BILL ANALYSIS

C.S.H.B. 2028

By: Hickland

Delivery of Government Efficiency

Committee Report (Substituted)

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE

State open meetings law can serve as a useful tool for citizens who want to engage with governmental bodies. However, the bill author has informed the committee that this law currently lacks specificity as to Internet posting requirements for certain entities, which can lead to a lack of transparency in the posting of notice for open meetings. C.S.H.B. 2028 seeks to address this issue by expanding the entities to which Internet notice posting requirements under the open meetings law apply and increasing the visibility of notices for open meetings.

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

C.S.H.B. 2028 amends the Government Code to expand the applicability of the requirement for certain governmental bodies or economic development corporations to post on the entity's website notice of and the agenda for a meeting subject to state open meetings law by including any entity subject to that law that maintains a website or for which a website is maintained. The bill specifies that the place on the entity's website where such notices and agendas must be posted is on the home page or landing page of the website.

C.S.H.B. 2028 authorizes a county governmental body, as an alternative to the requirement for the body to post notice of each meeting subject to state open meetings law on a bulletin board at a place convenient to the public in the county courthouse, to post the notice on an electronic display, including an electronic kiosk, electronic bulletin board, other similar device designed to provide readily accessible information, or the county's public website.

C.S.H.B. 2028 applies only to notice that is required to be posted on or after the bill's effective date. Notice that is required to be posted prior to the bill's effective date is governed by the law in effect at that time, and that law is continued in effect for that purpose.

EFFECTIVE DATE

September 1, 2025.

COMPARISON OF INTRODUCED AND SUBSTITUTE

While C.S.H.B. 2028 may differ from the introduced in minor or nonsubstantive ways, the following summarizes the substantial differences between the introduced and committee substitute versions of the bill.

The substitute includes a provision absent from the introduced creating an alternative to the requirement for county governmental bodies to post notice of each meeting on a bulletin board in the county courthouse.