Texas 2017 - 85th Regular

Texas House Bill HB2338 Compare Versions

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Version 2 (New)

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1	1	85R22747 TJB-F
2	2	By: Bell, Flynn, Miller, White, Schaefer, H.B. No. 2338
3	3	et al.
4	4	Substitute the following for H.B. No. 2338:
5	5	By: Darby C.S.H.B. No. 2338
6	6
7	7
8	8	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
9	9	AN ACT
10	10	relating to the Texas Sovereignty Act.
11	11	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
12	12	SECTION 1. (a) This Act may be cited as the Texas
13	13	Sovereignty Act.
14	14	(b) The legislature finds that:
15	15	(1) The people of the several states comprising the
16	16	United States of America created the federal government to be their
17	17	agent for certain enumerated powers delegated by the states and the
18	18	people to the federal government through the United States
19	19	Constitution.
20	20	(2) The Tenth Amendment to the United States
21	21	Constitution confirms the intent and understanding of the people of
22	22	the United States that all powers not delegated to the United States
23	23	by the Constitution, or prohibited by it to the states, are reserved
24	24	to the states respectively, or to the people.
25	25	(3) Each power delegated to the federal government by
26	26	the United States Constitution is constitutionally limited to that
27	27	power as it was understood and exercised at the time it was
28	28	delegated. An amendment to the Constitution as ratified by the
29	29	states is required to expand or limit a constitutionally delegated
30	30	power.
31	31	(4) The United States Constitution authorizes the
32	32	United States Congress to exercise only those specific powers
33	33	enumerated in Section 8, Article I, United States Constitution, and
34	34	those other powers as may be delegated to Congress through
35	35	amendments to the Constitution as ratified by the states.
36	36	(5) Article VI, United States Constitution, makes
37	37	supreme the Constitution and federal laws enacted pursuant to the
38	38	Constitution, further requiring that public officials at all levels
39	39	and in all branches of government support the Constitution.
40	40	(6) The power delegated to the United States Congress
41	41	to regulate commerce among the several states under Section 8,
42	42	Article I, United States Constitution, is limited to federal
43	43	regulation of actual commerce between the states and among foreign
44	44	nations. Regulation of intrastate commerce is reserved to the
45	45	states and to the people of the states. The Commerce Clause of the
46	46	Constitution constrains the legislative, executive, and judicial
47	47	branches of the federal government.
48	48	(7) The power delegated to the United States Congress
49	49	to make all necessary and proper federal laws under Section 8,
50	50	Article I, United States Constitution, allows Congress to enact
51	51	only those laws necessary and proper to execute the
52	52	constitutionally delegated powers vested in the federal
53	53	government, all other powers being reserved to the states and to the
54	54	people of the states.
55	55	(8) The power delegated to the United States Congress
56	56	to provide for the general welfare of the United States under
57	57	Section 8, Article I, United States Constitution, in the General
58	58	Welfare Clause constitutionally constrains Congress when
59	59	exercising a delegated power to act in a manner that serves the
60	60	states and the people of the states well and uniformly.
61	61	(9) Sections 1 and 2, Article I, Texas Constitution,
62	62	provide that this state and the people of this state retain the
63	63	sovereign power to regulate the affairs of Texas, subject only to
64	64	the United States Constitution.
65	65	(c) The federal government does not have the power to take
66	66	any legislative, executive, or judicial action that violates the
67	67	United States Constitution.
68	68	(d) The contract with the State of Texas has been willfully
69	69	violated by the federal government and must be constitutionally
70	70	restored.
71	71	(e) This Act calls on all officials in federal, state, and
72	72	local government, in all branches and at all levels, to honor their
73	73	oaths to preserve, protect, and defend the United States
74	74	Constitution and its ratified amendments against any federal action
75	75	that:
76	76	(1) would unconstitutionally undermine, diminish, or
77	77	disregard the balance of powers between the sovereign states and
78	78	the federal government established by the United States
79	79	Constitution and its ratified amendments; or
80	80	(2) is outside the scope of the power delegated to the
81	81	federal government by the United States Constitution.
82	82	SECTION 2. Subtitle Z, Title 3, Government Code, is amended
83	83	by adding Chapter 393 to read as follows:
84	84	CHAPTER 393. ENFORCEMENT OF UNITED STATES CONSTITUTION
85	85	Sec. 393.001. DEFINITIONS. In this chapter:
86	86	(1) "Committee" means the Joint Legislative Committee
87	87	on Constitutional Enforcement.
88	88	(2) "Federal action" includes:
89	89	(A) a federal law;
90	90	(B) a federal agency rule, policy, or standard;
91	91	(C) an executive order of the president of the
92	92	United States;
93	93	(D) an order or decision of a federal court; and
94	94	(E) the making or enforcing of a treaty.
