Texas 2021 - 87th 1st C.S.

Texas House Bill HCR2 Compare Versions

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

Old	New	Differences
1	1	87S10191 BPG-D
2	2	By: Reynolds H.C.R. No. 2
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4	4
5	5	CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
6	6	WHEREAS, The 2020 election took place amidst the
7	7	unprecedented challenges of a global pandemic, but local and state
8	8	administrators rose to the occasion, embracing measures that
9	9	allowed a record number of Americans to make their voices heard in a
10	10	safe, secure, and professional process; and
11	11	WHEREAS, The For the People Act currently under consideration
12	12	in the United States Congress reflects lessons learned across the
13	13	country during recent election cycles, embracing measures to
14	14	improve the safety and security of our voting processes and to
15	15	strengthen our democracy by engaging more citizens; recognizing the
16	16	exigencies of modern life in a 24/7 economy, the legislation
17	17	includes many elements to make voting simpler and more convenient,
18	18	among them at least two weeks of early in-person voting, online and
19	19	same-day voter registration, and automatic voter registration at
20	20	motor vehicle departments and other specified government agencies;
21	21	it expands and standardizes voting by mail, provides funding for
22	22	mail-in ballot tracking, and offers standards for ballot drop
23	23	boxes; setting such national policies will ensure that every
24	24	eligible voter has equal access to the ballot box, no matter where
25	25	they reside; and
26	26	WHEREAS, Described by the League of Women Voters as "the most
27	27	expansive democracy reform legislation we have seen since the
28	28	Voting Rights Act," the For the People Act also bolsters election
29	29	security, ensuring that elections are decided by American voters
30	30	without interference from foreign adversaries; it creates a
31	31	national strategy to protect our democratic institutions,
32	32	increases oversight of election vendors, and improves federal
33	33	support for state voting system security upgrades, including paper
34	34	ballot voting systems; by requiring states to adopt independent
35	35	redistricting commissions, it ensures that voters choose their
36	36	representatives, not the other way around; moreover, it addresses
37	37	the dominance of big money and special interests in politics by
38	38	increasing transparency, bolstering oversight by the Federal
39	39	Election Commission, and fortifying ethics laws and enforcement for
40	40	violations; and
41	41	WHEREAS, The provisions in the For the People Act enjoy
42	42	overwhelming public support; a recent Global Strategy Group/ALG
43	43	Research survey of likely general election voters in a dozen states
44	44	found 83 percent agreement for the bill, with provisions to reduce
45	45	the influence of money in politics receiving nearly universal
46	46	support; and
47	47	WHEREAS, Americans can take great pride in the resiliency of
48	48	our electoral system and the determination of the voting public
49	49	even in the face of historic upheaval, and by passing this
50	50	legislation, Congress can provide an even sturdier foundation for
51	51	government of the people, by the people, and for the people; now,
52	52	therefore, be it
53	53	RESOLVED, That the 87th Legislature of the State of Texas,
54	54	1st Called Session, hereby respectfully urge the United States
55	55	Congress to pass the For the People Act; and, be it further
56	56	RESOLVED, That the Texas secretary of state forward official
57	57	copies of this resolution to the president of the United States, to
58	58	the president of the Senate and the speaker of the House of
59	59	Representatives of the United States Congress, and to all the
60	60	members of the Texas delegation to Congress with the request that
61	61	this resolution be entered in the Congressional Record as a
62	62	memorial to the Congress of the United States of America.