Texas 2017 - 85th Regular

Texas House Bill HB506 Compare Versions

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

Old	New	Differences
1	1	85R2109 TJB-F
2	2	By: King of Parker H.B. No. 506
3	3
4	4
5	5	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
6	6	AN ACT
7	7	relating to the qualifications, duties, and limitations of Texas
8	8	delegates to a convention called under Article V of the United
9	9	States Constitution.
10	10	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
11	11	SECTION 1. Subtitle Z, Title 3, Government Code, is amended
12	12	by adding Chapter 393 to read as follows:
13	13	CHAPTER 393. DELEGATES TO FEDERAL ARTICLE V CONVENTIONS
14	14	SUBCHAPTER A. GENERAL PROVISIONS
15	15	Sec. 393.001. DEFINITIONS. In this chapter:
16	16	(1) "Alternate delegate" means an individual
17	17	appointed under Section 393.051 to represent this state as an
18	18	alternate delegate at an Article V convention.
19	19	(2) "Article V convention" means a convention called
20	20	by the United States Congress under Article V of the United States
21	21	Constitution.
22	22	(3) "Delegate" means:
23	23	(A) an individual appointed under Section
24	24	393.051 to represent this state as a delegate at an Article V
25	25	convention; or
26	26	(B) an alternate delegate who fills a vacancy in
27	27	the office of the alternate delegate's paired delegate.
28	28	(4) "Unauthorized vote" means a vote cast by a
29	29	delegate or alternate delegate at an Article V convention that:
30	30	(A) is contrary to the instructions adopted under
31	31	Section 393.101 in effect at the time the vote is taken;
32	32	(B) exceeds the scope or subject matter of the
33	33	Article V convention as authorized by the legislature in the
34	34	application to the United States Congress to call the convention if
35	35	the legislature made an application to call the convention; or
36	36	(C) exceeds the scope or subject matter of the
37	37	Article V convention if the legislature did not make an application
38	38	to the United States Congress to call the convention.
39	39	Sec. 393.002. RULES AND PROCEDURES. (a) The legislature by
40	40	concurrent resolution shall provide the rules and procedures
41	41	necessary to implement this chapter.
42	42	(b) A legislative action relating to the appointment or
43	43	recall of a delegate or alternate delegate, the filling of a vacancy
44	44	in the office of a delegate or alternate delegate, or the
45	45	determination of an unauthorized vote may be accomplished through a
46	46	resolution adopted by the house that takes the action.
47	47	SUBCHAPTER B. DELEGATES AND ALTERNATE DELEGATES
48	48	Sec. 393.051. APPOINTMENT. (a) As soon as possible
49	49	following the calling of an Article V convention, the legislature
50	50	shall appoint delegates and alternate delegates to the convention
51	51	as provided by Subsection (b) or (c), as applicable.
52	52	(b) Except as provided by Subsection (c), the legislature
53	53	shall appoint five delegates and five alternate delegates to the
54	54	Article V convention as follows:
55	55	(1) the house of representatives shall appoint three
56	56	members of the house as delegates and three members of the house as
57	57	alternate delegates; and
58	58	(2) the senate shall appoint two members of the senate
59	59	as delegates and two members of the senate as alternate delegates.
60	60	(c) If the number of delegates allocated to represent the
61	61	state at the Article V convention is determined by Congress or by
62	62	agreement among the states to be a number other than five, the
63	63	legislature shall appoint the allocated number of delegates and an
64	64	equal number of alternate delegates as follows:
65	65	(1) if the allocated number of delegates is an odd
66	66	number:
67	67	(A) the house of representatives shall appoint a
68	68	number of members of the house as delegates that is equal to
69	69	three-fifths of the allocated number or as close to that proportion
70	70	as possible and the same number of members of the house as alternate
71	71	delegates; and
72	72	(B) the senate shall appoint a number of members
73	73	of the senate as delegates that is equal to two-fifths of the
74	74	allocated number or as close to that proportion as possible and the
75	75	same number of members of the senate as alternate delegates; and
76	76	(2) if the allocated number of delegates is an even
77	77	number:
78	78	(A) the house of representatives shall appoint a
79	79	number of members of the house as delegates that is equal to
80	80	one-half of the allocated number and the same number of members of
81	81	the house as alternate delegates; and
82	82	(B) the senate shall appoint a number of members
83	83	of the senate as delegates that is equal to one-half of the
84	84	allocated number and the same number of members of the senate as
85	85	alternate delegates.
86	86	(d) Service as a delegate or alternate delegate by a member
87	87	of the legislature is an additional duty of the member's
88	88	legislative office.
89	89	(e) The appointing house shall pair each alternate delegate
90	90	with a delegate at the time each appointment is made.
