On a recent episode of the Texas Talks podcast, Representative Cody Vasut said that he may pursue legislation which makes it easier for the public to access government records.
“I had a bill that went through State Affairs last session, but ran out of time in the House,” said Representative Vasut. “We might pursue it again, making it easier to access government records and setting in place some penalties for when certain things are not disclosed. I think it ought to be much easier.”
House Bill 613, passed out of the House State Affairs committee on a 12-0 vote. The last action in the House on the bill was taken on May 3rd. The regular session adjourned 26 days later.
The Texas Public Information Act (TPIA), passed in 1973, is intended to provide the public with unfettered access to inspect and make copies of government records.
Government records include documents produced, communications such as email and text message, contracts, schedules, and other records created by public employees conducting public work.
Over the years, the TPIA has been amended many times. Some advocates for reform and frequent requestors of public information said the law has so many exceptions and the process has been made so difficult and costly that the law has become “utterly useless.”
Kelley Shannon, President of the Freedom of Information Foundation of Texas, agrees. She said in a recent op-ed: “Just as important is the need to overcome barriers some governments intentionally use to block information access. Loopholes in the laws must be closed. Enforcement should be fine-tuned.”
While there is some disagreement about how to approach improving public information laws in Texas - some advocate for tinkering with existing statutes, while others believe a complete overhaul and rethinking of the process is required - some lawmakers, like Rep. Vasut, know something needs to be done.
“It should be really easy for individuals to access public information, and certainly, I think anything we can do to make the process of filing open records requests easier to do is a good thing.”
