83R6203 ADM-D
By: Watson S.B. No. 568
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to the registration of voters at a polling place and
related procedures; modifying the penalty for the offense of false
statement on a voter registration application.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 13.007(b), Election Code, is amended to
read as follows:
(b) An offense under this section is a Class B misdemeanor,
except that the offense is a state jail felony if the registration
application is submitted under Section 63.010.
SECTION 2. Chapter 62, Election Code, is amended by adding
Section 62.0016 to read as follows:
Sec. 62.0016. VOTER REGISTRARS MUST BE PRESENT. Two voter
registrars must be present at each polling place while the polls are
open.
SECTION 3. Chapter 63, Election Code, is amended by adding
Section 63.010 to read as follows:
Sec. 63.010. REGISTRATION AT POLLING PLACE; VOTING
PROCEDURES. (a) Other applicable provisions of this code apply to
the conduct of voting and to the registration of voters under this
section to the extent those provisions do not conflict with this
section.
(b) A person who would be eligible to vote in an election
under Section 11.001, but for the requirement to be a registered
voter, shall be accepted for voting in the precinct of the person's
residence if, on the day the person offers to vote, the person:
(1) submits a voter registration application that
complies with Section 13.002 to a voter registrar at the polling
place;
(2) presents as proof of identification:
(A) a Texas driver's license, including a
temporary license or instruction permit, or personal
identification card issued to the person by the Department of
Public Safety that states the person's current address on the day
the person seeks to vote; or
(B) a utility bill addressed to the person dated
not earlier than the 30th day before the date the person seeks to
vote, and:
(i) a Texas driver's license, including a
temporary license or instruction permit, or personal
identification card issued to the person by the Department of
Public Safety, regardless of whether the address stated on the
license or card is current on the day the person seeks to vote;
(ii) a United States passport issued to the
person; or
(iii) a United States military
identification card that contains the person's photograph; and
(3) executes an affidavit stating that all of the
information submitted in the person's registration application is
true and submits the affidavit to a voter registrar at the polling
place.
(c) Persons voting under this section shall be processed
separately at the polling place from persons who are voting under
regular procedures.
(d) The secretary of state shall adopt rules to ensure the
accountability of election officers and to fairly implement this
section.
SECTION 4. Section 85.031(a), Election Code, is amended to
read as follows:
(a) For each person entitled to vote an early voting ballot
by personal appearance or entitled to register at a polling place,
the early voting clerk shall follow the procedure for accepting or
registering a regular voter on election day, with the modifications
necessary for the conduct of early voting.
SECTION 5. The secretary of state shall adopt rules as
required by Section 63.010, Election Code, as added by this Act, not
later than February 1, 2014.
SECTION 6. The changes in law made by this Act apply only to
an election for which early voting by personal appearance begins on
or after February 1, 2014.
SECTION 7. This Act takes effect September 1, 2013.