Texas 2009 - 81st Regular

Texas House Bill HJR118 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

Old	New	Differences
1	1	81R11416 JRD-D
2	2	By: Homer H.J.R. No. 118
3	3
4	4
5	5	A JOINT RESOLUTION
6	6	proposing a constitutional amendment providing that a member of the
7	7	legislature or other person who holds elective office, other than a
8	8	municipal office with a term of two years or less, automatically
9	9	vacates the office held on announcing a candidacy or becoming a
10	10	candidate for another elective office when the unexpired portion of
11	11	the person's term of office exceeds one year and providing that a
12	12	person who holds another office is not eligible to serve in the
13	13	legislature during the term of the office held unless the person
14	14	resigned that office on announcing a candidacy or becoming a
15	15	candidate for the legislature.
16	16	BE IT RESOLVED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
17	17	SECTION 1. Sections 18 and 19, Article III, Texas
18	18	Constitution, are amended to read as follows:
19	19	Sec. 18. (a) A [No] Senator or Representative is not
20	20	[shall], during the term for which the Senator or Representative
21	21	[he] was elected, [be] eligible to:
22	22	(1) any appointed civil office of profit under this
23	23	State which shall have been created, or the emoluments of which may
24	24	have been increased, during such term; [,] or
25	25	(2) any office or place, the appointment to which may
26	26	be made, in whole or in part, by either branch of the Legislature.
27	27	(b) For purposes of Subsection (a)(1) of this section, [;
28	28	provided, however,] the fact that the term of office of Senators and
29	29	Representatives does not end precisely on the last day of December
30	30	but extends a few days into January of the succeeding year is [shall
31	31	be] considered as de minimis, and the ineligibility [herein]
32	32	created by that subsection ends [shall terminate] on the last day in
33	33	December of the last full calendar year of the term for which the
34	34	Senator or Representative [he] was elected.
35	35	(c) If a member of the Legislature announces the member's
36	36	candidacy, or in fact becomes a candidate, in any general, special,
37	37	or primary election for any office of profit or trust under the laws
38	38	of this State or the United States other than the office then held,
39	39	at any time when the unexpired term of the office then held exceeds
40	40	one year, that announcement or candidacy constitutes an automatic
41	41	resignation of the office then held. The vacancy created by the
42	42	automatic resignation shall be filled as provided by Section 13 of
43	43	this article.
44	44	(d) No member of either House shall vote for any other
45	45	member for any office whatever, which may be filled by a vote of the
46	46	Legislature, except in such cases as are in this Constitution
47	47	provided.
48	48	(e) A [, nor shall any] member of the Legislature may not be
49	49	interested, either directly or indirectly, in any contract with the
50	50	State, or any county thereof, authorized by any law passed during
51	51	the term for which the member [he] was elected.
52	52	Sec. 19. A [No] judge of any court, Secretary of State,
53	53	Attorney General, clerk of any court of record, or other [any]
54	54	person holding a lucrative office under the United States, [or]
55	55	this State, or any foreign government is not, [shall] during the
56	56	term for which the person [he] is elected or appointed, [be]
57	57	eligible to serve in the Legislature unless, at the time the person
58	58	announced the person's candidacy, or in fact became a candidate, in
59	59	any general, special, or primary election for the Legislature, the
60	60	person resigned the office then held.
61	61	SECTION 2. Section 11(a), Article XI, Texas Constitution,
62	62	is amended to read as follows:
63	63	(a) A Home Rule City may provide by charter or charter
64	64	amendment, and a city, town or village operating under the general
65	65	laws may provide by majority vote of the qualified voters voting at
66	66	an election called for that purpose, for a longer term of office
67	67	than two [(2)] years for its officers, either elective or
68	68	appointive, or both, but not to exceed four [(4)] years. This
69	69	subsection does not affect [; provided, however, that] tenure under
70	70	Civil Service. City [shall not be affected hereby; provided,
71	71	however, that such] officers, elective or appointive, whose terms
72	72	exceed two years are subject to Section 65 [65(b)], Article XVI, of
73	73	this Constitution, providing for automatic resignation in certain
74	74	circumstances [, in the same manner as a county or district officer
75	75	to which that section applies].
76	76	SECTION 3. Section 65, Article XVI, Texas Constitution, is
77	77	amended to read as follows:
78	78	Sec. 65. (a) [This section applies to the following
79	79	offices: District Clerks; County Clerks; County Judges; Judges of
80	80	the County Courts at Law, County Criminal Courts, County Probate
81	81	Courts and County Domestic Relations Courts; County Treasurers;
82	82	Criminal District Attorneys; County Surveyors; County
83	83	Commissioners; Justices of the Peace; Sheriffs; Assessors and
84	84	Collectors of Taxes; District Attorneys; County Attorneys; Public
85	85	Weighers; and Constables.
86	86	[(b)] If a person holding an elective public office created
87	87	under this Constitution or other law of this State announces the
88	88	person's [any of the officers named herein shall announce their]
89	89	candidacy, or [shall] in fact becomes [become] a candidate, in any
90	90	General, Special or Primary Election, for any office of profit or
91	91	trust under the laws of this State or the United States other than
92	92	the office then held, at any time when the unexpired term of the
93	93	office then held exceeds [shall exceed] one [(1)] year, such
94	94	announcement or such candidacy constitutes [shall constitute] an
95	95	automatic resignation of the office then held. The [, and the]
96	96	vacancy [thereby] created by the automatic resignation shall be
97	97	filled pursuant to law in the same manner as other vacancies for
98	98	such office are filled.
99	99	(b) Subsection (a) of this section does not apply to a
100	100	person who holds a municipal office with a term of two years or
101	101	less.
102	102	SECTION 4. This proposed constitutional amendment shall be
103	103	submitted to the voters at an election to be held November 3, 2009.
104	104	The ballot shall be printed to permit voting for or against the
105	105	proposition: "The constitutional amendment providing that a member
106	106	of the legislature or other person who holds elective office, other
107	107	than a municipal office with a term of two years or less,
108	108	automatically vacates the office held on announcing a candidacy or
109	109	becoming a candidate for another elective office when the unexpired
110	110	portion of the person's term of office exceeds one year and
111	111	providing that a person who holds another office is not eligible to
112	112	serve in the legislature during the term of the office held unless
113	113	the person resigned that office on announcing a candidacy or
114	114	becoming a candidate for the legislature."