| 1 | 1 | | 82R21762 ATP-D |
|---|
| 2 | 2 | | By: Martinez Fischer, Berman, Farias H.B. No. 2752 |
|---|
| 3 | 3 | | Substitute the following for H.B. No. 2752: |
|---|
| 4 | 4 | | By: Veasey C.S.H.B. No. 2752 |
|---|
| 5 | 5 | | |
|---|
| 6 | 6 | | |
|---|
| 7 | 7 | | A BILL TO BE ENTITLED |
|---|
| 8 | 8 | | AN ACT |
|---|
| 9 | 9 | | relating to the removal of a political party's county chair. |
|---|
| 10 | 10 | | BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
|---|
| 11 | 11 | | SECTION 1. Subchapter B, Chapter 171, Election Code, is |
|---|
| 12 | 12 | | amended by adding Section 171.029 to read as follows: |
|---|
| 13 | 13 | | Sec. 171.029. REMOVAL OF COUNTY CHAIR. (a) In this |
|---|
| 14 | 14 | | section: |
|---|
| 15 | 15 | | (1) "Incompetency" means: |
|---|
| 16 | 16 | | (A) gross ignorance of official duties; |
|---|
| 17 | 17 | | (B) gross carelessness in the discharge of |
|---|
| 18 | 18 | | official duties; or |
|---|
| 19 | 19 | | (C) unfitness or inability to promptly and |
|---|
| 20 | 20 | | properly discharge official duties because of a serious physical or |
|---|
| 21 | 21 | | mental defect that did not exist at the time of the county chair's |
|---|
| 22 | 22 | | election. |
|---|
| 23 | 23 | | (2) "Official misconduct" means intentional, unlawful |
|---|
| 24 | 24 | | behavior relating to a county chair's official duties. The term |
|---|
| 25 | 25 | | includes an intentional or corrupt failure, refusal, or neglect of |
|---|
| 26 | 26 | | a county chair to perform an official duty. |
|---|
| 27 | 27 | | (b) The state executive committee of a political party may |
|---|
| 28 | 28 | | call a hearing on the issue of removing the county chair for |
|---|
| 29 | 29 | | incompetency or official misconduct in response to a complaint from |
|---|
| 30 | 30 | | a member of the political party in the county from which the chair |
|---|
| 31 | 31 | | was elected. |
|---|
| 32 | 32 | | (c) The state executive committee shall give notice to the |
|---|
| 33 | 33 | | county chair not later than the 14th day before the date of the |
|---|
| 34 | 34 | | hearing, stating the allegations of incompetency or official |
|---|
| 35 | 35 | | misconduct. At the hearing, evidence must be presented of the |
|---|
| 36 | 36 | | chair's incompetency or official misconduct, and the county chair |
|---|
| 37 | 37 | | shall have the opportunity to examine or question the evidence |
|---|
| 38 | 38 | | against the chair. |
|---|
| 39 | 39 | | (d) After conducting the hearing and reviewing the |
|---|
| 40 | 40 | | evidence, the state executive committee shall vote on the question |
|---|
| 41 | 41 | | of the removal of the county chair. If at least three-fifths of the |
|---|
| 42 | 42 | | membership of the state executive committee finds that the county |
|---|
| 43 | 43 | | chair has demonstrated incompetency or committed official |
|---|
| 44 | 44 | | misconduct, the committee shall suspend any party rules to the |
|---|
| 45 | 45 | | extent necessary to: |
|---|
| 46 | 46 | | (1) remove the chair; and |
|---|
| 47 | 47 | | (2) enact a transition plan that includes provisions |
|---|
| 48 | 48 | | to fill the vacancy created by the removal. |
|---|
| 49 | 49 | | (e) Sections 171.024 and 171.025 do not apply to the filling |
|---|
| 50 | 50 | | of a vacancy created by the removal of a county chair under this |
|---|
| 51 | 51 | | section. |
|---|
| 52 | 52 | | SECTION 2. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives |
|---|
| 53 | 53 | | a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as |
|---|
| 54 | 54 | | provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this |
|---|
| 55 | 55 | | Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this |
|---|
| 56 | 56 | | Act takes effect September 1, 2011. |
|---|