87R8453 SGM-D
By: Guillen H.B. No. 2672
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to public inspection of certain early voting information;
creating a criminal offense.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 87.121, Election Code, as amended by
Chapters 1083 (H.B. 1850) and 1215 (S.B. 902), Acts of the 86th
Legislature, Regular Session, 2019, is reenacted and amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 87.121. EARLY VOTING ROSTERS. (a) The early voting
clerk shall maintain for each election a roster listing each person
who votes an early voting ballot by personal appearance and a roster
listing each person to whom an early voting ballot to be voted by
mail is sent.
(b) For each person listed, the applicable roster must
include:
(1) the person's name, address, and voter registration
number;
(2) an identification of the person's county election
precinct of registration; and
(3) the date of voting or the date the ballot was
mailed to the person, as applicable.
(c) Each roster shall be updated daily.
(d) Each roster may be maintained in any form approved by
the secretary of state.
(e) The clerk shall preserve each roster after the election
for the period for preserving the precinct election records.
(f) Information on the roster for a person to whom an early
voting mail ballot has been sent is not available for public
inspection, except to the voter seeking to verify that the
information pertaining to the voter is accurate, until the first
business day after election day.
(g) Information on the roster for a person who votes an
early voting ballot by personal appearance shall be made available
for public inspection as provided by Subsection (i) not later than
11 a.m. on the day after the date the information is entered on the
roster under Subsection (c). On the request of a person, the early
voting clerk shall provide a copy of the roster in a paper or an
electronic format.
(h) Information on the roster for a person who votes an
early voting ballot by mail shall be made available for public
inspection as provided by Subsection (i) not later than 11 a.m. on
the day following the day the early voting clerk receives a ballot
voted by mail. On the request of a person, the early voting clerk
shall provide a copy of the roster in a paper or an electronic
format.
(i) The information under Subsections (g) and (h) must be
made available:
(1) for an election in which the county clerk is the
early voting clerk:
(A) on the publicly accessible Internet website
of the county; or
(B) if the county does not maintain a website, on
the bulletin board used for posting notice of meetings of the
commissioners court; or
(2) for an election not described by Subdivision (1):
(A) on the publicly accessible Internet website
of the authority ordering the election; or
(B) if the authority ordering the election does
not maintain a website, on the bulletin board used for posting
notice of meetings of the governing body of the authority.
(j) [(i)] The early voting clerk for a primary election or
the general election for state and county officers shall submit to
the secretary of state for posting on the secretary of state's
Internet website the information described by:
(1) Subsection (g) not later than 11 a.m. on the day
after the date the information is entered on the roster under
Subsection (c); and
(2) Subsection (h) not later than 11 a.m. on the day
following the day the early voting clerk receives a ballot voted by
mail.
(k) [(j)] The secretary of state shall [make any early
voting roster created under this section available to the public on
the secretary's Internet website.
[(j) The secretary of state shall] post the information
described by Subsection (j) [(i)] on the secretary of state's
Internet website in a downloadable format.
(l) [(k)] The secretary of state shall create a system for
an early voting clerk for a primary election or the general election
for state and county officers to provide the information to the
secretary of state for posting on the secretary of state's Internet
website under Subsection (j) [(i)].
(m) A person commits an offense if the person:
(1) is responsible for maintaining the roster under
this section; and
(2) fails to provide information on or a copy of the
roster under Subsection (g) or (h).
(n) An offense under Subsection (m) is a Class C
misdemeanor.
SECTION 2. To the extent of any conflict, this Act prevails
over another Act of the 87th Legislature, Regular Session, 2021,
relating to nonsubstantive additions to and corrections in enacted
codes.
SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2021.