Overall Vote Recommendation

Vote Yes; Amend

Principle Criteria

Free Enterprise

Property Rights

Personal Responsibility

Limited Government

Individual Liberty

Digest

SB 2566 would amend the Texas Public Information Act to strengthen the legislature’s special right of access to public information requested for legislative purposes. The bill provides that an individual legislator, legislative agency, or legislative committee may obtain public information from a governmental body, including information that is confidential or otherwise excepted from public disclosure, unless another statute expressly excludes that information from legislative access. Governmental bodies would have to process these requests under ordinary Public Information Act procedures and deadlines, and they could not charge the requesting legislator or legislative entity for copies.

The bill also addresses how confidential information must be handled once provided to the legislature. A governmental body could require a confidentiality agreement only from those legislative members, officers, or employees who will personally view or handle the confidential information. The agreement could require secure handling, labeling, limits on internal disclosure, and controls on copies or notes, but could not impose additional requirements. The Office of the Attorney General would be required to publish a template confidentiality agreement, and a legislator or legislative entity could ask the attorney general to determine whether an agreement complies with the bill or whether the covered information is actually confidential.

Finally, the bill would create an enforcement process for legislative information requests. A legislator who believes a governmental body has violated the legislative-access provisions could file a written complaint with the attorney general. If the attorney general finds a violation, the governmental body would be required to provide the requested information within 10 business days, and its public information officer would have to complete additional training. For serious or repeated violations, or refusal to provide required information, the attorney general could impose an administrative penalty of up to $5,000 per violation per day, subject to appeal in Travis County district court. The bill would apply only to requests received on or after its effective date.

Author (1)

Royce West

Contact the Author

Sen. Royce West

Capitol Phone:

(512) 463-0123

Capitol Office:

CAP 1E.5

E-Mail:

[email protected]

Visit Official Website

Fiscal Notes

According to the Legislative Budget Board (LBB), SB 2566 would have no significant fiscal implications for the State. The bill would require the Office of the Attorney General to create and make available a template confidentiality agreement for governmental bodies to use when providing confidential information to legislators, legislative agencies, or legislative committees. The Office of the Attorney General reported that any additional legal or administrative work could be absorbed using existing resources.

The bill could generate administrative-penalty revenue because it authorizes the Office of the Attorney General to impose a penalty of up to $5,000 per violation on a governmental body that violates the bill’s requirements by failing to provide requested information in a timely manner. However, the LBB states that the number of governmental bodies that may violate the bill is unknown, so the potential revenue impact cannot be determined.

For local governments, the LBB anticipates no significant fiscal implications. Although local governmental bodies could be subject to the bill’s procedural requirements and possible penalties, the fiscal note does not identify any expected high recurring costs for counties, municipalities, school districts, or other local entities.

Vote Recommendation Notes

Texas Policy Research recommends that lawmakers vote YES on SB 2566 while also considering amendments as described below to further strengthen the bill. SB 2566 addresses a real oversight problem: the bill analysis states that current law gives legislators a special right of access to confidential public information for legislative purposes, but lacks clear administrative or enforcement penalties when governmental bodies refuse to comply. The bill responds by clarifying that legislators, legislative agencies, and legislative committees have access to public information, including confidential or otherwise excepted information, unless expressly excluded by another statute, and by requiring governmental bodies to follow ordinary Public Information Act procedures and deadlines.

From a limited-government perspective, the bill is strongest where it improves legislative oversight of agencies and other governmental bodies. A legislature cannot effectively evaluate programs, investigate government conduct, or revise statutes if executive or local entities can delay or deny information without meaningful consequence. The bill’s confidentiality-agreement limits also reduce the risk that agencies will use excessive or extraneous conditions to block access; the bill analysis specifically notes that confidentiality agreements could not include requirements beyond those authorized by statute.

The bill also expands the attorney general's enforcement authority and authorizes penalties against governmental bodies of up to $5,000 per violation per day. While an enforcement mechanism is justified, penalties imposed on public entities ultimately expose taxpayers to costs for the actions of officials or employees. The bill would be improved by defining “serious or repeat violation,” adding clearer safeguards for confidential information handled by legislative staff, and ensuring penalties do not accrue during good-faith legal disputes or pending appeals unless bad faith or intentional delay is shown.

On balance, the bill should be supported because it strengthens legislative oversight, clarifies access procedures, and creates a remedy for noncompliance. The recommended amendments would preserve that oversight function while narrowing taxpayer exposure, limiting administrative discretion, and strengthening protections for sensitive information.

Free Enterprise

The bill does not create new private-sector regulations, licensing requirements, subsidies, or barriers to entry. Its main free-enterprise concern is indirect: confidential or proprietary information held by the government could be accessed for legislative purposes, though confidentiality agreements and appeal rights help mitigate that risk.

Property Rights

The bill does not affect land use, eminent domain, takings, or control of physical property. The relevant property-rights issue is limited to proprietary information that may be held by a governmental body and accessed by legislative offices. The bill provides some protection through confidentiality agreements and judicial appeal rights for persons claiming a proprietary interest.

Personal Responsibility

The bill encourages governmental bodies to comply with public-information duties and requires additional training when violations occur. However, administrative penalties are imposed on governmental bodies rather than necessarily on the officials responsible for noncompliance, which may shift the cost of misconduct to taxpayers.

Limited Government

The bill strengthens legislative oversight of government by clarifying access rights and creating an enforcement process when governmental bodies refuse to comply. At the same time, it expands attorney general authority to investigate complaints and impose penalties of up to $5,000 per violation per day, creating taxpayer exposure and additional administrative discretion.

Individual Liberty

The bill does not directly regulate private conduct, but it expands legislative access to confidential information held by government. That may improve oversight, but it also increases the number of government actors who may view sensitive personal information. The confidentiality-agreement provisions reduce, but do not eliminate, that privacy concern.

View Bill Text and Status