Texas 2021 - 87th Regular

Texas House Bill HR2022 Compare Versions

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

Old	New	Differences
1	1	87R30490 ADM-D
2	2	By: Burrows H.R. No. 2022
3	3
4	4
5	5	R E S O L U T I O N
6	6	BE IT RESOLVED by the House of Representatives of the State of
7	7	Texas, 87th Legislature, Regular Session 2021, That House Rule 13,
8	8	Section 9(a), be suspended in part as provided by House Rule 13,
9	9	Section 9(f), to enable the conference committee appointed to
10	10	resolve the differences on House Bill 1987 (eligibility
11	11	requirements to hold a political party office and the election of
12	12	certain state officers of certain political parties at a primary
13	13	election) to consider and take action on the following matters:
14	14	(1) House Rule 13, Section 9(a)(4), is suspended to permit
15	15	the committee to add text on a matter not included in either the
16	16	house or senate version of the bill in proposed SECTION 1 of the
17	17	bill by adding Section 161.005(d), Election Code, to read as
18	18	follows:
19	19	(d) If an officer of a political party described by
20	20	Subsection (a-1) announces the officer's candidacy or becomes a
21	21	candidate for an elective office of the federal, state, or county
22	22	government, the announcement or candidacy constitutes an automatic
23	23	resignation from the office currently held by the officer. A
24	24	vacancy arising under this subsection must be filled in the same
25	25	manner as other vacancies for that office are filled.
26	26	Explanation: This change is necessary to clarify the
27	27	resignation requirements imposed by this bill.
28	28	(2) House Rule 13, Section 9(a)(4), is suspended to permit
29	29	the committee to add text on a matter not included in either the
30	30	house or senate version of the bill by adding the following SECTIONS
31	31	to the bill:
32	32	SECTION 2. Chapter 171, Election Code, is amended by adding
33	33	Subchapter A-1 to read as follows:
34	34	SUBCHAPTER A-1. STATE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE FOR CERTAIN POLITICAL
35	35	PARTIES NOMINATING BY PRIMARY ELECTION
36	36	Sec. 171.011. APPLICABILITY OF SUBCHAPTER. (a) This
37	37	subchapter applies to a political party holding a primary election
38	38	in this state if the party's candidate for governor has received the
39	39	greatest number of votes in at least six of the ten most recent
40	40	gubernatorial elections.
41	41	(b) A provision of Subchapter A applies to a political party
42	42	described by Subsection (a) except as provided by Subsection (c).
43	43	(c) To the extent of any conflict, a provision of this
44	44	subchapter prevails over a provision in Subchapter A.
45	45	Sec. 171.012. ELECTION OF STATE PARTY OFFICERS AT GENERAL
46	46	PRIMARY ELECTION. (a) The chair of a political party to which this
47	47	subchapter applies is elected to a regular term at the general
48	48	primary election by the majority of qualified voters of the state
49	49	who vote in the primary for that office.
50	50	(b) Members representing the senatorial or congressional
51	51	districts are elected to a regular term at the general primary
52	52	election by the majority of qualified voters of the state who reside
53	53	in the district and who vote in the primary for that office. It is
54	54	not required that the two members from each district be of the
55	55	opposite sex. Section 171.002(d) does not apply to a member elected
56	56	to represent a senatorial or congressional district under this
57	57	subchapter.
58	58	(c) If no candidate receives a majority of the votes, a
59	59	runoff to determine the office is conducted in the same manner as a
60	60	runoff primary election to determine a nomination for public
61	61	office. The candidates to be in a runoff are determined in the same
62	62	manner as candidates in a runoff for a nomination.
63	63	(d) The chair and members representing the senatorial or
64	64	congressional districts each serve for a term of four years
65	65	beginning the 20th day after runoff primary election day at the
66	66	primary election held in gubernatorial election years.
67	67	Sec. 171.013. ELECTIONS NOT HELD. (a) If only one
68	68	candidate's name is to be placed on the ballot for an office under
69	69	this subchapter, the election for that office is not held, and the
70	70	unopposed candidate, if otherwise eligible, shall be declared
71	71	elected to the office at the time of the canvass.
72	72	(b) The state chair shall prepare a document that shall be
73	73	posted that states: "Pursuant to Section 171.013, Election Code,
74	74	(insert name of unopposed candidate), if otherwise eligible, shall
75	75	be declared elected to the office of (insert name of office) at the
76	76	time of the local canvass."
77	77	(c) The county chair or entity contracted to hold the
78	78	election shall distribute copies of the document to the presiding
79	79	judge of the election precinct with the other election supplies. An
80	80	election officer shall post the document in one or more locations in
