The Honorable Pete Laney

Chairman Opinion No. Ii-920
HouseAdministration Committee Re: Allocation of office Texas House of Representatives space in the Capitol to P. 0. Box 2910, Capitol Station news organizations. Austin, Texas 70767
Dear Chairman Laney: You have asked our opinion on several~questionsrelating to the practice of furnishingoffice space in the Capitol to news organizations.
your first four questions are: 1. Does the State have a legal obligation to furnishoffice space tomembers of the media? 2. If the State does have a legal obligation to furnish office space, then may the State select between individual companies as to amount of space and to whom space is granted? 3. May.the State provide office space free of charge to private concerns operatingmedia services in the Capitol includingbusinesses and associationswho provide their subscribers or members with information about the Legislature? 4. May the State charge for space allocated to private concerns operatingmedia services in the Capitol includingbusinesses and associations who provide their subscribersor members with information about the Legislature?

p. 3855The Honorable Pete Laney - page 2 (H-920)

Virtually identicalquestions were posed by the House Administration Committee in 1973 and were addressed in Attorney General Opinion H-184 (1973). After a discussion Of relevant authorities,we said:

[T]heHouse of Representativeshas no constitutionalor statutoryobligation to provide rent free space to members of the media in the Capitol Building but

. . . consistentwith our traditionalnotions of open government and the need for an informed citizenry, and consistentwith the purposes of the Open Meetings Law, the House and/or the Board of Control are amply justified in making a reasonable amount of space available for propermedia purposes. And seeArticle 3, S 16, and Article 1, 9 8, Constitution of Texas.

. . . . Assuming that the space provided to the members of themedia is insufficientto meet the needs of 'all legitimatemembers of the media,' it is our opinion that the House of Representativesor whoever else allocates the space,may do so in one of severalways, the only requirementsbeing that the classifications of thosewho are to have space and those who are not must be reasonable and must not be based upon any unconstitutionaldiscrimination. Id. - at 4-5.
Your current questions attempt to distinguishbetween traditionalnews organizations and special interestnewsletters. The latterwould normally be directed to a relatively small group of subscriberswho are interested in specialized informationprovided by the newsletter and are willing to pay subscriptionratesmuch higher than those associated with regular newspaper subscriptions. We do not believe that there is any necessary distinctionbetween general news-gatheringorganizations and commercial special interest publicationswhen determiningwhether their presence in a state-providedoffice contributes to the public interest in an informed citizenry. Virginia 'StateBoard of Pharmac Virginia Citizens Consumer Council, Inc.,- L.E
. - d +976).

p. 3856The Honorable Pete Laney - page 3

Thus, in answer to your first is not obligated to furnish office (H-920)

three ,questions,the State space to members of news

_ organizations,but it has ample authority to provide such space. We note that some sort of press room space is provided in or near 49 of the 50 state capitols. The fiftieth stateprovided such space in the past and planned to do so again on completion of its new capitol ,building. The Citizens Conference on State Legislatures,Legislative Openness at 128 (1974). Furthermore, a room for reporters has always been contemplatedas a part of the current Texas capitolbuilding. BuildingCommission Third Biennial .Report of the Capitol (1886). --

The spacemay be provided to commercial, speciar-interestnewsletters as well as to general newsgatheringorganizations. If the lack of spacemakes it necessary to distinguishbetween individuals in regard to the amount of spacewhich is granted, distinctionsmay be made SO long as they are reasonable and so long,as rules are neitherwritten nor applied to effect a content based discriminationamong news organizationsor reporters. Whether any particular distinction is reasonablewill depend on the facts of that case. Your fourth question involves charges for space and was also addressed in Attorney General Opinion H-184. That opinion indicated

in the absence of legislationauthorizing the collectionof rent, no rental may be charued for svacemade available tomembers of the media or to others in state buildings. Tarrant Count v. Ratikan Title Compan 199 S.W.d nex. Civ. App. -- Ft. &th 1947, no writ). Thus, the collectionof rent is unauthorizedunless and until the Legislature takes action to provide statutory authority for the rental of space. Your next question is: 5. If the Stateprovides office space for the exclusiveuse of themedia, may the State require that themembers of the media determine guidelines for the allocation of space to thosepersons or entities desiring the use of the press areas?

p. 3857The Honorable Pete Laney - page 4 (H-920)

While no specificproposal is before us, it is our view that any scheme by which allocation of space in the Capitol was totally surrendered to a private organizationwould constitute an invalid delegation of legislativepower. See Tex. Const. art.

- Your final question is: 6. If the answer to [question5) is 'no', then may the Legislaturemandate rules, guidelines and definitions throughwhich legitimatemembers of the press may be determined and qualified to occupy the office space furnishedby the State? .In addition,may the Legislaturemandate rules by which qualified members must abide in order to continue in the use of the office space provided by the State?
As indicated inAttorney General Opinion H-184, the Legislaturemay establishprocedures or guidelines for the allocation and use of space. The guidelinesmust be reasonable and not based on any unconstitutionaldiscrimination. While the Legislaturemay not totally delegate the allocation of space to a private organization of news representatives, it may certainly seek the advice of any official or unofficial group in determining the rules, regulations and guidelines it will promulgate. SUMMARY

The Legislature is not required to provide space in the Capitol for news organizations,but it has ample authority to do so. The Legislaturehas ultimate authority for the allocation of space, but

p. 3858The Honorable Pete Laney - page 5 (H-920)

its rulesmust be reasonable and neither 'writtennor applied to effect a content-based discrimination among news organizations or reporters. Very truly yours,

Attorney General of Texas APPROVED:

Opinion Committee jwb

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