In recent years, the state would withhold otherwise-public records only if their releasesignificantly hindered government’s ability to get a good deal in the marketplace.

Even that application was wider thanwhat the Legislature intended when it created the exemption decades ago, said Joe Larsen, an open government attorney who also serves on the Freedom of Information Foundation of Texas. Originally, lawmakers sought to prevent a bidder for government work from nabbing a competitor’s bids on a contract. And once that contract was finalized, it was considered public, Larsen said.

Not anymore, particularly after the Boeing v. Paxton decision. It lowered the threshold for what can be secret, while affirming that private entities — when government informs them about someone's request for their information — could invoke the protection when doing government business in Texas.

The test for disclosure “is whether knowing another bidder’s overhead costs would be an advantage, not whether it would be a decisive advantage,” Justice John Devine wrote in his majority opinion.

Trend toward secrecy