Texas 2015 - 84th Regular

Texas House Bill HB3188 Compare Versions

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

Old	New	Differences
1	1	84R8642 ATP-F
2	2	By: Goldman H.B. No. 3188
3	3
4	4
5	5	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
6	6	AN ACT
7	7	relating to the canvassing of primary elections.
8	8	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
9	9	SECTION 1. Sections 172.116(a), (b), and (g), Election
10	10	Code, are amended to read as follows:
11	11	(a) The county chair and, if available, at least one member
12	12	of the county executive committee selected by the county executive
13	13	committee shall canvass the precinct election returns for the
14	14	county.
15	15	(b) The county chair and any selected county executive
16	16	committee member shall convene to conduct the local canvass [at the
17	17	county seat] on the second Thursday after election day at the hour
18	18	specified by the county chair and posted on the county party website
19	19	or the commissioners court bulletin board if the county
20	20	organization of the political party does not maintain a website.
21	21	(g) The official result of the primary election, except for
22	22	offices canvassed at the state level, is determined from the local
23	23	canvass of precinct returns and shall be posted to the secretary of
24	24	state's website.
25	25	SECTION 2. Section 172.117, Election Code, is amended by
26	26	amending Subsection (a) and adding Subsections (a-1), (a-2), and
27	27	(a-3) to read as follows:
28	28	(a) The county chair shall certify by posting on the
29	29	secretary of state's website a notation next to [in writing for
30	30	placement on the general election ballot] the name and address of
31	31	each primary candidate who is nominated for a county or precinct
32	32	office for placement on the general election ballot. The chair
33	33	shall execute and file with the county clerk an affidavit
34	34	certifying that the returns posted on the secretary of state's
35	35	website are the correct and complete returns. The secretary of
36	36	state may adopt by rule a process to allow the chair to submit the
37	37	affidavit digitally.
38	38	(a-1) The secretary of state shall develop appropriate
39	39	notations to describe the status of each candidate. The notations
40	40	shall include:
41	41	(1) "filed";
42	42	(2) "withdrew";
43	43	(3) "lost primary";
44	44	(4) "in runoff";
45	45	(5) "lost runoff";
46	46	(6) "deceased"; or
47	47	(7) "nominee for general election."
48	48	(a-2) The county chair shall update the notations after each
49	49	general primary and runoff primary election. After any withdrawal
50	50	or death of a candidate, and subsequent replacement of the
51	51	candidate on the ballot, the chair shall update the notation on the
52	52	website. All notations must be completed and accurate on the date
53	53	prescribed by the secretary of state by rule to ensure that an
54	54	authority printing general election ballots may rely on the
55	55	information.
56	56	(a-3) After the notations have been placed on the website
57	57	and the affidavit has been filed as required by Subsection (a), the
58	58	authority preparing the official general election ballot shall use
59	59	the list of candidates named on the secretary of state's website as
60	60	the nominees for general election in preparing the general election
61	61	ballot.
62	62	SECTION 3. Section 172.118, Election Code, is amended by
63	63	adding Subsections (e), (f), (g), (h), (i), (j), and (k) to read as
64	64	follows:
65	65	(e) The county chair shall post on the secretary of state's
66	66	website a list of names of each person elected county chair and
67	67	precinct chair of each precinct in the county. The list shall be
68	68	maintained as the current and official list of party officers for
69	69	all purposes under this code.
70	70	(f) If a county or precinct chair dies or resigns, the
71	71	chair's name shall immediately be removed from the website and
72	72	marked as vacant until a replacement is selected.
73	73	(g) When a new county chair or precinct chair is selected to
74	74	fill a vacancy, the chair's name and address and any other relevant
75	75	public information shall be posted on the website. The appointment
76	76	of a new county chair or precinct chair is not effective until the
77	77	chair's name is posted on the website.
78	78	(h) When a district or county executive committee meets to
79	79	fill a vacancy on the ballot, the members of the committee are those
80	80	county and precinct chairs whose names are posted on the secretary
81	81	of state's website on the date the vacancy occurs. County or
82	82	precinct chairs appointed after the date of the vacancy may
83	83	participate in the discussions of those county and district
84	84	committees but are not eligible to vote.
