Texas 2017 - 85th Regular

Texas House Bill HB2815 Compare Versions

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1	1	85R21800 SRS-F
2	2	By: Oliverson, Israel, Laubenberg, et al. H.B. No. 2815
3	3	Substitute the following for H.B. No. 2815:
4	4	By: Laubenberg C.S.H.B. No. 2815
5	5
6	6
7	7	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
8	8	AN ACT
9	9	relating to early in-person voting by voters who reside at a
10	10	residential care facility.
11	11	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
12	12	SECTION 1. Section 86.003, Election Code, is amended by
13	13	amending Subsections (a) and (b) and adding Subsection (e) to read
14	14	as follows:
15	15	(a) The balloting materials for voting by mail shall be
16	16	provided to the voter by mail, unless the ballot is delivered to a
17	17	voter for early voting under Chapter 107. A ballot provided by any
18	18	other method may not be counted.
19	19	(b) Subject to Subsection (c), the balloting materials
20	20	shall be addressed to the applicable address specified in the
21	21	voter's application. The election officer providing the ballot may
22	22	not knowingly deliver [mail] the materials to an address other than
23	23	that prescribed by this section.
24	24	(e) A voter who makes an application to vote early by mail on
25	25	the grounds of age or disability requesting that the ballot be sent
26	26	to the address of a residential care facility, as defined by Chapter
27	27	107, is required to vote as provided by that chapter if five or more
28	28	applications for ballots to be voted by mail are made by residents
29	29	of the same facility who request that the ballots be sent to that
30	30	facility.
31	31	SECTION 2. Section 86.004, Election Code, is amended by
32	32	amending Subsection (a) and adding Subsection (c) to read as
33	33	follows:
34	34	(a) Except as provided by Subsection (b) or (c), the
35	35	balloting materials for voting by mail shall be mailed to a voter
36	36	entitled to vote by mail not later than the seventh calendar day
37	37	after the later of the date the clerk accepts the voter's
38	38	application for a ballot to be voted by mail or the date the ballots
39	39	become available for mailing, except that if that mailing date is
40	40	earlier than the 45th day before election day, the balloting
41	41	materials shall be mailed not later than the 38th day before
42	42	election day.
43	43	(c) An application to vote early by mail on the grounds of
44	44	age or disability requesting that the ballot be sent to the address
45	45	of a residential care facility, as defined by Chapter 107, shall be
46	46	held until the earlier of:
47	47	(1) the date on which five or more applications for
48	48	ballots to be voted by mail made by residents of the same facility
49	49	who request that the ballots be sent to that facility have been
50	50	received, in which case ballots may not be mailed to the voters and
51	51	voting shall be conducted under Chapter 107; or
52	52	(2) the last day on which an application for a ballot
53	53	to be voted by mail may be received, after which the ballot shall
54	54	promptly be mailed to the voter.
55	55	SECTION 3. Subtitle B, Title 7, Election Code, is amended by
56	56	adding Chapter 107 to read as follows:
57	57	CHAPTER 107. EARLY VOTING AT A RESIDENTIAL CARE FACILITY
58	58	Sec. 107.001. PURPOSE. This chapter is enacted to
59	59	facilitate voting in a hospital, nursing home, other long-term care
60	60	facility, or retirement center in which a significant number of
61	61	occupants, patients, or residents lack adequate transportation to
62	62	an appropriate polling place, need assistance in voting, are 65
63	63	years of age or older or are disabled, or are indefinitely confined.
64	64	Sec. 107.002. DEFINITION. In this chapter, "residential
65	65	care facility" means a facility licensed and regulated under
66	66	Chapter 242 or 247, Health and Safety Code.
67	67	Sec. 107.003. APPLICABILITY OF EARLY VOTING BY PERSONAL
68	68	APPEARANCE PROVISIONS. To the extent applicable and not in
69	69	conflict with this chapter, Chapter 85 applies to voting at a
70	70	residential care facility under this chapter.
