Can I be charged a fee for records requested under the Texas Public Information Act?

Governmental bodies in Texas are required to produce public information upon request—but they don’t have to do it for free. Charges for the production of public information must be calculated according to rules established by the attorney general.

Under Texas’ open records law, known as the Texas Public Information Act (TPIA), each person is entitled to complete information about the affairs of government and the official acts of public officials and employees. Governmental bodies in Texas are obligated to promptly produce public information upon request.

TPIA allows governmental bodies to charge a requestor for public information. But governmental bodies are not required to charge for providing public information, and many do not.

All charges must be calculated in accordance with the attorney general’s cost rules. For example: standard paper copies are $.10 per page; copies produced by CD are $1.00 per CD; programmer labor is charged at $28.50 per hour; other labor is charged at $15 per hour; and when there are labor charges, a governmental body can include overhead computed at 20 percent of labor charges.

A governmental body cannot charge the requestor for time spent determining the meaning or scope of the request, requesting clarification, comparing records from different sources, determining exceptions to disclosure, preparing TPIA correspondence, reorganizing information, or training employees on new practices.

If a governmental body estimates charges will exceed $40, it must provide the requestor with a detailed statement itemizing the estimated costs. If the requestor does not respond within 10 business days by accepting the estimate, modifying the request, or filing an overcharge complaint, the request is considered withdrawn.