Texas 2017 - 85th Regular

Texas Senate Bill SB209 Compare Versions

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

Old	New	Differences
1	1	85R2277 JRJ-D
2	2	By: West S.B. No. 209
3	3
4	4
5	5	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
6	6	AN ACT
7	7	relating to the reapportionment of congressional districts and the
8	8	creation, function, and duties of the Texas Congressional
9	9	Redistricting Commission.
10	10	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
11	11	SECTION 1. Subtitle A, Title 3, Government Code, is amended
12	12	by adding Chapter 307 to read as follows:
13	13	CHAPTER 307. TEXAS CONGRESSIONAL REDISTRICTING COMMISSION
14	14	Sec. 307.001. DEFINITIONS. In this chapter:
15	15	(1) "Commission" means the Texas Congressional
16	16	Redistricting Commission.
17	17	(2) "Plan" means a redistricting plan for the Texas
18	18	congressional districts adopted as provided by this chapter.
19	19	Sec. 307.002. TEXAS CONGRESSIONAL REDISTRICTING
20	20	COMMISSION. The Texas Congressional Redistricting Commission
21	21	exercises the legislative authority of this state to adopt
22	22	redistricting plans for the election of the members of the United
23	23	States House of Representatives elected from this state. A plan for
24	24	congressional districts may be established or modified only by the
25	25	commission as provided by this chapter.
26	26	Sec. 307.003. MEMBERSHIP; TERMS. (a) The initial
27	27	commission consists of nine members selected as follows:
28	28	(1) two members appointed by a majority vote of the
29	29	members of the Texas House of Representatives belonging to the
30	30	political party with the most members in the house of
31	31	representatives;
32	32	(2) two members appointed by a majority vote of the
33	33	members of the Texas House of Representatives belonging to the
34	34	political party with the second highest number of members in the
35	35	house of representatives;
36	36	(3) two members appointed by a majority vote of the
37	37	members of the Texas Senate belonging to the political party with
38	38	the most members in the senate;
39	39	(4) two members appointed by a majority vote of the
40	40	members of the Texas Senate belonging to the political party with
41	41	the second highest number of members in the senate; and
42	42	(5) one member appointed by an affirmative vote of not
43	43	fewer than five of the members of the commission selected under
44	44	Subdivisions (1)-(4).
45	45	(b) The member appointed under Subsection (a)(5) is a
46	46	nonvoting member and serves as presiding officer of the commission.
47	47	(c) Each member of the commission must be a resident of this
48	48	state. At least one member appointed by the Texas House of
49	49	Representatives and one member appointed by the Texas Senate must
50	50	reside in a county not designated as a metropolitan statistical
51	51	area as defined by the United States Office of Management and
52	52	Budget. If the members of a house of the legislature entitled to
53	53	make an appointment to the commission cannot agree on whether the
54	54	members belonging to the political party with the most members or
55	55	the political party with the second highest number of members will
56	56	make the appointment required by this subsection, the presiding
57	57	officer of that house shall designate the members who must make the
58	58	appointment required by this subsection.
59	59	(d) A person is not eligible to serve on the commission if
60	60	the person:
61	61	(1) holds an elective public office;
62	62	(2) holds an office in a political party other than
63	63	membership on a precinct committee;
64	64	(3) has served in a position described by Subdivision
65	65	(1) or (2) within the two years preceding the date the person is
66	66	appointed to the commission; or
67	67	(4) is required to register under Section 305.003 or
68	68	was required to register under that section in the two years
69	69	preceding the date the person is appointed to the commission.
70	70	(e) The full term of a member of the commission is a two-year
71	71	term that begins on February 1 of the year ending in 1 in which the
72	72	initial appointment to the position is required to be made and
73	73	expires on January 31 of the next year ending in 3.
74	74	(f) A vacancy on the commission is filled in the same manner
75	75	as provided by this section for the original appointment. If the
76	76	commission is convened when the vacancy occurs or if the vacancy
77	77	exists when the commission reconvenes, the appointing authority
78	78	shall fill the vacancy on or before the 20th day after the date the
79	79	vacancy occurs or the commission reconvenes, as applicable. The
80	80	members of the Texas House of Representatives or Texas Senate
81	81	authorized to appoint a member of the commission may meet as
82	82	necessary to make an appointment or to fill a vacancy.
83	83	(g) The members of the commission appointed under
84	84	Subsections (a)(1)-(4) shall be appointed not earlier than January
85	85	25 or later than January 31 of each year ending in 1. The member
86	86	appointed under Subsection (a)(5) shall be appointed not later than
87	87	the 30th day after the commission convenes under Section
88	88	307.008(b).
89	89	Sec. 307.004. OATH. Before serving on the commission, each
90	90	person appointed shall take and subscribe to the constitutional
91	91	oath of office.
92	92	Sec. 307.005. POLITICAL ACTIVITIES PROHIBITED. A member of
93	93	the commission may not:
94	94	(1) be a candidate for or campaign for elective office
95	95	while a member of the commission; or
96	96	(2) actively participate in or contribute to the
97	97	political campaign of a candidate for a state or federal elective
98	98	office while a member of the commission.
99	99	Sec. 307.006. OPERATION OF COMMISSION. (a) The
100	100	legislature shall appropriate sufficient money for the
101	101	compensation and payment of the expenses of the commission members
102	102	and any staff employed by the commission.
103	103	(b) The commission shall be provided access to statistical
104	104	or other information compiled by the state or its political
105	105	subdivisions as necessary for the commission's reapportionment
106	106	duties.
107	107	(c) The Texas Legislative Council, under the direction of
108	108	the commission, shall provide the technical staff and clerical
