The Massachusetts House this week passed a bill overhauling the state public records law, but advocates of reform decry amendments they say has watered it down.

“The bill is a disappointment — one step forward and one step back,” said Bob Ambrogi, executive director of the Massachusetts Publishers Association, one of several statewide organizations pushing for reform, said Wednesday.

The bill as amended encourages electronic recordkeeping, requires government agencies to designate a point person for records, sets new fees and timetables for dealing with records requests and allows courts for the first time to award attorney’s fees for noncompliance. While it requires agencies to comply with public records requests within 10 days, it also provides for extensions — up to 60 days for state agencies and 75 days for municipalities — if they cannot comply.

The bill now goes to the Senate, which is not expected to consider it until early next year.

Introduced by Northampton Rep. Peter Kocot, House Bill 3665 was the first major effort to update the state’s public records law in more than 40 years. The current law is widely acknowledged to be one of the weakest public records laws in the country.

The bill came under fire by the Massachusetts Municipal Association, which contended that it would end up being a financial burden on cities and towns. The MMA has been the chief opponent to the bill.