Texas 2023 - 88th 3rd C.S.

Texas Senate Bill SB12 Compare Versions

Version 1 (Old)

Version 2 (New)

Old	New	Differences
1	1	By: Middleton S.B. No. 12
2	2
3	3
4	4	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
5	5	AN ACT
6	6	relating to the use by a political subdivision of public funds for
7	7	lobbying and certain other activities.
8	8	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
9	9	SECTION 1. Chapter 556, Government Code, is amended by
10	10	adding Section 556.0056 to read as follows:
11	11	Sec. 556.0056. RESTRICTION ON USE OF PUBLIC FUNDS BY
12	12	POLITICAL SUBDIVISIONS FOR LOBBYING ACTIVITIES. (a) A political
13	13	subdivision may not spend public funds:
14	14	(1) to hire an individual required to register as a
15	15	lobbyist under Chapter 305 for the purpose of lobbying a member of
16	16	the legislature; or
17	17	(2) to pay a nonprofit state association or
18	18	organization that:
19	19	(A) primarily represents political subdivisions;
20	20	and
21	21	(B) hires or contracts with an individual
22	22	required to register as a lobbyist under Chapter 305.
23	23	(b) If a political subdivision engages in an activity
24	24	prohibited by Subsection (a), a taxpayer or resident of the
25	25	political subdivision is entitled to appropriate injunctive relief
26	26	to prevent further activity prohibited by that subsection and
27	27	further payment of public funds related to that activity.
28	28	(c) A taxpayer or resident who prevails in an action under
29	29	Subsection (b) is entitled to recover from the political
30	30	subdivision the taxpayer's or resident's reasonable attorney's fees
31	31	and costs incurred in bringing the action.
32	32	(d) This section does not apply to a municipality or county
33	33	using public funds to compensate or contract with an individual
34	34	required to register as a lobbyist under Chapter 305 for the purpose
35	35	of influencing or attempting to influence the outcome of
36	36	legislation related to the military, military service members, or
37	37	military veterans.
38	38	(e) This section does not prohibit a full-time employee of a
39	39	nonprofit state association or organization that primarily
40	40	represents political subdivisions of this state from:
41	41	(1) providing legislative services, including
42	42	services related to bill tracking, bill analysis, and legislative
43	43	alerts;
44	44	(2) communicating directly with a member of the
45	45	legislature to provide information; or
46	46	(3) testifying for or against legislation before a
47	47	legislative committee.
48	48	SECTION 2. Section 89.002, Local Government Code, is
49	49	amended to read as follows:
50	50	Sec. 89.002. STATE ASSOCIATION OF COUNTIES. (a) Except as
51	51	provided by Section 556.0056, Government Code, the [The]
52	52	commissioners court may spend, in the name of the county, money from
53	53	the county's general fund for membership fees and dues of a
54	54	nonprofit state association of counties if:
55	55	(1) a majority of the court votes to approve
56	56	membership in the association;
57	57	(2) the association exists for the betterment of
58	58	county government and the benefit of all county officials;
59	59	(3) the association is not affiliated with a labor
60	60	organization; and
61	61	(4) [neither the association nor an employee of the
62	62	association directly or indirectly influences or attempts to
63	63	influence the outcome of any legislation pending before the
64	64	legislature, except that this subdivision does not prevent a person
65	65	from providing information for a member of the legislature or
66	66	appearing before a legislative committee at the request of the
67	67	committee or the member of the legislature; and
68	68	[(5)] neither the association nor an employee of the
69	69	association directly or indirectly contributes any money,
70	70	services, or other valuable thing to a political campaign or
71	71	endorses a candidate or group of candidates for public office.
72	72	(b) If any association or organization supported wholly or
73	73	partly by payments of tax receipts from political subdivisions
74	74	engages in an activity described by Subsection (a)(4) [or (5)], a
75	75	taxpayer of a political subdivision that pays fees or dues to the
76	76	association or organization is entitled to appropriate injunctive
77	77	relief to prevent any further activity described by Subsection
78	78	(a)(4) [or (5)] or any further payments of fees or dues.
79	79	SECTION 3. Section 556.0056, Government Code, as added by
80	80	this Act, applies only to an expenditure or payment of public funds
81	81	by a political subdivision that is made on or after the effective
82	82	date of this Act, including an expenditure or payment of public
83	83	funds by a political subdivision that is made under a contract
84	84	entered into before, on, or after the effective date of this Act. A
85	85	contract term providing for an expenditure or payment prohibited by
86	86	Section 556.0056, Government Code, as added by this Act, is void on
87	87	the effective date of this Act.
88	88	SECTION 4. Section 89.002, Local Government Code, as
89	89	amended by this Act, applies only to the spending of money by a
90	90	county from the county's general fund that occurs on or after the
91	91	effective date of this Act. The spending of money by a county from
92	92	the county's general fund that occurs before the effective date of
93	93	this Act is governed by the law as it existed immediately before the
94	94	effective date of this Act, and that law is continued in effect for
95	95	that purpose.
96	96	SECTION 5. This Act takes effect on the 91st day after the
97	97	last day of the legislative session.