The Texas House Elections Committee was hearing two bills Monday that would move election notice information from newspapers to government websites.
House Bill 1499 by Rep. Sarah Davis, R-Houston,would allow a newspaper notice to state only a website address at which readers could go find election polling place locations, rather than listing all the locations. House Bill 2644 by Rep. Cesar Jose Blanco, D-El Paso, would allow election boundary locations to be listed online on a government website rather than in a newspaper.
Blanco indicated he is willing to work with opponents of his bill to change its language.
The Freedom of Information Foundation of Texas noted that not all Texans have access to the Internet and urged that lawmakers add information sources, but not subtract from sources used by many Texans, including newspapers.
The Texas Press Association and the League of Women Voters were among the other open government groups expressing opposition to the bills.