86R3242 KSM-D
By: E. Johnson of Dallas H.C.R. No. 12
CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
WHEREAS, Low voter turnout on election day is a widespread
problem across the United States, as Americans attempt to juggle
their work and family responsibilities with a visit to their local
poll; and
WHEREAS, Since 1960, national voter turnout in presidential
elections has ranged between 51 and 63 percent of eligible voters;
turnout for midterm elections, while up in 2018, has typically not
amounted to even half of eligible voters, averaging around 40
percent between 1974 and 2014; and
WHEREAS, Compared with that of other countries, our numbers
are abysmally low, as turnout is well over 80 percent in established
democracies around the globe, from Australia to Belgium; and
WHEREAS, The causes for this low turnout are complicated, but
in surveys of American adults by the U.S. Census Bureau, family and
work obligations are frequently cited as a reason for not voting;
and
WHEREAS, Businesses across the country are responding to this
challenge through the "Take Back Tuesday" initiative and are
closing on election day; on this issue, private enterprise, the
engine of America, is leading by example and government should
follow suit; and
WHEREAS, Voting is the cornerstone of a democracy, and
government must act to ensure that all Americans have the
opportunity to accept the responsibilities of citizenship and to
actively and regularly participate in the electoral process; now,
therefore, be it
RESOLVED, That the 86th Legislature of the State of Texas
hereby respectfully urge the Congress of the United States to
designate the Tuesday next after the first Monday in November in
2020 and each even-numbered year thereafter as a legal public
holiday described in 5 U.S.C. Section 6103; and, be it further
RESOLVED, That the Texas secretary of state forward official
copies of this resolution to the president of the United States, to
the president of the Senate and the speaker of the House of
Representatives of the United States Congress, and to all the
members of the Texas delegation to Congress with the request that
this resolution be entered in the Congressional Record as a
memorial to the Congress of the United States of America.