HF 2222

as introduced - 84th Legislature (2005 - 2006) Posted on 12/15/2009 12:00am

A bill for an act
relating to state government; encouraging state
agencies to use open-source software; proposing coding
for new law in Minnesota Statutes, chapter 16C.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:

Section 1.

new text begin [16C.115] SOFTWARE PURCHASES.
new text end

new text begin Subdivision 1. new text end

new text begin Standards. new text end

new text begin The commissioner and any other
agency purchasing software shall:
new text end

new text begin (1) consider purchasing open-source software products in
addition to considering proprietary software products;
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new text begin (2) when purchasing proprietary software, promptly report
to the legislature on the reason for doing this rather than
purchasing open-source software;
new text end

new text begin (3) avoid purchasing products that do not comply with open
standards for interoperability or data storage; and
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new text begin (4) avoid purchasing products that are known to make
unauthorized transfers of information to, or permit unauthorized
control of or modification to, agency computer systems by
persons outside agencies.
new text end

new text begin Subd. 2. new text end

new text begin Definitions. new text end

new text begin (a) As used in this section,
"open-source software" means software that guarantees the user,
without further cost:
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new text begin (1) unrestricted use of the software for any purpose;
new text end

new text begin (2) unrestricted access to the source code;
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new text begin (3) full inspection of the working mechanisms of the
software;
new text end

new text begin (4) the use of the internal mechanisms and arbitrary
portions of the software, so they can be adapted to the needs of
the users;
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new text begin (5) the freedom to make and distribute copies of the
software; and
new text end

new text begin (6) the ability to modify the software and freedom to
distribute modifications of the new resulting software, under
the same license as the original software.
new text end

new text begin (b) As used in this section, "open standards" means
specifications for the encoding and transfer of computer data
that:
new text end

new text begin (1) are available for all to read and implement;
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new text begin (2) do not lock the user into a particular vendor or group;
new text end

new text begin (3) are free to implement with no royalty or fee except for
a fee or fees required by the standards organization for
certification of compliance;
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new text begin (4) do not favor one implementer over another for any
reason other than the technical standards compliance of an
implementation; and
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new text begin (5) do not prohibit the implementation of extensions, but
may employ license terms that prevent subversion of the standard
through predatory practices.
new text end

new text begin (c) As used in this section, "proprietary software" means
software that does not meet the definition of open-source
software.
new text end