71	71	Sec. 107.004. EARLY VOTING AT RESIDENTIAL CARE FACILITY
72	72	REQUIRED. A voter residing in a residential care facility who has
73	73	applied to vote early by mail on the grounds of age or disability
74	74	and who requested that the ballot be sent to the address of the
75	75	facility, must vote as provided by this chapter if five or more
76	76	applications for ballots to be voted by mail were made by residents
77	77	of the same facility who requested that the ballots be sent to the
78	78	facility.
79	79	Sec. 107.005. ELECTION JUDGES; QUALIFICATIONS; OATH. (a)
80	80	Additional election judges shall be selected to serve at a
81	81	residential care facility in the same manner as election judges are
82	82	selected to serve at a polling place for early voting by personal
83	83	appearance under Chapter 32. The county chair of a political party
84	84	shall indicate on the list of names of persons if a person is
85	85	willing to serve as an election judge under this chapter.
86	86	(b) An election judge serving at a residential care facility
87	87	may be a volunteer, an employee of the authority conducting the
88	88	election, or compensated by the authority conducting the election
89	89	in the same manner as an election judge for a polling place for
90	90	early voting by personal appearance.
91	91	(c) A person may not serve as an election judge for a
92	92	residential care facility if at any time during the two years
93	93	preceding the election, the person has been employed or retained at
94	94	a residential care facility in the county where the person seeks to
95	95	serve as an election judge.
96	96	(d) Before beginning the duties of an election judge under
97	97	this chapter, each individual appointed to serve as an election
98	98	judge at a residential care facility shall sign and date this oath:
99	99	I swear (or affirm) that I will not in any manner request or
100	100	seek to persuade or induce any voter to vote for or against any
101	101	candidate or measure to be voted on, and that I will faithfully
102	102	perform my duty as an officer of the election and guard the purity
103	103	of the election.
104	104	I have read the statutes and training materials provided and
105	105	will conduct this election accordingly.
106	106	I understand that failing to follow procedures exactly may
107	107	result in invalidation of the voter's ballot.
108	108	I will not unduly influence or pressure a person to
109	109	participate or cast a ballot in the election.
110	110	I will not influence the choice of a voter to choose a
111	111	particular primary ballot, vote in a particular race or election,
112	112	or vote on a particular proposition.
113	113	Signed: ________________________
114	114	This ___ day of ____, 20__.
115	115	(e) The secretary of state shall provide training for an
116	116	election judge serving under this chapter.
117	117	Sec. 107.006. VOTING LOCATION. (a) The administrator of
118	118	the residential care facility shall make available an area located
119	119	in a common area of the facility for the purposes of voting under
120	120	this chapter. The area shall allow a voter to cast a secret ballot.
121	121	(b) The facility administrator shall allow posting of
122	122	required notices during the period that voting is conducted under
123	123	this chapter.
124	124	(c) An election judge may enter the private room of a voter
125	125	who requests that balloting materials be brought to the voter.
126	126	Sec. 107.007. NOTICE OF ELECTION IN RESIDENTIAL CARE
127	127	FACILITY; DETERMINATION OF TIME FOR VOTING. (a) If early voting at
128	128	a residential care facility is required under this chapter, the
129	129	early voting clerk shall give notice that early voting will occur at
130	130	the facility and appoint election judges for the purpose of
131	131	conducting voting under this chapter.
132	132	(b) Not later than 5 p.m. on the sixth business day before
133	133	election day, the election judges shall, with the input of the
134	134	administrator of the residential care facility, designate one or
135	135	more times for voting to be conducted. Voting may be conducted not
136	136	earlier than the 29th day before election day and not later than the
137	137	fourth day preceding election day.
138	138	(c) Notice of the time or times for conducting the election
139	139	shall be posted at the residential care facility by the election
140	140	judge and on the appropriate county's website as soon as
141	141	practicable after determining the time and not later than the fifth
142	142	day before the first day on which voting will be conducted at the
143	143	facility.
144	144	(d) The secretary of state with the assistance of the
145	145	Department of State Health Services shall create a list of all
146	146	residential care facilities in an early voting clerk's
147	147	jurisdiction. The secretary of state shall provide the list to the
148	148	early voting clerk.
