| 1 | 1 | | By: Hunter H.B. No. 200 |
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| 2 | 2 | | |
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| 3 | 3 | | |
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| 4 | 4 | | A BILL TO BE ENTITLED |
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| 5 | 5 | | AN ACT |
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| 6 | 6 | | Relating to the composition of districts for the election of |
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| 7 | 7 | | members of the United States House of Representatives from Texas. |
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| 8 | 8 | | BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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| 9 | 9 | | SECTION 1. PURPOSE. The purpose of this Act is to fulfill |
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| 10 | 10 | | the Legislature's constitutional responsibility to establish |
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| 11 | 11 | | districts for the election of members of the United States House of |
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| 12 | 12 | | Representatives following the publication of the 2020 census in |
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| 13 | 13 | | compliance with the United States Constitution and applicable |
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| 14 | 14 | | Federal and state law and the decennial reapportionment of |
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| 15 | 15 | | congressional districts among the states. |
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| 16 | 16 | | SECTION 2. FINDINGS. The Legislature finds: |
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| 17 | 17 | | (1) 2 U.S.C. Section 2a requires the election of |
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| 18 | 18 | | members of the United States House of Representatives from |
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| 19 | 19 | | districts; |
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| 20 | 20 | | (2) As a result of the estimated changes in the |
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| 21 | 21 | | population of the state since 2011, the populations of the current |
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| 22 | 22 | | districts for the election of members of the United States House of |
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| 23 | 23 | | Representatives are unequal and no longer comply with applicable |
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| 24 | 24 | | legal requirements; and |
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| 25 | 25 | | (3) The current districts must be replaced following |
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| 26 | 26 | | publication of the decennial census with new districts that satisfy |
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| 27 | 27 | | all applicable legal requirements. |
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| 28 | 28 | | SECTION 3. COMPOSITION OF DISTRICTS. (a) The State of |
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| 29 | 29 | | Texas is divided into congressional districts as provided in this |
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| 30 | 30 | | Act. Each district is composed of the counties or parts of counties |
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| 31 | 31 | | as determined by the Legislature consistent with the requirements |
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| 32 | 32 | | of the United States and Texas Constitutions and applicable Federal |
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| 33 | 33 | | law. |
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| 34 | 34 | | (b) One member of the United States House of Representatives |
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| 35 | 35 | | is elected from each district established under this Act. |
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| 36 | 36 | | SECTION 4. TRANSITION PROVISION. The districts established |
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| 37 | 37 | | by this Act apply to the election of the members of the United |
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| 38 | 38 | | States House of Representatives of the 118th Congress beginning |
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| 39 | 39 | | with the primary and general elections in 2022. This Act does not |
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| 40 | 40 | | affect the membership or districts of members of the United States |
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| 41 | 41 | | House of Representatives of the 117th Congress. |
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| 42 | 42 | | SECTION 5. REPEALER. (a) This Act supersedes all previous |
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| 43 | 43 | | enactments or orders adopting districts for the United States House |
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| 44 | 44 | | of Representatives. All previous acts of the legislature adopting |
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| 45 | 45 | | districts for the United States House of Representatives are |
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| 46 | 46 | | repealed. |
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| 47 | 47 | | (b) Chapter 3 (S.B. 4), Acts of the 83rd Legislature, 1st |
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| 48 | 48 | | Called Session, 2013, is repealed. |
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| 49 | 49 | | SECTION 6. EFFECTIVE DATE. This Act takes effect |
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| 50 | 50 | | immediately if it receives a vote of two-thirds of all the members |
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| 51 | 51 | | elected to each house, as provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas |
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| 52 | 52 | | Constitution. If this Act does not receive the vote necessary for |
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| 53 | 53 | | immediate effect, this Act takes effect September 1, 2021. |
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