FEATURED, FROM LEFT: Rep. Terry Canales, D-Edinburg, meets with Gov. Greg Abbott on Friday, March 22, 2025 at the Texas Capitol to discuss key legislative priorities for the South Texas lawmaker. A legislative measure authored by Canales would require the Office of the Attorney General to establish, maintain, and improve an existing toll-free hotline to provide Texans with information regarding open records, according to South Texas attorney Omar Ochoa.
Photograph Courtesy OFFICE OF THE GOVERNOR
••••••
Open Government Hotline that provides Texans with information about open records laws would be improved under House Bill 4990 by Rep. Canales,says South Texas attorney Omar Ochoa
By DAVID A. DÍAZ
[email protected]
A legislative measure authored by Rep. Terry Canales, D-Edinburg, would require the Office of the Attorney General to establish, maintain, and improve an existing toll-free hotline to provide Texans with information regarding open records, according to South Texas attorney Omar Ochoa.
An author is the legislator who files a bill and guides it through the legislative process (also called the primary author).
In Texas, “open records” refers to public information held by government agencies, accessible to the public under the Texas Public Information Act.
“Currently, any Texan can call the Open Government Hotline with the Office of the Attorney General to ask questions or get information about the Texas Public Information Act or Open Meetings Act,” said Ochoa. “Rep. Canales wants to make it state law that the Open Government Hotline be maintained, improved, and properly funded, instead of it just being an optional service for the Office of the Attorney General.”
That free toll-free hotline is accessible at 877/OPEN TEX (673-6839).
https://www.oag.state.tx.us/open-government/members-public/open-government-resources
“Despite its popularity and value, the hotline is not codified,” Canales testified when his bill was first heard by the House Committee on Government Efficiency on Tuesday, April 16, 2025. “Basically, it already exists. This is just codifying that it exists and then implementing what the procedure is when you call that hotline, how to actually make sure that there was follow-through.”
In general, codification is consider to be important because it organizes and systematizes laws, making them easier to understand and apply. By compiling and organizing laws into a code, codification resolves inconsistencies, eliminates redundancies, and clarifies ambiguities, leading to a more consistent and predictable legal framework. It also provides a single, accessible source of information for both legal professionals and the public.
The Texas Public Information Act helps ensure transparency and accountability by making most government records available for inspection or copying. However, certain exceptions exist, allowing some information to be withheld.
A bill is a type of legislative measure that requires passage by both the Senate and House of Representatives, and action by the governor in order to become effective. A bill is the primary means used to create and change the laws of the state.
Filed is used to refer to a measure that has been introduced into the legislative process and given a number, such as “Senate Bill (number)” or “House Bill (number).
Legislation is a proposed or enacted law or group of laws.
“House Bill 4990 by Rep. Canales, was recently approved by the House Committee on Delivery of Government Efficiency on Thursday, April 17, 2025, and is now awaiting to be scheduled for debate and action by the Texas House of Representatives,” said Ochoa. “There is an identical bill, known as a companion bill – Senate Bill 1294 – that has been filed in the Senate by Sen. Nathan Johnson, D-Dallas. As of Thursday, May 1, 2025, Senate Bill 1294 had not yet been scheduled for a public hearing before the Senate Committee on Business and Commerce.”
Born and raised in Edinburg, Ochoa’s roots run deep in the community.
A graduate of Edinburg North High School, he went on to earn a business degree, a master’s in accounting, and a law degree from the University of Texas at Austin.
A champion for government transparency, Ochoa provides regular reports to the public on the Texas Public Information Act, the Texas Open Meetings Act, and existing and proposed state laws that affect the mainstream and social media and the people’s rights to know about the actions of their governments in the Lone Star State.
The Texas Public Information Act provides a mechanism for citizens to inspect or copy government records. It also provides that governmental bodies may withhold government records from the public in specific instances.
https://www.texasattorneygeneral.gov/open-government/members-public/overview-public-information-act
Highlights by FastDemocracy.com, a professional legislative bill tracking firm, of House Bill 4990 follows:
• House Bill 4990 aims to increase obedience with Texas’ public information law by establishing an open records hotline operated by the attorney general. This hotline will allow members of the public, as well as employees or officers of governmental bodies, to call a toll-free number to inquire about the requirements of the public information law, including how to properly request information and ensure compliance. The attorney general is tasked with responding to these inquiries to promote adherence to the law.
• Additionally, the bill introduces a new process for individuals who believe a governmental body has failed to provide requested public information. It allows them to file a written complaint with the attorney general, which must include the original request, any correspondence from the governmental body, and a statement detailing the perceived non-compliance. The attorney general is required to review these complaints and respond within a specified timeframe. The bill also amends existing provisions regarding complaints about overcharging for public information copies, establishing clearer deadlines for responses from the attorney general and governmental bodies. The changes, if approved by the Texas Legislature and the governor, would take effect on September 1, 2025.
A bill analysis of House Bill 4990 was provided by the Office of the Attorney General to the House Committee on Government Efficiency.
A bill analysis is a document prepared for all bills and joint resolutions reported out of committee. A bill analysis may include background information on the measure, a statement of purpose or intent, and an analysis of the content of the measure.
The bill analysis follows:
Fiscal Analysis
The bill would amend the Government Code relating to compliance with the Public Information Act (PIA). The Office of the Attorney General (OAG) would be responsible for establishing and maintaining a toll-free hotline to provide members of the public and government employees with information regarding open records requests and public information law.