149	149	(e) The early voting clerk shall maintain a public list of
150	150	all residential care facilities in the clerk's jurisdiction at
151	151	which voting is conducted under this chapter. The list must be
152	152	available on the website of the authority conducting the election
153	153	or posted at the location where public notices are posted in the
154	154	county courthouse or authority public building, as applicable, and
155	155	for each facility state:
156	156	(1) the name of the facility;
157	157	(2) the address of the facility;
158	158	(3) the dates and times for voting at the facility; and
159	159	(4) the names of the election judges for the facility.
160	160	Sec. 107.008. CONDUCT OF ELECTION. (a) In an election
161	161	conducted under this chapter, the early voting clerk shall deliver
162	162	to the election judges for a residential care facility the
163	163	balloting materials for any qualified voters who have requested a
164	164	mail ballot for an election that would have been otherwise mailed to
165	165	the voter at the facility under Chapter 86.
166	166	(b) The election judges for a residential care facility
167	167	shall deliver the balloting materials to the voter at the facility.
168	168	(c) The voter shall mark and seal the ballot in the same
169	169	manner as a voter voting under Chapter 86.
170	170	(d) Both election judges for the residential care facility
171	171	shall sign the carrier envelope as witnesses. In the space for the
172	172	address of the witness, each election judge shall write in
173	173	"Residential Care Facility Election Judge."
174	174	(e) The election judges shall accept the carrier envelope
175	175	and place the envelope in a secure bag or ballot container for
176	176	transport to the early voting clerk's office.
177	177	(f) Ballots voted at a residential care facility shall be
178	178	processed for counting in the manner provided by Chapter 86 for a
179	179	ballot voted by mail.
180	180	Sec. 107.009. VOTING BY ADDITIONAL QUALIFIED VOTERS. (a)
181	181	The early voting clerk shall produce a list of all additional
182	182	qualified voters who reside at a residential care facility where
183	183	voting is conducted under this chapter.
184	184	(b) The clerk shall supply the election judges for the
185	185	residential care facility with sufficient additional ballots and
186	186	voting materials to allow any additional qualified voter who
187	187	resides at the facility to vote under this chapter. During the
188	188	voting period, any registered voter who resides at the facility may
189	189	complete an application to request a mail ballot as if they were
190	190	voting by mail. An election judge for the facility shall serve as a
191	191	witness for any person who is unable to sign their name and may
192	192	witness multiple applications.
193	193	(c) An election judge for the residential care facility must
194	194	accept a properly completed application for a ballot made under
195	195	this section, and shall provide a ballot to the voter. The election
196	196	judge shall make a notation on an application that it was made under
197	197	this section.
198	198	(d) A voter who applies for a ballot under this section
199	199	shall vote in the manner provided by Section 107.008, except that
200	200	the voter's ballot must be stored with the voter's application, and
201	201	the voter's ballot may not be counted if the voter was not a
202	202	qualified voter for the election as demonstrated from the
203	203	information contained in the voter's application.
204	204	Sec. 107.010. RETENTION OF RECORDS. (a) The election
205	205	judges for the residential care facility shall record the number of
206	206	ballots voted. Both of the election judges for each facility and
207	207	the early voting clerk shall sign and attest to the number of
208	208	ballots issued.
209	209	(b) On completion of voting under this chapter, the election
210	210	judges must record the number of:
211	211	(1) completed ballots;
212	212	(2) spoiled ballots; and
213	213	(3) unused returned ballots.
214	214	Sec. 107.011. PROOF OF IDENTIFICATION PRESENTED AT
215	215	RESIDENTIAL CARE FACILITY. (a) Notwithstanding Section 63.0101 or
216	216	any other law, a voter voting under this chapter may submit a
217	217	statement as proof of identification signed by both election judges
218	218	for the residential care facility that:
219	219	(1) contains the name and address of the voter; and
220	220	(2) verifies that the voter is a resident of the
221	221	facility and appears on the list of registered voters.
222	222	(b) The election judges shall enclose the statement in the
223	223	carrier envelope.
224	224	Sec. 107.012. ASSISTING VOTER; NOTICE. (a) On written
225	225	request to the early voting clerk by a relative of a registered
226	226	voter in a residential care facility, the clerk may notify the
227	227	relative of the time or times at which election judges will conduct
228	228	voting at the facility. The relative may be present at the facility
229	229	while voting is conducted.