95	95	(3) "Unconstitutional federal action" means a federal
96	96	action enacted, adopted, or implemented without authority
97	97	specifically delegated to the federal government by the people and
98	98	the states through the United States Constitution.
99	99	Sec. 393.002. JOINT LEGISLATIVE COMMITTEE ON
100	100	CONSTITUTIONAL ENFORCEMENT. (a) The Joint Legislative Committee
101	101	on Constitutional Enforcement is established as a permanent joint
102	102	committee of the legislature. The committee is established to
103	103	review federal actions that challenge the sovereignty of the state
104	104	and of the people for the purpose of determining if the federal
105	105	action is unconstitutional.
106	106	(b) The committee consists of the following 12 members:
107	107	(1) six members of the house of representatives
108	108	appointed by the speaker of the house; and
109	109	(2) six members of the senate appointed by the
110	110	lieutenant governor.
111	111	(c) Not more than four house members of the committee may be
112	112	members of the same political party. Not more than four senate
113	113	members of the committee may be members of the same political party.
114	114	(d) Members of the committee serve two-year terms beginning
115	115	with the convening of each regular legislative session.
116	116	(e) If a vacancy occurs on the committee, the appropriate
117	117	appointing officer shall appoint a member of the house or senate, as
118	118	appropriate, to serve for the remainder of the unexpired term.
119	119	(f) The speaker of the house and the lieutenant governor
120	120	shall each designate one member of the committee as a joint chair of
121	121	the committee.
122	122	(g) The committee shall meet at the call of either joint
123	123	chair.
124	124	(h) A majority of the members of the committee constitute a
125	125	quorum.
126	126	Sec. 393.003. COMMITTEE REVIEW OF FEDERAL ACTION. (a) The
127	127	committee may review any federal action to determine whether the
128	128	action is an unconstitutional federal action.
129	129	(b) When reviewing a federal action, the committee shall
130	130	consider the plain reading and reasoning of the text of the United
131	131	States Constitution and the understood definitions at the time of
132	132	the framing and construction of the Constitution by our forefathers
133	133	before making a final declaration of constitutionality, as
134	134	demonstrated by:
135	135	(1) the ratifying debates in the several states;
136	136	(2) the understanding of the leading participants at
137	137	the constitutional convention;
138	138	(3) the understanding of the doctrine in question by
139	139	the constitutions of the several states in existence at the time the
140	140	United States Constitution was adopted;
141	141	(4) the understanding of the United States
142	142	Constitution by the first United States Congress;
143	143	(5) the opinions of the first chief justice of the
144	144	United States Supreme Court;
145	145	(6) the background understanding of the doctrine in
146	146	question under the English Constitution of the time; and
147	147	(7) the statements of support for natural law and
148	148	natural rights by the framers and the philosophers admired by the
149	149	framers.
150	150	(c) Not later than the 180th day after the date the
151	151	committee holds its first public hearing to review a specific
152	152	federal action, the committee shall vote to determine whether the
153	153	action is an unconstitutional federal action.
154	154	(d) The committee may determine that a federal action is an
155	155	unconstitutional federal action by majority vote.
156	156	Sec. 393.004. LEGISLATIVE DETERMINATION. (a) If the
157	157	committee determines that a federal action is an unconstitutional
158	158	federal action, the committee shall report the determination to the
159	159	house of representatives and to the senate during:
160	160	(1) the current session of the legislature if the
161	161	legislature is convened when the committee makes the determination;
162	162	or
163	163	(2) the next regular or special session of the
164	164	legislature if the legislature is not convened when the committee
165	165	makes the determination.
166	166	(b) Each house of the legislature shall vote on whether the
167	167	federal action is an unconstitutional federal action. If a
168	168	majority of the members of each house determine that the federal
169	169	action is an unconstitutional federal action, the determination
170	170	shall be sent to the governor for approval or disapproval as
171	171	provided by Section 14, Article IV, Texas Constitution, regarding
172	172	bills.
173	173	(c) A federal action is declared by the state to be an
174	174	unconstitutional federal action on the day:
175	175	(1) the governor approves the vote of the legislature
176	176	making the determination; or
177	177	(2) the determination would become law if presented to
178	178	the governor as a bill and not objected to by the governor.
179	179	(d) The secretary of state shall forward official copies of
180	180	the declaration to the president of the United States, to the
181	181	speaker of the House of Representatives and the president of the
182	182	Senate of the Congress of the United States, and to all members of
183	183	the Texas delegation to Congress with the request that the
184	184	declaration of unconstitutional federal action be entered in the
185	185	Congressional Record.
