87R9063 MLH-D
By: Dutton H.B. No. 2291
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to eligibility requirements for public office and to the
form of an application for a place on the ballot.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. This Act may be cited as the Felon Candidacy
Disambiguation Act.
SECTION 2. Section 141.001(a), Election Code, is amended to
read as follows:
(a) To be eligible to be a candidate for, or elected or
appointed to, a public elective office in this state, a person must:
(1) be a United States citizen;
(2) be 18 years of age or older on the first day of the
term to be filled at the election or on the date of appointment, as
applicable;
(3) have not been determined by a final judgment of a
court exercising probate jurisdiction to be:
(A) totally mentally incapacitated; or
(B) partially mentally incapacitated without the
right to vote;
(4) have not been finally convicted of a felony for
[from] which the person has not provided documentation under
Section 141.031(e) that the person has been pardoned or otherwise
released from the resulting disabilities;
(5) have resided continuously in the state for 12
months and in the territory from which the office is elected for six
months immediately preceding the following date:
(A) for a candidate whose name is to appear on a
general primary election ballot, the date of the regular filing
deadline for a candidate's application for a place on the ballot;
(B) for an independent candidate, the date of the
regular filing deadline for a candidate's application for a place
on the ballot;
(C) for a write-in candidate, the date of the
election at which the candidate's name is written in;
(D) for a party nominee who is nominated by any
method other than by primary election, the date the nomination is
made; and
(E) for an appointee to an office, the date the
appointment is made;
(6) on the date described by Subdivision (5), be
registered to vote in the territory from which the office is
elected; and
(7) satisfy any other eligibility requirements
prescribed by law for the office.
SECTION 3. Section 141.031, Election Code, is amended by
adding Subsection (e) to read as follows:
(e) In support of the statement required by Subsection
(a)(4)(G), a candidate shall provide a certified copy of the
candidate's pardon or other documentation evincing removal of
disability.
SECTION 4. Section 141.039, Election Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 141.039. OFFICIAL APPLICATION FORM. In addition to
the other statements and spaces for entering information that
appear on an officially prescribed form for an application for a
place on the ballot, each official form for an application that a
candidate is required to file under this code must include:
(1) a space for indicating the form in which the
candidate's name is to appear on the ballot;
(2) a space for the candidate's public mailing
address;
(3) spaces for the candidate's home and office
telephone numbers and e-mail address at which the candidate
receives correspondence relating to the candidate's campaign;
[and]
(4) a statement informing candidates that the
furnishing of the telephone numbers is optional; and
(5) a notice adjacent to the statement required by
Section 141.031(a)(4)(G), printed in boldfaced type and capital
letters, that reads: "RESTORATION OF VOTING RIGHTS IS NOT THE SAME
AS REMOVAL OF DISABILITY FOR PURPOSES OF SATISFYING ELIGIBILITY
REQUIREMENTS FOR PUBLIC OFFICE.".
SECTION 5. This Act takes effect September 1, 2021.