No. 3402
 
  Substitute the following for H.B. No. 3402:
 
  By:  Guerra C.S.H.B. No. 3402
 
 
 
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
 
AN ACT
  relating to the open meetings law.
         BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
         SECTION 1.  Section 551.001(2), Government Code, is amended
  to read as follows:
               (2)  "Deliberation" means a verbal or written exchange
  [during a meeting] between a quorum of a governmental body, or
  between a quorum of a governmental body and another person,
  concerning an issue within the jurisdiction of the governmental
  body [or any public business].
         SECTION 2.  The heading to Section 551.143, Government Code,
  is amended to read as follows:
         Sec. 551.143.  PROHIBITED SERIES OF COMMUNICATIONS
  [CONSPIRACY TO CIRCUMVENT CHAPTER]; OFFENSE; PENALTY.
         SECTION 3.  Section 551.143(a), Government Code, is amended
  to read as follows:
         (a)  A member [or group of members] of a governmental body
  commits an offense if the member:
               (1)  [or group of members] knowingly engages in at
  least one communication among a series of communications that each
  occur outside of a meeting authorized by this chapter and that
  concern an issue within the jurisdiction of the governmental body
  in which the members engaging in the individual communications
  constitute fewer than a quorum of members; and
               (2)  knew at the time the member engaged in the
  communication that the series of communications:
                     (A)  involved or would involve a quorum; and
                     (B)  would constitute a deliberation once a quorum
  of members engaged in the series of communications [conspires to
  circumvent this chapter by meeting in numbers less than a quorum for
  the purpose of secret deliberations in violation of this chapter].
         SECTION 4.  Section 551.143, Government Code, as amended by
  this Act, applies only to an offense committed on or after the
  effective date of this Act.  An offense committed before the
  effective date of this Act is governed by the law in effect on the
  date the offense was committed, and the former law is continued in
  effect for that purpose.  For purposes of this section, an offense
  was committed before the effective date of this Act if any element
  of the offense occurred before that date.
         SECTION 5.  This Act takes effect immediately if it receives
  a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as
  provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution.  If this
  Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this
  Act takes effect September 1, 2019.