89R9238 CJD-D
By: Harrison H.B. No. 2691
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to prohibitions on lobbyists making certain expenditures
and gifts to public servants.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 36.10(a), Penal Code, is amended to read
as follows:
(a) Sections 36.08 (Gift to Public Servant) and 36.09
(Offering Gift to Public Servant) do not apply to:
(1) a fee prescribed by law to be received by a public
servant or any other benefit to which the public servant is lawfully
entitled or for which he gives legitimate consideration in a
capacity other than as a public servant;
(2) a gift or other benefit conferred on account of
kinship or a personal, professional, or business relationship
independent of the official status of the recipient;
(3) a benefit to a public servant required to file a
statement under Chapter 572, Government Code, or a report under
Title 15, Election Code, that is derived from a function in honor or
appreciation of the recipient if:
(A) the benefit and the source of any benefit in
excess of $50 is reported in the statement; and
(B) the benefit is used solely to defray the
expenses that accrue in the performance of duties or activities in
connection with the office which are nonreimbursable by the state
or political subdivision;
(4) a political contribution as defined by Title 15,
Election Code;
(5) [a gift, award, or memento to a member of the
legislative or executive branch that is required to be reported
under Chapter 305, Government Code;
[(6)] an item with a value of less than $50, excluding
cash or a negotiable instrument as described by Section 3.104,
Business & Commerce Code;
(6) [(7)] an item issued by a governmental entity that
allows the use of property or facilities owned, leased, or operated
by the governmental entity;
(7) [(8)] transportation, lodging, and meals
described by Section 36.07(b); or
(8) [(9)] complimentary legal advice or legal
services relating to a will, power of attorney, advance directive,
or other estate planning document rendered:
(A) to a public servant who is a first responder;
and
(B) through a program or clinic that is:
(i) operated by a local bar association or
the State Bar of Texas; and
(ii) approved by the head of the agency
employing the public servant, if the public servant is employed by
an agency.
SECTION 2. Section 305.024(a), Government Code, as amended
by Chapters 92 (S.B. 1011) and 206 (H.B. 1508), Acts of the 79th
Legislature, Regular Session, 2005, is reenacted and amended to
read as follows:
(a) Except as provided by Section 305.025, a person
registered under Section 305.005 or a person on the registrant's
behalf and with the registrant's consent or ratification may not
offer, confer, or agree to confer:
(1) to an individual described by Section
305.0062(a)(1), (2), (3), (4), or (5):
(A) a loan, including the guarantee or
endorsement of a loan; or
(B) a gift of cash or a negotiable instrument as
described by Section 3.104, Business & Commerce Code; or
(2) to an individual described by Section
305.0062(a)(1), (2), (3), (4), (5), (6), or (7):
(A) an expenditure for transportation and
lodging;
(B) a [an expenditure or] series of expenditures
for entertainment that in the aggregate exceed $500 in a calendar
year;
(C) a [an expenditure or] series of expenditures
for gifts that in the aggregate exceed $500 in a calendar year;
(D) an expenditure for an award or memento that
exceeds $50 [$500]; or
(E) an expenditure described by Section
305.006(b)(2) [305.006(b)(1), (2), (3),] or (6), unless[:
[(A)] the expenditure does not exceed $50
[registrant is present at the event; or
[(B) the expenditure is for a gift of food
or beverages required to be reported under Section 305.006(b)(4) in
accordance with Section 305.0061(e-1)].
SECTION 3. Section 571.064(b), Government Code, is amended
to read as follows:
(b) If a law, other than a law providing an expenditure
limit for a person required to register under Chapter 305,
administered and enforced by the commission sets dollar amounts or
categories of amounts as reporting thresholds or if the commission
sets those amounts, the commission annually shall adjust those
thresholds upward to the nearest multiple of $10 in accordance with
the percentage increase for the previous year in the Consumer Price
Index for Urban Consumers published by the Bureau of Labor
Statistics of the United States Department of Labor.
SECTION 4. Section 36.10, Penal Code, as amended by this
Act, applies only to an offense committed on or after the effective
date of this Act. An offense committed before the effective date of
this Act is governed by the law in effect on the date the offense was
committed, and the former law is continued in effect for that
purpose. For purposes of this section, an offense was committed
before the effective date of this Act if any element of the offense
occurred before that date.
SECTION 5. Section 305.024, Government Code, as amended by
this Act, applies only to an expenditure made on or after the
effective date of this Act. An expenditure made before the
effective date of this Act is governed by the law in effect on the
date the expenditure was made, and the former law is continued in
effect for that purpose.
SECTION 6. Section 571.064(b), Government Code, as amended
by this Act, applies to an adjustment made by the Texas Ethics
Commission under that subsection before the effective date of this
Act. The commission shall adopt rules as necessary to reverse each
adjustment made under that subsection before the effective date of
this Act that would not have been made if the change in law made by
this Act had been in effect at the time of the adjustment.
SECTION 7. This Act takes effect September 1, 2025.