"Scott, Paul (FPM)" <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
... I am compelled to note that the Texas State Legislature
maintains that public information may be copyrighted. Specifically
Section 2054.052(e) of the Government Code provides that the Department
of Information Resources may:

(e) The department may:

(1) acquire, apply for, register, secure, hold,
protect, and renew under the laws of the State of Texas, the United
States, any state in the United States, or any nation:

(B) a copyright for an original work of
authorship fixed in any tangible medium of expression, now known or
later developed, from which it can be perceived, reproduced, or
otherwise communicated, either directly or with the aid of a
machine or device;

To see the statute in context, go to
http://www.capitol.state.tx.us/statutes/gv.toc.htm and, from there,
Chapter 2054. <[log in to unmask]>
<[log in to unmask]>
However, I don't see how this section of the code applies to the texts of laws enacted by the Texas legislature, acts of the governor, or proceedings before and decisions by the courts.

The Texas Department of Information Resources is concerned with information technology, viz., how to deliver information, not with information content. It deals with the hardward and software necessary to move information around. It does not publish the texts of the laws, acts, or decisions of any of the three branches of the state government. In this context, 2054.52e would most logically apply to original work by department employees concerning technological issues (e.g., a new computer program), and appears to be intended to insure--as is standard practice in the private sector--that any copyright in new software, etc., developed by government employees on government time is vested in the government rather than the individual employees. Furthermore, even if this section were to extend past information technology, the term "original work" would seem to limit the scope of the section to works explaining the laws, acts, and decisions of the three branches of the state government, not to the actual texts of these laws, acts, and decisions.



--
Michael Palmer, MLIS
Claremont, California
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