81	81	the polling place where it can be read by persons waiting to vote.
82	82	Sec. 171.014. RESIDENCE REQUIREMENT; DISTRICT BOUNDARIES.
83	83	(a) To be eligible to be a candidate for or to serve on the state
84	84	executive committee as a member representing a senatorial or
85	85	congressional district, a person must reside in the district in
86	86	addition to satisfying the other applicable eligibility
87	87	requirements.
88	88	(b) If a change in a district boundary results in either
89	89	more than one member residing in the district subject to the
90	90	boundary change or no member residing in the district subject to the
91	91	boundary change, a vacancy in the office representing that
92	92	senatorial or congressional district is created and shall be filled
93	93	in accordance with Section 171.003.
94	94	(c) For the purpose of determining whether a member
95	95	representing a senatorial or congressional district is a resident
96	96	of a particular county election precinct, a change in a district
97	97	boundary is not effective until February 1 following the adoption
98	98	of the order making the change, except as provided by Subsection
99	99	(d).
100	100	(d) If a change in a district boundary made by an order
101	101	adopted on or after February 1 of a primary election year is
102	102	scheduled to become effective before general primary election day,
103	103	the change is effective on the date the order is adopted for the
104	104	purpose specified by Subsection (c).
105	105	Sec. 171.015. WRITE-IN CANDIDATES. Write-in candidates are
106	106	not permitted for an office described by this subchapter.
107	107	SECTION 3. Section 172.021(b), Election Code, is amended
108	108	to read as follows:
109	109	(b) An application must, in addition to complying with
110	110	Section 141.031, be accompanied by the appropriate filing fee or a
111	111	petition in lieu of the filing fee that satisfies the requirements
112	112	prescribed by Section 141.062. A political party may not require
113	113	payment of a fee as a condition to applying for a place on the ballot
114	114	as a candidate for a party office [county chair or precinct chair].
115	115	SECTION 4. Section 172.061, Election Code, is amended to
116	116	read as follows:
117	117	Sec. 172.061. CANDIDATE FOR PARTY OFFICE. (a) Except for
118	118	Sections 172.058(b), 172.059(c), and 172.060(b), this subchapter
119	119	applies to a candidate for a party office [county chair or precinct
120	120	chair].
121	121	(b) If a runoff candidate for a party office [county chair
122	122	or precinct chair] withdraws, the remaining candidate is considered
123	123	to be elected and the runoff election for that office is not held.
124	124	SECTION 5. Section 172.089, Election Code, is amended to
125	125	read as follows:
126	126	Sec. 172.089. ORDER OF PARTY OFFICES ON BALLOT. (a) For a
127	127	party to which Subchapter A-1, Chapter 171, does not apply, the
128	128	[The] party offices of county chair and precinct chair shall be
129	129	listed on the primary election ballot after the public offices with
130	130	the office of county chair listed first.
131	131	(b) For a party to which Subchapter A-1, Chapter 171,
132	132	applies, the party offices of state chair, state executive
133	133	committee member, county chair, and precinct chair shall be listed
134	134	in that order on the primary election ballot after the public
135	135	offices.
136	136	SECTION 6. The heading to Section 172.118, Election Code,
137	137	is amended to read as follows:
138	138	Sec. 172.118. NOTICE OF PERSONS ELECTED AS PRECINCT AND
139	139	COUNTY PARTY OFFICERS.
140	140	SECTION 7. Section 257.005(a), Election Code, is amended to
141	141	read as follows:
142	142	(a) Except as provided by this section, the following are
143	143	subject to the requirements of this title that apply to a candidate
144	144	for public office:
145	145	(1) a candidate for state chair or state executive
146	146	committee member of a political party with a nominee on the ballot
147	147	in the most recent gubernatorial general election; and
148	148	(2) a candidate for election to the office of county
149	149	chair of a political party with a nominee on the ballot in the most
150	150	recent gubernatorial general election if the county has a
151	151	population of 350,000 or more.
152	152	SECTION 8. The term of a state chair or state executive
153	153	committee member of a political party to which Subchapter A-1,
154	154	Chapter 171, Election Code, as added by this Act, applies, serving
155	155	on the effective date of this Act ends on the 20th day after runoff
156	156	primary election day, 2022.
157	157	SECTION 9. Except as provided by Section 8 of this Act, this
158	158	Act applies only to a candidate for nomination or election to an
159	159	office the term of which begins on or after the effective date of
160	160	this Act.
161	161	Explanation: These changes are necessary to provide for the
162	162	election at a primary election of certain political party officers.