By: Burton S.B. No. 1820
(In the Senate - Filed March 9, 2017; March 23, 2017, read
first time and referred to Committee on State Affairs; May 2, 2017,
reported adversely, with favorable Committee Substitute by the
following vote: Yeas 7, Nays 0; May 2, 2017, sent to printer.)
Click here to see the committee vote
COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR S.B. No. 1820 By: Creighton
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to an application for a ballot to be voted by mail.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 86.001, Election Code, is amended by
amending Subsections (b) and (g) and adding Subsection (b-1) to
read as follows:
(b) Except as provided by Subsection (b-1), if [If] the
applicant is entitled to vote an early voting ballot by mail, the
clerk shall provide an official ballot to the applicant as provided
by this chapter.
(b-1) This subsection applies only to an early voting clerk
who does not electronically record applications for a ballot to be
voted by mail under Section 87.126. If the clerk has previously
provided the applicant with an official ballot for the election for
which the applicant requests a ballot and the clerk has not already
delivered notice under this subsection, the clerk shall deliver
written notice to the applicant, at both the residence address and
the mailing address on the application, that states:
(1) a ballot to be voted by mail was previously
provided to the applicant; and
(2) the date the ballot was provided.
(g) If a ballot is provided to the applicant, the clerk
shall indicate beside the applicant's name on the list of
registered voters that a ballot to be voted by mail was provided to
the applicant and the date of providing the ballot [unless the form
of the list makes it impracticable to do so].
SECTION 2. Section 86.014(a), Election Code, is amended to
read as follows:
(a) A copy of an application for a ballot to be voted by mail
is not available for public inspection, except to the voter seeking
to verify that the information pertaining to the voter is accurate,
until the first business day after the election day of the earliest
[latest] occurring election for which the application is submitted.
SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2017.
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