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Texas Legislature· SB 710Effective on 9/1/25

Relating to the establishment and use of a written electronic communications system accessible to the public by certain municipal entities, the official text

Shown verbatim: the complete text as captured from the official page posted by the Texas Legislature, fetched 2026-08-29. Where this bill amends existing law, language marked for deletion in the official page appears here in brackets. This is the enrolled version. The official bill page.
S.B. No. 710

AN ACT

relating to the establishment and use of a written electronic

communications system accessible to the public by certain municipal

entities.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

SECTION 1. Section 551.006(b), Government Code, is amended

to read as follows:

(b) Except as provided by Section 551.0061, a [A]

governmental body may have no more than one online message board or

similar Internet application to be used for the purposes described

in Subsection (a). The online message board or similar Internet

application must be owned or controlled by the governmental body,

prominently displayed on the governmental body's primary Internet

web page, and no more than one click away from the governmental

body's primary Internet web page.

SECTION 2. Subchapter A, Chapter 551, Government Code, is

amended by adding Section 551.0061 to read as follows:

Sec. 551.0061. WRITTEN ELECTRONIC COMMUNICATIONS

ACCESSIBLE TO PUBLIC FOR CERTAIN MUNICIPAL ENTITIES. (a) The

governing body of a municipality by ordinance or resolution may

authorize each board, commission, or similar entity of the

municipality to establish and use an online message board or

similar Internet application for the purposes described in Section

551.006(a).

(b) A governing body adopting an ordinance or resolution

under this section may authorize use of the online message board or

similar Internet application for a period of not longer than two

years, and may reauthorize use of the message board or application

in the same manner and for the same period as many times as the

governing body determines is appropriate. The governing body may

rescind an ordinance or resolution adopted under this section at

any time.

(c) An online message board or similar Internet application

authorized by this section is separate from and in addition to a

municipal online message board or similar Internet application

authorized by Section 551.006.

(d) The use and administration of an online message board or

similar Internet application authorized by this section must comply

with the requirements of Section 551.006.

(e) A municipal governing body that authorizes use of an

online message board or similar Internet application under this

section shall require a municipal employee to monitor the message

board or application for compliance with this section and Section

551.006.

SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2025.

______________________________
______________________________

President of the Senate
Speaker of the House

I hereby certify that S.B. No. 710 passed the Senate on

March 27, 2025, by the following vote: Yeas 30, Nays 0; and that

the Senate concurred in House amendment on May 30, 2025, by the

following vote: Yeas 31, Nays 0.

______________________________

Secretary of the Senate

I hereby certify that S.B. No. 710 passed the House, with

amendment, on May 28, 2025, by the following vote: Yeas 117,

Nays 24, two present not voting.

______________________________

Chief Clerk of the House

Approved:

______________________________

Date

______________________________

Governor
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