Bill Text: TX SB1640 | 2019-2020 | 86th Legislature | Introduced
NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft
Bill Title: Relating to the open meetings law.
Spectrum: Bipartisan Bill
Status: (Passed) 2019-06-10 - Effective immediately [SB1640 Detail]
Download: Texas-2019-SB1640-Introduced.html
Bill Title: Relating to the open meetings law.
Spectrum: Bipartisan Bill
Status: (Passed) 2019-06-10 - Effective immediately [SB1640 Detail]
Download: Texas-2019-SB1640-Introduced.html
By: Watson, Bettencourt | S.B. No. 1640 | |
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relating to changing the criminal offense of conspiracy to | ||
circumvent the open meetings law. | ||
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: | ||
SECTION 1. Section 551.143(a), Government Code, is amended | ||
to read as follows: | ||
Sec. 551.143. PROHIBITED SERIES OF COMMUNICATIONS | ||
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member [ |
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offense if: | ||
(1) the member [ |
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in at least one among a series of communications that each occur | ||
outside of an open meeting concerning any public business of the | ||
governmental body where individual communications are among fewer | ||
than a quorum of members; and [ |
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(2) the member knew at the time the member engaged in | ||
the series of communications that the series: | ||
(A) involved or would involve a quorum and, | ||
(B) would constitute a deliberation in violation | ||
of this chapter if the series of communications had occurred in a | ||
single instance among every member involved in the series. | ||
SECTION 2. The change in law made 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 3. 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. |