Additionally, the bill would allow individuals to file a complaint against a government body which they believe has failed to comply with an open records request as required by law. The OAG would be required to review these complaints and issue written responses within twenty business days. The bill would also add a deadline of ten business days to respond to complaints concerning excessive charges for information requests.
Methodology
The OAG anticipates a significant increase in the number of complaints received. The agency also anticipates that the establishment of a new formal process would increase the administrative workload of handling complaints. According to the OAG, under current law, the only complaints the OAG is required to process are related to the amount a governmental body can charge under the Public Information Act. The bill would require additional processing for informal requests that currently have no written correspondence. The agency currently employs 2.0 FTEs to resolve these informal complaints.
The agency anticipates there would be a need for additional staff to expedite the complaints process to accommodate the new deadlines and to address the projected increase in the number of complaints.
The OAG indicates the need for 7.0 new FTEs to manage the increased workload resulting from the bill, including: (1) Assistant Attorney General IV, (3) Assistant Attorneys General II, (1) Administrative Assistant II, (1) Director II, and (1) Programmer IV.
The total cost of salaries, wages and benefits for these positions is estimated at $868,214 per fiscal year. Ongoing costs for travel and other operating expenses are estimated at $57,990 per fiscal year. Additionally, there is an estimated onetime equipment cost of $21,364 in fiscal year 2026.
Technology
The OAG assumes additional technology resources would be required to process complaints within the timeframe required by the bill. There would be a onetime technology cost associated with upgrading the agency’s mail intake system, which would include: system development costs for filing a complaint, defining business rules and timelines, and automating the generation of notices and responses. The OAG estimates this onetime cost to be $5,770,440 in fiscal year 2026.
Ongoing costs for software licenses, cloud environment, data center services and voice lines are anticipated to be $37,928 in fiscal year 2026, and $447,168 in each subsequent fiscal year.
“For any person who wishes to learn more about House Bill 4990 and Senate Bill 1294, or any other legislation, they are encouraged to contact the state lawmaker who has filed the specific bill for more information, along with registering their support, opposition, or recommended changes to that measure,” Ochoa encouraged Texans. “At the same time, contact your own state senator and state representative, and do the same. In all cases, get the name and position of the staff member who is working on that bill.”
https://capitol.texas.gov/tlodocs/89R/fiscalnotes/html/HB04990I.htm
If a person does not know who is their state senator and/or state representative, log on to:
https://wrm.capitol.texas.gov/home
The complete text of Canales’ House Bill 4990 follows.
Where punctuation, numbers, words, sentences, or paragraphs are underlined, that means those passages would be new language in the state law.
Where punctuation, numbers, words, sentences and paragraphs have a strike-through, that means those passages would be eliminated from existing state law.
HOUSE BILL 4990
BY CANALES
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Subchapter A, Chapter 552, Government Code, is amended by adding Section 552.013 to read as follows:
Sec. 552.013. OPEN RECORDS HOTLINE. The attorney general shall operate an open records hotline that a member of the public or an employee or officer of a governmental body may access by calling a toll-free telephone number to ask any question regarding the requirements of this chapter, including the proper procedure to request information from a governmental body and for a governing body to comply with this chapter. The attorney general shall respond to the caller’s questions as the attorney general considers appropriate to promote compliance with this chapter.
SECTION 2. Subchapter E, Chapter 552, Government Code, is amended by adding Section 552.236 to read as follows:
Sec. 552.236. COMPLAINT OF FAILURE TO PRODUCE INFORMATION. (a) A person who has requested public information from a governmental body under this chapter and believes that the governmental body has failed to provide the information in compliance with this chapter may file a written complaint with the attorney general.
(b) A person filing a complaint under this section must include with the complaint:
(1) the original request for information that is the subject of the complaint;
(2) any correspondence received from the governmental body that is the subject of the complaint in response to the request; and
(3) a statement setting forth how the complainant believes that the governmental body has failed to comply with the requirements of this chapter.
(c) The attorney general may submit written questions regarding the complaint to the governmental body that is the subject of the complaint. The governmental body shall respond in writing to the questions not later than the fifth business day after the date the questions are received by the governmental body.
(d) The attorney general shall review each complaint filed under this section and issue a written response to both the complainant and the governmental body that is the subject of the complaint not later than the 20th business day after the date the complaint is filed with the attorney general.
SECTION 3. Section 552.269(a), Government Code, is amended to read as follows:
(a) A person who believes the person has been overcharged for being provided with a copy of public information may complain to the attorney general in writing of the alleged overcharge, setting forth the reasons why the person believes the charges are excessive. The attorney general shall review the complaint and make a determination in writing not later than the 10th business day after the date the complaint is received by the attorney general as to the appropriate charge for providing the copy of the requested information. The governmental body shall respond to the attorney general to any written questions asked of the governmental body by the attorney general regarding the charges for providing the copy of the public information. The response must be made to the attorney general not later than the fifth business day after the date the questions are received by the governmental body. If the attorney general determines that a governmental body has overcharged for providing the copy of requested public information, the governmental body shall promptly adjust its charges in accordance with the determination of the attorney general.
SECTION 4. Section 552.269(a), Government Code, as amended by this Act, applies only to a complaint made to the office of the attorney general under that subsection on or after the effective date of this Act.SECTION 5. This Act takes effect September 1, 2025.
••••••
For more on this and other Texas legislative news stories that affect the Rio Grande Valley metropolitan region, please log on to Titans of the Texas Legislature (TitansoftheTexasLegislature.com).
