Texas 2021 - 87th Regular

Texas House Bill HB1882 Compare Versions

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

Old	New	Differences
1	1	87R4832 BRG-F
2	2	By: Bucy H.B. No. 1882
3	3
4	4
5	5	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
6	6	AN ACT
7	7	relating to the days and hours during which the polls are open for
8	8	early voting by personal appearance.
9	9	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
10	10	SECTION 1. Section 12.004(d), Election Code, is amended to
11	11	read as follows:
12	12	(d) The [If early voting by personal appearance is required
13	13	to be conducted for extended hours under Section 85.005(c) or for
14	14	weekend hours under Section 85.006(e), the] registrar's office
15	15	shall remain open for providing voter registration information
16	16	during the [extended hours or weekend] hours that the main early
17	17	voting polling place is open for voting.
18	18	SECTION 2. Sections 85.001(a) and (e), Election Code, are
19	19	amended to read as follows:
20	20	(a) The period for early voting by personal appearance
21	21	begins on the 17th day before election day and continues through the
22	22	fourth day before election day, except as otherwise provided by
23	23	this subchapter [section].
24	24	(e) For an election held on the uniform election date in May
25	25	and any resulting runoff election, the period for early voting by
26	26	personal appearance begins on the 12th day before election day and
27	27	continues through the fourth day before election day, except as
28	28	otherwise provided by this subchapter.
29	29	SECTION 3. Section 85.006, Election Code, is amended to
30	30	read as follows:
31	31	Sec. 85.006. EXTENDED VOTING [ON SATURDAY OR SUNDAY]. (a)
32	32	Except as provided by Subsection (b), the authority ordering an
33	33	election may order early voting by personal appearance at the main
34	34	early voting polling place to be conducted:
35	35	(1) on one or more Saturdays or Sundays during the
36	36	early voting period; or
37	37	(2) during an early voting period extended from the
38	38	fourth day before election day for any number of consecutive days up
39	39	to and including the day before election day.
40	40	(b) In an election in which a county clerk or city secretary
41	41	is the early voting clerk under Section 83.002 or 83.005, only the
42	42	early voting clerk may order extended voting [on a Saturday or
43	43	Sunday]. The clerk must do so by written order.
44	44	(c) Except as otherwise provided by this section, the [The]
45	45	authority ordering extended voting [on a Saturday or Sunday] shall
46	46	determine the hours during which voting is to be conducted.
47	47	(d) The authority authorized to order extended early voting
48	48	[on a Saturday or Sunday] under Subsection (a) or (b) shall order
49	49	[the] voting on a Saturday or Sunday under the applicable
50	50	subsection on receipt of a written request submitted by at least 15
51	51	registered voters of the territory covered by the election. The
52	52	request must be submitted in time to enable compliance with Section
53	53	85.007. The authority is not required to order the voting on a
54	54	particular date specified by the request but shall order the voting
55	55	on at least one Saturday if a Saturday is requested and on at least
56	56	one Sunday if a Sunday is requested.
57	57	(e) In a primary election or the general election for state
58	58	and county officers in a county with a population of 100,000 or
59	59	more, the early voting clerk shall order personal appearance voting
60	60	at the main early voting polling place to be conducted for at least
61	61	12 hours on the last Saturday and for at least five hours on the last
62	62	Sunday of the early voting period. The early voting clerk shall
63	63	order voting to be conducted at those times in those elections in a
64	64	county with a population under 100,000 on receipt of a written
65	65	request for those hours submitted by at least 15 registered voters
66	66	of the county. The request must be submitted in time to enable
67	67	compliance with Section 85.007. This subsection supersedes any
68	68	provision of this subchapter to the extent of any conflict.
69	69	(f) An authority authorized to order extended early voting
70	70	under Subsection (a) or (b) that orders the voting during an
71	71	extended early voting period shall order personal appearance voting
72	72	at the main early voting polling place to be conducted for at least
73	73	12 hours on any weekday or Saturday and for at least five hours on
74	74	any Sunday of the extended early voting period.
75	75	SECTION 4. Sections 85.007(a) and (b), Election Code, are
76	76	amended to read as follows:
77	77	(a) The election order and the election notice must state:
78	78	(1) the date that early voting will begin if under
79	79	Section 85.001(d) the early voting period is to begin later than the
80	80	prescribed date;
81	81	(2) the regular dates and hours that voting will be
82	82	conducted under Section 85.005(b); and
83	83	(3) the dates and hours that extended voting [on
84	84	Saturday or Sunday] is ordered to be conducted under Section
85	85	85.006(a).
86	86	(b) The early voting clerk shall post notice for each
87	87	election stating the dates and hours that extended voting [on a
88	88	Saturday or Sunday] is ordered to be conducted under Section
89	89	85.006(b).
90	90	SECTION 5. Section 85.064(d), Election Code, is amended to
91	91	read as follows:
92	92	(d) The authority authorized under Section 85.006 to order
93	93	extended early voting [on a Saturday or Sunday] may also order, in
94	94	the manner prescribed by that section, extended early voting to be
95	95	conducted [on a Saturday or Sunday] at any one or more of the
96	96	temporary branch polling places. In addition, the early voting
97	97	clerk of a county covered by Section 85.006(e) shall order such
98	98	voting in accordance with that subsection at each temporary branch
99	99	polling place established under Section 85.062(d).
100	100	SECTION 6. Section 85.068(a), Election Code, is amended to
101	101	read as follows:
102	102	(a) The early voting clerk shall post notice for each
103	103	election stating any dates and the hours that extended voting [on
104	104	Saturday or Sunday] will be conducted under Section 85.064(d), if
105	105	the early voting clerk is a county clerk or city secretary under
106	106	Section 83.002 or 83.005.
107	107	SECTION 7. Section 87.0241, Election Code, is amended by
108	108	amending Subsection (b) and adding Subsection (b-1) to read as
109	109	follows:
110	110	(b) The board may not count early voting ballots until:
111	111	(1) the polls open on election day; or
112	112	(2) in an election conducted by an authority of a
113	113	county with a population of 100,000 or more or conducted jointly
114	114	with such a county, the time the polls close on the fourth day
115	115	before election day [end of the period for early voting by personal
116	116	appearance].
117	117	(b-1) The board may not count early voting ballots voted by
118	118	personal appearance after the fourth day before election day until
119	119	the end of the extended early voting period.
120	120	SECTION 8. This Act takes effect September 1, 2021.