November 15, 1974 

The Honorable Joe Rerweber 

Harrir County Attorney 

Harrir County Courthouse 

Houston, Texar 77002 

Dear Mr. Reeweber: 

Opinion -No. Hi 450 

Re: Notice requirements bf 

Open Meetingr Act. 

You ark what the Board of Truateem of the Mental Health and 

Mental Retardation Authority of Harrir County (Board) murt do in 

order to satirfy the notice requiremente of the Open Meetings Act, 

Art. 625247, V. T. C. S. Your quertionr are: 

1. Can mattera to be conridered by the Commiaeionere 

Court, acting ae the Board of Trurteer of the Mental. 

Health and Mental Retardation Authority of Hgrrir Co&y, 

be included ia the regular Notice of Public Meeting of 

the Commirrioners Court meeting or ia a reparate 

notice required for the Mental Health and Mental 

Retardation Authority of Harrie County? 

2. Lf ruch Notice can be combined, how and where 

should euch combined notice be poeted? 

3. If such Notice cannot be combined, how and where 

should the separate Notice of the Mental Health and 

Mental Retardation Authority be ported? 

Subject to certain specified exceptions, the Open Meeting8 Act 

requires every regular, special. or called meeting or session of every 

governmental body to be open to the public. “Governmental body” ia 

defined iii’ 41(c) of the Act ae: 

“Governmental body” meanr any board, commirrrion, 

department, committee, or agency within the executive 

p. 2075 
The Honorable Joe Resweber page 2 (H-450) 

or legislative department of the rtate. which in 

under the direction of one or more elected or 

appointed membero; and every Commiarionerr 

Court and city council in the atate, and every 

deliberative body having rule-making or quasi-, 

judicial power and classified as a department, 

agency, or political subdivision of a county or 

city: and the board of trueteea of every school ” 

district, and every county board of school trunteer. 

and county board of education; and the governing 

board of every special district heretofore or 

hereafter created by law. 

, ,’ 

Before a governmental body can hold a meeting, notice muat,be given 

in the following manner: 

Sec. 3A. (a) Written notice of the date, hour 

place, and subject of each meeting held by a 

governmental body &all be given before the 

meeting aa prercribed by this section. 

(b) A State governmental body ehall furnish 

notice to the Secretary of State, who nhall then 

post the notice on a bulletin board to be located 

in the main office of the Secretary of State at a 

place convenient to the public. 

(c) A city governmental body ehall have a 

notice posted on a bulletin board to be located 

at a place convenient to the public in the city hall. 

(d) A county governmental body shall have a 

notice posted on a bulletin board located at a place 

convenient to the public in the county courthoure. 

In order to answer your questions, we must first determine whether 

the Board is a state, city or county governmental body. The Texas Mental 

Health and Mental Retardation Act, Articlea 5547-201 through 5547-204, 

V.T.C.S., authorize6 the establishment of community mental health centers 

p. 2076 
The Honorable Joe Resweber page 3 (H-450) 

in order to encourage the conservation of mental health in Texas and 

to foster cooperation for thin purpose at both the &ate and local level. 

Community centers may be established by a county, a city, a hospital 

district, a school district or any organizational combination of two 

or more of there entitier. Article 5547-203, 5 3.01. “The board of 

trustees of community centers established by a single city, county, 

hospital district or school district may be the governing body of the 

single city, county, hospital district or echo01 district, or that governing body may appoint from among the qualified voterr of the region to 

be served a board of trusteen conaiating of not less than five (5) nor 

more than nine (9) perBone.. ” Article 5547-203, 5 3.02(a). 

The Harris County Mental Health and Mental Retardation Authority 

is created by Harris County, and the Commiraionerr Court of Harris 

County serve8 as its Board of Trustees. There are differing pronouncements in various Attorney General opinionr ae to what kind of governmental 

body a community health center is for purpoeer of various statutes. 

However, for purposes of notice under the Open Meeting8 Act, we 

believe that it ie a county governmental body, and that the purposes of 

the Act are fully served by county-wide, as opposed to State-wide, notice. 

As a county governmental body the Board must poet notice of its 

meetings on a bulletin board located at a place convenient to the public 

in the county courthouse. Article 6252-17, 5 3A(d). Each notice must 

clearly set forth the date, hour,, plsce. and subject of the meeting to be 

held. So long as these requirements are met, it would not be impermissible, 

in our opinion, for notice of a meeting to be held by the county commissioners court to be included in the same document. 

SUMMARY 

For purposes of the Open Meetings Act, the 

Board of Truetess of the Harris County Mental 

Health and Mental Retardation Authority ia a 

county governmental body and accordingly muet 

p. 2077 
. 

The Honorable Joe Rerweber page 4 (H-450) 

port notice of itr meeting0 on a bulletin board 

located at a place convenient to the public in 

the county courthouse. 

Vzry truly yours, 

AP ED: 

OHN L. HILL 

General of Texan 

nn 

DAVID M. KENDALL, Chairman 

Opinion Committee 

lg 

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