230	230	(b) A voter may receive assistance in the same manner as
231	231	provided by Subchapter B, Chapter 64.
232	232	(c) An election judge shall seal a ballot if the voter
233	233	receives assistance from a person who is not an election judge.
234	234	Sec. 107.013. SECURITY OF BALLOTS AND MATERIALS. (a) On
235	235	completion of the voting each day on which voting is conducted at a
236	236	residential care facility under this chapter, the election judges
237	237	for the facility shall seal the ballot envelopes and any absentee
238	238	ballot applications inside a secure envelope and shall seal the
239	239	envelope and sign the seal. The election judges shall place the
240	240	envelope inside a ballot bag or container.
241	241	(b) As soon as possible after conducting voting at a
242	242	residential care facility, but not later than 18 hours after
243	243	leaving the facility, the election judges shall deliver the ballot
244	244	bag or container to the early voting clerk.
245	245	Sec. 107.014. PROVISION OF MAIL BALLOT TO CERTAIN VOTERS.
246	246	If a qualified voter residing at a residential care facility and
247	247	seeking to vote at the facility under this chapter is not able to
248	248	cast a ballot during any time when voting is conducted at the
249	249	facility, the election judges for the facility shall inform the
250	250	early voting clerk. The clerk shall mail the ballot to the voter
251	251	not later than the fourth day before election day.
252	252	Sec. 107.015. WATCHERS. (a) In an election held under this
253	253	chapter, a watcher may observe the process of ballot distribution
254	254	in the common areas of a residential care facility in a manner
255	255	consistent with Chapter 33.
256	256	(b) A political party entitled to have the names of its
257	257	nominees placed on the general election ballot may appoint a
258	258	watcher to accompany the election judges to a residential care
259	259	facility.
260	260	(c) A political party seeking to appoint a watcher to serve
261	261	at a residential care facility shall submit the name of the watcher
262	262	to the county election officer of the county in which the facility
263	263	is located, not later than the close of business on the last
264	264	business day before the date the watcher seeks to observe the
265	265	conduct of the election under this chapter.
266	266	(d) A watcher must present the watcher's certificate of
267	267	appointment to an election judge for the residential care facility
268	268	on arrival at the facility.
269	269	Sec. 107.016. LIMITATIONS ON APPLICABILITY OF CHAPTER. (a)
270	270	The early voting clerk is not required to send election judges to
271	271	conduct an election at a residential care facility unless there are
272	272	at least five registered voters who are residents of the facility.
273	273	(b) This chapter does not prevent a registered voter from:
274	274	(1) voting early by personal appearance;
275	275	(2) voting on election day; or
276	276	(3) voting by mail from an address other than the
277	277	residential care facility, including from the address of a family
278	278	member designated under Section 84.002.
279	279	Sec. 107.017. RULES. The secretary of state may adopt rules
280	280	and prescribe procedures for voting at a residential care facility
281	281	in accordance with this chapter.
282	282	SECTION 4. Subchapter A, Chapter 242, Health and Safety
283	283	Code, is amended by adding Section 242.0181 to read as follows:
284	284	Sec. 242.0181. COMPLIANCE WITH CERTAIN REQUIREMENTS
285	285	REGARDING EARLY VOTING. An institution must comply with Chapter
286	286	107, Election Code.
287	287	SECTION 5. Subchapter A, Chapter 247, Health and Safety
288	288	Code, is amended by adding Section 247.008 to read as follows:
289	289	Sec. 247.008. COMPLIANCE WITH CERTAIN REQUIREMENTS
290	290	REGARDING EARLY VOTING. An assisted living facility must comply
291	291	with Chapter 107, Election Code.
292	292	SECTION 6. Sections 242.0181 and 247.008, Health and Safety
293	293	Code, as added by this Act, apply only to a license issued or
294	294	renewed on or after the effective date of this Act. A license
295	295	issued or renewed before that date is governed by the law in effect
296	296	on the date the license was issued or renewed, and the former law is
297	297	continued in effect for that purpose.
298	298	SECTION 7. This Act takes effect September 1, 2017.