| 1 | 1 | | By: Kacal, Ashby (Senate Sponsor - Paxton) H.B. No. 3046 |
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| 2 | 2 | | (In the Senate - Received from the House May 8, 2023; |
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| 3 | 3 | | May 10, 2023, read first time and referred to Committee on State |
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| 4 | 4 | | Affairs; May 19, 2023, reported favorably by the following vote: |
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| 5 | 5 | | Yeas 8, Nays 0; May 19, 2023, sent to printer.) |
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| 6 | 6 | | Click here to see the committee vote |
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| 7 | 7 | | |
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| 8 | 8 | | |
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| 9 | 9 | | A BILL TO BE ENTITLED |
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| 10 | 10 | | AN ACT |
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| 11 | 11 | | relating to the omission of a deceased candidate from the ballot in |
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| 12 | 12 | | certain elections. |
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| 13 | 13 | | BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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| 14 | 14 | | SECTION 1. Section 145.096(a), Election Code, is amended to |
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| 15 | 15 | | read as follows: |
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| 16 | 16 | | (a) Except as provided by Subsection (b) or Section |
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| 17 | 17 | | 145.098(b) or (d), a candidate's name shall be placed on the ballot |
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| 18 | 18 | | if the candidate: |
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| 19 | 19 | | (1) dies on or after the second day before the deadline |
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| 20 | 20 | | for filing the candidate's application for a place on the ballot; |
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| 21 | 21 | | (2) is declared ineligible after 5 p.m. of the fifth |
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| 22 | 22 | | day after the deadline for filing the candidate's application for a |
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| 23 | 23 | | place on the ballot, in an election subject to Section 145.092(a); |
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| 24 | 24 | | (3) is declared ineligible after 5 p.m. of the 57th day |
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| 25 | 25 | | before election day, in an election subject to Section 145.092(b); |
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| 26 | 26 | | or |
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| 27 | 27 | | (4) is declared ineligible after 5 p.m. of the 71st day |
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| 28 | 28 | | before election day, in an election subject to Section 145.092(f). |
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| 29 | 29 | | SECTION 2. Section 145.098, Election Code, is amended by |
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| 30 | 30 | | adding Subsections (c) and (d) to read as follows: |
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| 31 | 31 | | (c) If the deadline for filing an application for a place on |
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| 32 | 32 | | the ballot is extended under Subsection (b), the authority |
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| 33 | 33 | | responsible for preparing the ballot shall: |
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| 34 | 34 | | (1) prepare a notice identifying the name of the |
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| 35 | 35 | | deceased candidate, the office sought by the candidate, and the |
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| 36 | 36 | | date of the new filing deadline; and |
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| 37 | 37 | | (2) publish the notice prepared under Subdivision (1): |
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| 38 | 38 | | (A) on the Internet website maintained by the |
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| 39 | 39 | | political subdivision holding the election; or |
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| 40 | 40 | | (B) if the political subdivision does not |
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| 41 | 41 | | maintain an Internet website, on the bulletin board used for |
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| 42 | 42 | | posting notice of meetings of the governing body of the political |
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| 43 | 43 | | subdivision. |
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| 44 | 44 | | (d) If a candidate for an office of a city with a population |
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| 45 | 45 | | of 100,000 or less dies before the ballots are printed, the |
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| 46 | 46 | | authority responsible for preparing the ballots may choose to omit |
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| 47 | 47 | | the candidate from the ballot. |
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| 48 | 48 | | SECTION 3. The change in law made by this Act applies only |
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| 49 | 49 | | to an election ordered on or after the effective date of this Act. |
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| 50 | 50 | | SECTION 4. This Act takes effect September 1, 2023. |
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| 51 | 51 | | * * * * * |
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