91	91	Sec. 393.052. VACANCY. (a) An alternate delegate
92	92	automatically fills a vacancy in the office of the alternate
93	93	delegate's paired delegate unless the office of the alternate
94	94	delegate is simultaneously vacated.
95	95	(b) Except as provided by Subsection (a), the house that
96	96	appointed a delegate or alternate delegate shall fill a vacancy in
97	97	the office of the delegate or alternate delegate as soon as possible
98	98	after the vacancy occurs.
99	99	Sec. 393.053. RECALL. (a) The house that appointed a
100	100	delegate or alternate delegate may recall the delegate or alternate
101	101	delegate.
102	102	(b) A vacancy created by the recall of a delegate or
103	103	alternate delegate shall be filled in the manner provided by
104	104	Section 393.052.
105	105	Sec. 393.054. COMPENSATION; REIMBURSEMENT OF EXPENSES. (a)
106	106	A delegate or alternate delegate is not entitled to compensation
107	107	for service as a delegate or alternate delegate.
108	108	(b) A delegate or alternate delegate is entitled to
109	109	reimbursement for necessary expenses incurred in performance of
110	110	official duties, subject to any applicable limitation on
111	111	reimbursement provided by general law or the General Appropriations
112	112	Act.
113	113	Sec. 393.055. OATH. (a) An individual appointed as a
114	114	delegate or alternate delegate must take the following oath before
115	115	voting or taking an action as a delegate or alternate delegate of
116	116	this state: "I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that to the best of my
117	117	abilities, I will, as a delegate (or alternate delegate) to the
118	118	Article V Convention, act according to the limits of the authority
119	119	granted to me as a delegate or alternate delegate by Texas law, will
120	120	not consider or vote to approve an amendment to the United States
121	121	Constitution not authorized by the Texas Legislature in its
122	122	application to the United States Congress to call this convention
123	123	or an amendment outside the scope of this convention if the Texas
124	124	Legislature did not make an application to the United States
125	125	Congress to call this convention, and will faithfully abide by and
126	126	execute the instructions to delegates or alternate delegates
127	127	adopted by the Texas Legislature."
128	128	(b) Each delegate and alternate delegate must file the
129	129	executed oath with the secretary of state.
130	130	SUBCHAPTER C. DUTIES OF DELEGATES AND ALTERNATE DELEGATES
131	131	Sec. 393.101. INSTRUCTIONS TO DELEGATES AND ALTERNATE
132	132	DELEGATES. (a) At the time delegates and alternate delegates are
133	133	appointed, the legislature by joint resolution shall adopt
134	134	instructions to the delegates and alternate delegates to govern the
135	135	actions of those officers at the Article V convention.
136	136	(b) The legislature may not adopt instructions for an
137	137	Article V convention called following an application by the
138	138	legislature to the United States Congress for the convention that
139	139	authorize a delegate or alternate delegate to consider or vote to
140	140	approve an amendment to the United States Constitution that is not
141	141	authorized by the legislature in its application for the
142	142	convention.
143	143	(c) The legislature by joint resolution may amend the
144	144	instructions at any time.
145	145	Sec. 393.102. DUTY OF ALTERNATE DELEGATE. An alternate
146	146	delegate shall act in the place of the alternate delegate's paired
147	147	delegate when the delegate is absent from the convention.
148	148	Sec. 393.103. UNAUTHORIZED VOTE. (a) A delegate or
149	149	alternate delegate may not cast an unauthorized vote.
150	150	(b) The determination that a vote is an unauthorized vote
151	151	may only be made by the house that appointed the delegate or
152	152	alternate delegate who cast the vote.
153	153	(c) A vote determined to be an unauthorized vote is invalid.
154	154	(d) A delegate or alternate delegate who casts a vote
155	155	determined to be an unauthorized vote is disqualified to continue
156	156	to serve as a delegate or alternate delegate. A vacancy in the
157	157	office of a delegate or alternate delegate created by the
158	158	disqualification of the delegate or alternate delegate shall be
159	159	filled in the manner provided by Section 393.052.
160	160	(e) The presiding officer of the house that determined that
161	161	a delegate or alternate delegate has cast an unauthorized vote
162	162	shall promptly notify the head of the state delegation and the
163	163	presiding officer of the Article V convention that the delegate or
164	164	alternate delegate has cast an unauthorized vote and is
165	165	disqualified to serve as a delegate or alternate delegate.
166	166	SECTION 2. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives
167	167	a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as
168	168	provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this
169	169	Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this
170	170	Act takes effect September 1, 2017.