85R670 EES-F     By: Howard H.B. No. 370       A BILL TO BE ENTITLED   AN ACT   relating to the availability on the Internet of personal financial   statements filed by public officials.          BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:          SECTION 1.  Section 572.032, Government Code, is amended by   amending Subsections (a) and (c) and adding Subsection (a-2) to   read as follows:          (a)  Financial statements filed under this subchapter are   public records. The commission shall maintain the statements in   separate alphabetical files and in a manner that is accessible to   the public during regular office hours and make the statements   available to the public on the commission's Internet website.          (a-2)  The commission shall redact the home address of an   individual from a financial statement filed by the individual under   this subchapter before making the statement available to the public   on the commission's Internet website.  This redaction is only for   the purpose of making the statement available on the website, and   the commission may not otherwise redact that information from the   statement.          (c)  After the second anniversary of the date the individual   ceases to be a state officer, the commission may and on notification   from the former state officer shall:                (1)  destroy each financial statement filed by the   state officer; and                (2)  remove each financial statement filed by the state   officer from the commission's Internet website.          SECTION 2.  Section 145.007, Local Government Code, is   amended by adding Subsection (d) to read as follows:          (d)  If a municipality makes financial statements filed   under this chapter available to the public on the municipality's   Internet website, the clerk or secretary of the municipality shall   redact the home address of an individual filing a statement before   making the statement available on the website.  This redaction is   only for the purpose of making the statement available on the   website, and the clerk or secretary of the municipality may not   otherwise redact that information from the statement.          SECTION 3.  Section 159.007, Local Government Code, is   amended by adding Subsection (d) to read as follows:          (d)  If a county makes financial statements filed under this   subchapter available to the public on the county's Internet   website, the county clerk shall redact the home address of an   individual filing a statement before making the statement available   on the website.  This redaction is only for the purpose of making   the statement available on the website, and the county clerk may not   otherwise redact that information from the statement.          SECTION 4.  Subchapter B, Chapter 159, Local Government   Code, is amended by adding Section 159.0342 to read as follows:          Sec. 159.0342.  REDACTION OF INFORMATION FROM REPORTS   AVAILABLE TO PUBLIC ON INTERNET. If a county makes reports filed   under this subchapter available to the public on the county's   Internet website, the authority with whom the report is filed shall   redact the home address of an individual filing a report before   making the report available on the website.  This redaction is only   for the purpose of making the report available on the website, and   the authority with whom the report is filed may not otherwise redact   that information from the report.          SECTION 5.  Section 159.055, Local Government Code, is   amended by adding Subsection (e) to read as follows:          (e)  If a county makes financial statements filed under this   subchapter available to the public on the county's Internet   website, the county clerk shall redact the home address of an   individual filing a statement before making the statement available   on the website.  This redaction is only for the purpose of making   the statement available on the website, and the county clerk may not   otherwise redact that information from the statement.          SECTION 6.  As soon as practicable after the effective date   of this Act, the Texas Ethics Commission shall make the financial   statements filed under Subchapter B, Chapter 572, Government Code,   available on the commission's Internet website, as provided by the   changes in law made by this Act.          SECTION 7.  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, 2017.