186	186	Sec. 393.005. OTHER DETERMINATIONS OF UNCONSTITUTIONAL
187	187	FEDERAL ACTS. (a) This chapter does not limit or alter the
188	188	authority of the governor, the attorney general, a statewide
189	189	elected official, a state or federal court, a judge or justice, a
190	190	state or local appointed or elected official, or the governing body
191	191	of a political subdivision of this state to issue a verbal or
192	192	written opinion determining a federal action to be
193	193	unconstitutional.
194	194	(b) An opinion issued under Subsection (a) may be referred
195	195	to the committee for review under this chapter.
196	196	Sec. 393.006. EFFECT OF DECLARED UNCONSTITUTIONAL FEDERAL
197	197	ACTION. (a) A federal action declared to be an unconstitutional
198	198	federal action under Section 393.004 has no legal effect in this
199	199	state and may not be recognized by this state or a political
200	200	subdivision of this state as having legal effect.
201	201	(b) The state and a political subdivision of the state may
202	202	not spend public money or resources or incur public debt to
203	203	implement or enforce a federal action declared to be an
204	204	unconstitutional federal action.
205	205	(c) A person authorized to enforce the laws of this state
206	206	may enforce those laws, including Section 39.03, Penal Code,
207	207	against a person who attempts to implement or enforce a federal
208	208	action declared to be an unconstitutional federal action.
209	209	(d) This chapter does not prohibit a public officer who has
210	210	taken an oath to defend the United States Constitution from
211	211	interposing to stop acts of the federal government which, in the
212	212	officer's best understanding and judgment, violate the United
213	213	States Constitution.
214	214	(e) Texas officials in federal, state, and local government
215	215	shall honor their oaths to preserve, protect, and defend the United
216	216	States Constitution and shall act to constitutionally defend this
217	217	state and the people of this state.
218	218	Sec. 393.007. AUTHORITY OF ATTORNEY GENERAL. (a) The
219	219	attorney general may defend the state to prevent the implementation
220	220	and enforcement of a federal action declared to be an
221	221	unconstitutional federal action.
222	222	(b) The attorney general may prosecute a person who attempts
223	223	to implement or enforce a federal action declared to be an
224	224	unconstitutional federal action using Section 39.03, Penal Code, or
225	225	another provision of law.
226	226	(c) The attorney general may appear before a grand jury in
227	227	connection with an offense the attorney general is authorized to
228	228	prosecute under Subsection (b).
229	229	(d) The authority to prosecute prescribed by this chapter
230	230	does not affect the authority derived from other law to prosecute
231	231	the same offenses.
232	232	SECTION 3. Chapter 37, Civil Practice and Remedies Code, is
233	233	amended by adding Section 37.0056 to read as follows:
234	234	Sec. 37.0056. DECLARATIONS RELATING TO UNCONSTITUTIONAL
235	235	ACTS OF THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT. (a) In this section, "federal
236	236	action" and "unconstitutional federal action" have the meanings
237	237	assigned by Section 393.001, Government Code.
238	238	(b) Any court in this state has original jurisdiction of a
239	239	proceeding seeking a declaratory judgment that a federal action
240	240	effective in this state is an unconstitutional federal action.
241	241	(c) A person is entitled to declaratory relief if the court
242	242	determines that a federal action is an unconstitutional federal
243	243	action.
244	244	(d) In determining whether to grant declaratory relief to a
245	245	person under this section, a court:
246	246	(1) may not rely solely on the decisions of other
247	247	courts interpreting the United States Constitution; and
248	248	(2) must rely on the plain meaning of the text of the
249	249	United States Constitution and any applicable constitutional
250	250	doctrine as understood by the framers of the constitution.
251	251	(e) Section 37.008 does not apply to relief sought under
252	252	this section.
253	253	SECTION 4. (a) Not later than the 30th day following the
254	254	effective date of this Act:
255	255	(1) the speaker of the house of representatives and
256	256	the lieutenant governor shall appoint the initial members of the
257	257	Joint Legislative Committee on Constitutional Enforcement
258	258	established under Section 393.002, Government Code, as added by
259	259	this Act; and
260	260	(2) the secretary of state shall forward official
261	261	copies of this Act to the president of the United States, to the
262	262	speaker of the House of Representatives and the president of the
263	263	Senate of the Congress of the United States, and to all members of
264	264	the Texas delegation to Congress with the request that this Act be
265	265	officially entered in the Congressional Record.
266	266	(b) Not later than the 45th day following the effective date
267	267	of this Act, the speaker of the house of representatives and the
268	268	lieutenant governor shall forward official copies of this Act to
269	269	the presiding officers of the legislatures of the several states.
270	270	SECTION 5. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives
271	271	a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as
272	272	provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this
273	273	Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this
274	274	Act takes effect September 1, 2017.