City attorney tells Ethics & Governance Committee how Texas Public Information Act applies to officials

Danielle Folsom, a senior assistant city attorney, told the Ethics and Governance Committee of the Houston City Council that records related to city business are presumptively public under the Texas Public Information Act and that officials must follow an administrative process with the Texas Attorney General before withholding records.

Folsom said the act covers information “written, produced, collected, assembled, or maintained” in connection with city business, and that it can include materials held by third parties or communications on personal devices when the content relates to official business. She emphasized that the law is content-based, not device-based: “The good way of thinking about the act is it’s very content based, not device based.”

The presentation outlined the two broad categories…