85R27995 ATP-F
By: Fallon H.B. No. 4134
Substitute the following for H.B. No. 4134:
By: Laubenberg C.S.H.B. No. 4134
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to the creation of the criminal offense of engaging in
organized election fraud activity.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Chapter 276, Election Code, is amended by adding
Sections 276.011 and 276.012 to read as follows:
Sec. 276.011. ENGAGING IN ORGANIZED ELECTION FRAUD
ACTIVITY. (a) A person commits an offense if, with the intent to
establish, promote, maintain, benefit from, or participate in a
vote harvesting organization, the person commits, attempts to
commit, or conspires to commit one or more offenses under Titles 1
through 7.
(b) An offense under this section is one category higher
than the most serious offense listed in Subsection (a) that is
committed, and if the most serious offense is a Class A misdemeanor,
the offense is a state jail felony.
(c) At the punishment stage of a trial, the defendant may
raise the issue as to whether in voluntary and complete
renunciation of the offense the defendant withdrew from the vote
harvesting organization before commission of an offense listed in
Subsection (a) and made substantial effort to prevent the
commission of the offense. If the defendant proves the issue in the
affirmative by a preponderance of the evidence the offense is the
same category of offense as the most serious offense listed in
Subsection (a) that is committed.
(d) In this section, "vote harvesting organization" means
three or more persons who collaborate in unlawful vote generating
or accumulating activities, although participants may not know each
other's identity, membership in the organization may change from
time to time, and participants may stand in a candidate-consultant,
donor-consultant, consultant-field operative, or other arm's
length relationship in the organization's unlawful vote generating
or accumulating operations.
(e) For purposes of this section, "conspires to commit"
means that a person agrees with one or more persons that they or one
or more of them engage in conduct that would constitute the offense
and that person and one or more of them perform an overt act in
pursuance of the agreement. An agreement constituting conspiring
to commit may be inferred from the acts of the parties.
Sec. 276.012. LIABILITY FOR ENGAGING IN ORGANIZED ELECTION
FRAUD ACTIVITY. (a) In this section, "organized election fraud
activity" means an offense under Section 276.011(a).
(b) A person who engages in, or intentionally or knowingly
benefits from, organized election fraud activity is liable to a
candidate or other person harmed by the activity as provided by this
section.
(c) It is not a defense to liability under this section that
a defendant has been acquitted or has not been prosecuted or
convicted for an offense under this code, or has been convicted of a
different offense or of a different type or class of offense, for
the conduct that is alleged to give rise to liability under this
section.
(d) A claimant who prevails in a suit under this section
shall be awarded:
(1) actual damages caused by the prohibited conduct;
(2) $1,000 for each offense committed under Titles 1
through 7;
(3) court costs; and
(4) reasonable attorney's fees.
(e) The cause of action created by this chapter is
cumulative of any other remedy provided by common law or statute.
(f) A person who engages in or intentionally or knowingly
benefits from organized election fraud activity and is found liable
under this section or other law for any amount of damages arising
from the activity is jointly liable with any other defendant for the
entire amount of damages arising from the organized election fraud
activity.
(g) A civil action or proceeding under this section against
any person may be brought in the county where any part of the
activity occurred.
(h) This section shall be liberally construed and applied to
promote its underlying purpose to protect candidates against
unlawful organized election fraud activity and to provide efficient
and economical procedures to secure that protection.
SECTION 2. The change in law made by this Act applies only
to an offense committed on or after the effective date of this Act.
An offense committed before the effective date of this Act is
governed by the law in effect when the offense was committed, and
the former law is continued in effect for that purpose. For purposes
of this section, an offense was committed before the effective date
of this Act if any element of the offense occurred before that date.
SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2017.