109	109	services that the commission needs to prepare its plans.
110	110	Sec. 307.007. DUTIES. The commission shall:
111	111	(1) adopt rules to administer this chapter; and
112	112	(2) comply with Chapters 551 and 552.
113	113	Sec. 307.008. ADOPTION OF PLAN. (a) A redistricting plan
114	114	or modification of a redistricting plan is adopted by a vote of not
115	115	fewer than five members of the commission.
116	116	(b) The commission shall convene on the first business day
117	117	after January 31 of each year ending in 1 and shall adopt a
118	118	redistricting plan for the members of the United States House of
119	119	Representatives elected from this state not later than August 31 of
120	120	that year, unless the federal decennial census is delivered to the
121	121	appropriate officials of this state after June 1 of that year, in
122	122	which event the commission shall adopt the redistricting plan not
123	123	later than the 90th day after the date the census is delivered.
124	124	Sec. 307.009. MODIFICATION OF PLAN; ADDITIONAL ACTION.
125	125	(a) Except as provided by Subsection (b), the commission may
126	126	reconvene on the motion of at least four of its voting members filed
127	127	with the secretary of state at any time after the adoption of the
128	128	initial congressional redistricting plan to modify that plan if the
129	129	plan becomes unenforceable by order of a court or by action of any
130	130	other appropriate authority or is subject to legal challenge in a
131	131	court proceeding. In modifying a redistricting plan, the
132	132	commission must comply with all applicable standards imposed by
133	133	this chapter, but is not limited to modifications necessary to
134	134	correct legal deficiencies.
135	135	(b) The authority of the commission to act under this
136	136	chapter expires on January 31 of the next year ending in 3 unless
137	137	the final judgment of a court wholly or partly invalidates a plan
138	138	after that date.
139	139	Sec. 307.010. PLAN REQUIREMENTS. (a) In a redistricting
140	140	plan or modification of a plan adopted under this chapter:
141	141	(1) each district must be composed of contiguous
142	142	territory;
143	143	(2) each district must contain a population, excluding
144	144	nonresident military personnel, as nearly equal as practicable to
145	145	the population of any other district in the plan; and
146	146	(3) to the extent reasonable, each district must be
147	147	compact and convenient and be separated from adjoining districts by
148	148	natural geographic barriers, artificial barriers, or political
149	149	subdivision boundaries.
150	150	(b) For each plan or modification of a plan adopted by the
151	151	commission, the commission shall prepare and publish a report that
152	152	includes:
153	153	(1) for each district in the plan, the total
154	154	population and the percentage deviation from the average district
155	155	population;
156	156	(2) an explanation of the criteria used in developing
157	157	the plan, with a justification of any population deviation in a
158	158	district from the average district population;
159	159	(3) a map or maps of all the districts; and
160	160	(4) the estimated cost to be incurred by the counties
161	161	for changes in county election precinct boundaries required to
162	162	conform to the districts adopted by the commission.
163	163	(c) The commission shall make a copy of a report prepared
164	164	under this section available to the public.
165	165	Sec. 307.011. SUBMISSION OF PLAN. On adoption of a plan or
166	166	modification of a plan by the commission, the commission shall
167	167	submit the plan or modification to the governor, the secretary of
168	168	state, and the presiding officer of each house of the legislature.
169	169	Sec. 307.012. CESSATION OF OPERATIONS. (a) Following the
170	170	initial adoption of the plan that the commission is required to
171	171	adopt, the commission shall take all necessary steps to conclude
172	172	its business and suspend operations until the commission reconvenes
173	173	as provided by Section 307.009 if it does reconvene.
174	174	(b) The commission shall prepare a financial statement
175	175	disclosing all expenditures made by the commission. The official
176	176	record of the commission shall contain all relevant information
177	177	developed by the commission in carrying out its duties, including
178	178	maps, data, minutes of meetings, written communications, and other
179	179	information.
180	180	(c) After the commission suspends operations, the secretary
181	181	of state becomes the custodian of its official records for purposes
182	182	of election administration. Any unexpended money from an
183	183	appropriation to the commission reverts to the general revenue
184	184	fund.
185	185	Sec. 307.013. REAPPOINTMENT OF COMMISSION FOLLOWING COURT
186	186	ACTION. (a) If the final judgment of a state or federal court
187	187	invalidates all or part of a plan or otherwise makes the plan
188	188	unenforceable and as of January 31 of the next year ending in 3 the
189	189	commission has not modified the plan as authorized by Section
190	190	307.009 in response to the judgment, a new commission shall be
191	191	appointed in the manner provided by Section 307.003, except that
192	192	the appointments described by Sections 307.003(a)(1)-(4) must be
193	193	made not later than the later of February 14 of that year or the 14th
194	194	day after the date the judgment becomes final. The commission shall
195	195	convene not later than the fifth day after the date the last
196	196	appointment described by Sections 307.003(a)(1)-(4) is made, and
197	197	the commission must make the appointment described by Section
198	198	307.003(a)(5) not later than the fifth day after the date the
199	199	commission convenes.
200	200	(b) A commission appointed under Subsection (a) has the same
201	201	powers and duties under this chapter as a commission appointed
202	202	under Section 307.003 except that the terms of the members of the
203	203	commission and the authority of the commission to act under this
204	204	chapter expire on the earlier of:
205	205	(1) the date a judgment of a court approving a new plan
206	206	adopted by the commission becomes final; or
207	207	(2) the second anniversary of the date the commission
208	208	first convenes under Subsection (a).
209	209	SECTION 2. This Act takes effect January 1, 2019.