85	85	(i) A state party chair or the chair's designee may assist a
86	86	county chair or county executive committee in posting information
87	87	on the secretary of state's website or making corrections to the
88	88	list if the county chair or county executive committee needs
89	89	technical assistance.
90	90	(j) A state executive committee member shall have access to
91	91	and be able to download the information posted for each precinct
92	92	chair, including each chair's name, address, telephone number, and
93	93	e-mail address.
94	94	(k) The secretary of state shall make publicly viewable on
95	95	the secretary's website only the name and precinct number of each
96	96	precinct chair.
97	97	SECTION 4. Section 172.119, Election Code, is amended by
98	98	amending Subsection (a) and adding Subsection (a-1) to read as
99	99	follows:
100	100	(a) The county chair shall prepare and post next to the name
101	101	of each primary candidate listed on the secretary of state's
102	102	website county election returns for the statewide and district
103	103	offices voted on in a primary election [in the same manner as the
104	104	county returns for a general election are prepared by the county
105	105	clerk except that separate returns for the offices of governor and
106	106	lieutenant governor are not prepared].
107	107	(a-1) The secretary of state by rule may determine what data
108	108	is required to be posted, including:
109	109	(1) votes cast by mail;
110	110	(2) votes cast early;
111	111	(3) votes cast on election day;
112	112	(4) votes cast by federal postcard applicants or other
113	113	military or overseas voters;
114	114	(5) provisional ballots; or
115	115	(6) total votes only.
116	116	SECTION 5. Sections 172.120(a), (b), (b-1), (f), and (h),
117	117	Election Code, are amended to read as follows:
118	118	(a) The state chair [executive committee] shall canvass the
119	119	county election returns.
120	120	(b) The state chair [executive committee] shall [convene
121	121	to] conduct the state canvass for the general primary election not
122	122	later than:
123	123	(1) the second Sunday after general primary election
124	124	day, for an election in which three or more candidates are seeking
125	125	election to the same office; or
126	126	(2) the 22nd day after general primary election day,
127	127	for an election not described by Subdivision (1).
128	128	(b-1) Not later than the third Saturday after runoff primary
129	129	election day, the [committee shall convene at the call of the] state
130	130	chair shall complete [to conduct] the state canvass of the runoff
131	131	primary election.
132	132	(f) The [Not later than the 20th day after the date the state
133	133	canvass is completed, the state chair shall deliver the committee's
134	134	tabulation to the] secretary of state[, who] shall preserve and
135	135	archive on the secretary's website all of the information
136	136	pertaining to candidates and the canvass results [it for the period
137	137	for preserving the precinct election records].
138	138	(h) The official result of the primary election for offices
139	139	canvassed by the state chair [executive committee] is determined
140	140	from its canvass of the county returns.
141	141	SECTION 6. Section 172.122(a), Election Code, is amended to
142	142	read as follows:
143	143	(a) The state chair shall certify by posting on the
144	144	secretary of state's website [in writing as the party's nominee] the
145	145	name and address of each primary candidate who is nominated for a
146	146	statewide or district office. The state chair shall execute and
147	147	file with the secretary of state an affidavit certifying that the
148	148	returns posted on the secretary of state's website are the correct
149	149	and complete returns. The secretary of state may adopt by rule a
150	150	process to allow the chair to submit the affidavit digitally.
151	151	SECTION 7. Section 172.124(a), Election Code, is amended to
152	152	read as follows:
153	153	(a) For each primary election, the county clerk [chair]
154	154	shall prepare a report of the number of votes, including early
155	155	voting votes, received in each county election precinct by each
156	156	candidate for a statewide office or the office of United States
157	157	representative, state senator, or state representative, as
158	158	provided by Section 67.017 for the report of precinct results for a
159	159	general election.
160	160	SECTION 8. The following provisions of the Election Code
161	161	are repealed:
162	162	(1) Sections 172.116(c), (d), and (e);
163	163	(2) Section 172.117(b);
164	164	(3) Sections 172.118(a), (b), (c), and (d);
165	165	(4) Section 172.119(b); and
166	166	(5) Sections 172.120(c), (d), and (e).
167	167	SECTION 9. This Act takes effect September 1, 2015.