Effective August 3, 2026
LION — Local Integrity Oversight Network — is a North Texas–based public-records analytics firm. We help members of the public obtain government records under the Texas Public Information Act (Tex. Gov't Code ch. 552), track those requests, and publish what comes back. By adopting a request through LION, you agree to these terms.
When you adopt a request, you become the requester — the request is yours, not LION's. LION drafts the wording and acts as your agent, but you are the person making it, which is what keeps your request separate from everyone else's under Texas law. You authorize LION to act as your agent — to submit the request in your name, correspond with the government body, and receive the responsive records on your behalf. Texas law permits requests made on another person's behalf and requires every request to be treated uniformly, without regard to who the requester is or on whose behalf it is made (§ 552.223). A government body may not ask why you want the records (§ 552.222(b)), and the Attorney General has held that declining to provide identification is not grounds to refuse a request (Tex. Att'y Gen. OR2005-04224). There is no cost to you to adopt, and LION handles the filing and all follow-up. You will never be billed: LION will not pay or incur any cost in your name.
To adopt a request, you confirm that you are:
To keep every request free and open (Texas law lets a government body treat all requests received from one individual in a single calendar day as one request when calculating costs, but it may not combine requests from separate individuals who submit requests on behalf of an organization — § 552.261(e)), LION files one request per person, per government body, per day. You agree not to use additional names or email addresses to submit more requests than the limits allow. Adoptions that appear to circumvent this may be consolidated, held, or declined.
You agree to provide accurate contact information. If an address can't receive mail or a request appears to be submitted in someone else's name without their knowledge, LION may hold it pending confirmation.
Records released under the Public Information Act are public records — anyone may request them, and LION may publish them, dated and cited, as part of the public record. LION analyzes the records it obtains and publishes findings tied to the source documents. The Act does not require a government body to create new records, answer questions, or perform legal research — the request you adopt asks only for records that already exist. Not every request produces records: a government body may withhold information an exception covers, and may ask the Texas Attorney General for a ruling before releasing. LION tracks and reports the outcome either way.
LION reviews every adoption by hand before filing and may hold, consolidate, or decline any request that appears duplicative, submitted in bad faith, or designed to evade these terms. Nothing is filed automatically.
A government body sees you only as your first name and last initial, as your authorized agent's filing states. Because a request — and any records released in response — is public and may be obtained by anyone, that much is part of the public record of a request you make. On LION's own network you appear more simply: by your first name and your member number (for example, “John, member #212”) — never your last name, and never your email. Your dashboard shows only your own requests, and LION does not publish your email or contact information.
LION is not a law firm and does not provide legal advice. Nothing here or in any LION communication is legal advice, and no attorney-client relationship is created by adopting a request.
LION may update these terms; the effective date above reflects the current version. Questions: [email protected]. (To withdraw a request, email [email protected].)
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