Texas 2013 - 83rd Regular

Texas Senate Bill SB817 Compare Versions

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1	1	By: Hegar S.B. No. 817
2	2	(Johnson)
3	3
4	4
5	5	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
6	6	AN ACT
7	7	relating to certain requirements for political parties holding
8	8	conventions and for officers of certain of those parties.
9	9	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
10	10	SECTION 1. Section 161.005, Election Code, is amended by
11	11	amending Subsection (a) and adding Subsection (c) to read as
12	12	follows:
13	13	(a) To be eligible to be a candidate for or to serve as a
14	14	county or precinct chair of a political party, a person must:
15	15	(1) be a qualified voter of the county; and
16	16	(2) except as provided by Subsection (c), not be a
17	17	candidate for nomination or election to, or be the holder of, an
18	18	elective office of the federal, state, or county government.
19	19	(c) A candidate for nomination or election to, or the holder
20	20	of, an elective office of the federal, state, or county government
21	21	is eligible to serve as a county or precinct chair of a political
22	22	party to which Chapter 181 applies.
23	23	SECTION 2. Section 163.002, Election Code, is amended to
24	24	read as follows:
25	25	Sec. 163.002. REQUIRED RULES. A political party that makes
26	26	nominations in this state shall adopt rules that:
27	27	(1) prescribe the parliamentary procedure governing
28	28	the conduct of party meetings and conventions from the precinct
29	29	level to the state level, including:
30	30	(A) quorums;
31	31	(B) casting and counting votes;
32	32	(C) operation of executive committees;
33	33	(D) appointment and duties of convention
34	34	committees; and
35	35	(E) presentation of matters before a convention;
36	36	(2) prescribe the method of selecting the party's
37	37	presidential elector candidates;
38	38	(3) prescribe the manner of selecting party officers,
39	39	convention delegates, any convention alternates, and convention
40	40	officials;
41	41	(4) provide for representative apportionment of party
42	42	officers, convention delegates, any convention alternates, and
43	43	convention officials throughout the state on the basis of
44	44	population, party strength, or both, within the appropriate
45	45	territorial unit;
46	46	(5) provide for periodic publication and publicizing
47	47	of party rules; and
48	48	(6) prescribe the manner of adopting party rules and
49	49	amendments to the rules.
50	50	SECTION 3. Subsection (a), Section 181.061, Election Code,
51	51	is amended to read as follows:
52	52	(a) A political party nominating by convention must make its
53	53	nominations for statewide offices at a state convention held on the
54	54	second Saturday in April [June] of the election year, except that if
55	55	the Sunday after the second Saturday in April in an election year is
56	56	the date of the Easter holiday, the state convention must be held on
57	57	the third Saturday in April of that year. The state convention
58	58	consists of delegates selected at the county conventions held under
59	59	Subsection (c).
60	60	SECTION 4. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives
61	61	a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as
62	62	provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this
63	63	Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this
64	64	Act takes effect September 1, 2013.