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Texas Government Code - Section 552.012. Open Records Training
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Texas Lawyer > Government Code > Texas Government Code - Section 552.012. Open Records Training
§ 552.012. OPEN RECORDS TRAINING. (a) This section
applies to an elected or appointed public official who is:
(1) a member of a multimember governmental body;
(2) the governing officer of a governmental body that
is headed by a single officer rather than by a multimember governing
body; or
(3) the officer for public information of a
governmental body, without regard to whether the officer is elected
or appointed to a specific term.
(b) Each public official shall complete a course of training
of not less than one and not more than two hours regarding the
responsibilities of the governmental body with which the official
serves and its officers and employees under this chapter not later
than the 90th day after the date the public official:
(1) takes the oath of office, if the person is required
to take an oath of office to assume the person's duties as a public
official; or
(2) otherwise assumes the person's duties as a public
official, if the person is not required to take an oath of office to
assume the person's duties.
(c) A public official may designate a public information
coordinator to satisfy the training requirements of this section
for the public official if the public information coordinator is
primarily responsible for administering the responsibilities of
the public official or governmental body under this chapter.
Designation of a public information coordinator under this
subsection does not relieve a public official from the duty to
comply with any other requirement of this chapter that applies to
the public official. The designated public information coordinator
shall complete the training course regarding the responsibilities
of the governmental body with which the coordinator serves and of
its officers and employees under this chapter not later than the
90th day after the date the coordinator assumes the person's duties
as coordinator.
(d) The attorney general shall ensure that the training is
made available. The office of the attorney general may provide the
training and may also approve any acceptable course of training
offered by a governmental body or other entity. The attorney
general shall ensure that at least one course of training approved
or provided by the attorney general is available on videotape or a
functionally similar and widely available medium at no cost. The
training must include instruction in:
(1) the general background of the legal requirements
for open records and public information;
(2) the applicability of this chapter to governmental
bodies;
(3) procedures and requirements regarding complying
with a request for information under this chapter;
(4) the role of the attorney general under this
chapter; and
(5) penalties and other consequences for failure to
comply with this chapter.
(e) The office of the attorney general or other entity
providing the training shall provide a certificate of course
completion to persons who complete the training required by this
section. A governmental body shall maintain and make available for
public inspection the record of its public officials' or, if
applicable, the public information coordinator's completion of the
training.
(f) Completing the required training as a public official of
the governmental body satisfies the requirements of this section
with regard to the public official's service on a committee or
subcommittee of the governmental body and the public official's ex
officio service on any other governmental body.
(g) The training required by this section may be used to
satisfy any corresponding training requirements concerning this
chapter or open records required by law for a public official or
public information coordinator. The attorney general shall attempt
to coordinate the training required by this section with training
required by other law to the extent practicable.
(h) A certificate of course completion is admissible as
evidence in a criminal prosecution under this chapter. However,
evidence that a defendant completed a course of training offered
under this section is not prima facie evidence that the defendant
knowingly violated this chapter.
Added by Acts 2005, 79th Leg., ch. 105, § 2, eff. Jan. 1, 2006.
Section: 552.0055 552.006 552.007 552.008 552.009. OPEN RECORDS STEERING COMMITTEE: ADVICE TO
COMMISSION; ELECTRONIC AVAILABILITY OF PUBLIC INFORMATION.
Text of Subsec. (a) as amended by Acts 2005, 79th Leg., ch. 329,
§ 1.
(a) The open records steering committee is composed of two
representatives of the attorney general's office and:
(1) a representative of each of the following,
appointed by its governing entity:
(A) the comptroller's office;
(B) the Department of Public Safety;
(C) the Department of Information Resources; and
(D) the Texas State Library and Archives
Commission;
(2) five public members, appointed by the attorney
general; and
(3) a representative of each of the following types of
local governments, appointed by the attorney general:
(A) a municipality;
(B) a county; and
(C) a school district.
Text of Subsec. (a) as amended by Acts 2005, 79th Leg., ch. 716,
§ 1.
(a) The open records steering committee is composed of:
(1) a representative of each of the following,
appointed by its governing entity:
(A) the attorney general's office;
(B) the comptroller's office;
(C) the Department of Public Safety;
(D) the Department of Information Resources;
(E) the Texas State Library and Archives
Commission; and
(F) the Texas Building and Procurement
Commission;
(2) five public members, appointed by the attorney
general; and
(3) a representative of each of the following types of
local governments, appointed by the attorney general:
(A) a municipality;
(B) a county; and
(C) a school district.
(b) The representative of the attorney general designated
by the attorney general is the presiding officer of the committee.
The committee shall meet as prescribed by committee procedures or
at the call of the presiding officer.
(c) The committee shall advise the attorney general
regarding the office of the attorney general's performance of its
duties under Sections 552.010, 552.205, 552.262, 552.269, and
552.274.
(d) The members of the committee who represent state
governmental bodies and the public members of the committee shall
periodically study and determine the types of public information
for which it would be useful to the public or cost-effective for the
government if the type of information were made available by state
governmental bodies by means of the Internet or another electronic
format. The committee shall report its findings and
recommendations to the governor, the presiding officer of each
house of the legislature, and the budget committee and state
affairs committee of each house of the legislature.
(e) Chapter 2110 does not apply to the size, composition, or
duration of the committee. Chapter 2110 applies to the
reimbursement of a public member's expenses related to service on
the committee. Any reimbursement of the expenses of a member who
represents a state or local governmental body may be paid only from
funds available to the state or local governmental body the member
represents.
Added by Acts 1999, 76th Leg., ch. 1319, § 3, eff. Sept 552.010 552.011 552.012 552.021 552.022 552.0225 552.023 552.024 552.025 552.026
Last modified: August 11, 2007
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