By: Zwiener H.B. No. 3867
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to voting a statewide ballot, or voting a limited ballot
following the change of the county of residence by a voter.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 112.001, Election Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 112.001. LIMITED BALLOT. In this code: [code,]
(1) "limited ballot" means a ballot voted under this
chapter that is restricted to the offices and propositions stating
measures on which a person is entitled to vote under Section
112.004(a) [112.004];
(2) "statewide ballot" means a ballot voted under this
chapter that is restricted to statewide offices and propositions
stating measures on which a person is entitled to vote under Section
112.004(b).
SECTION 2. Section 112.002, Election Code, is amended by
amending the section heading to read as follows:
Sec. 112.002. ELIGIBILITY FOR LIMITED BALLOT.
SECTION 3. Section 112.002, Election Code, is amended by
amending Subsections (a) and (d) to read as follows:
(a) After changing residence to another county, a person is
eligible to vote a limited ballot on election day, by personal
appearance during the early voting period, or by mail if:
(1) the person would have been eligible to vote in the
county of former residence on election day if still residing in that
county;
(2) the person is registered to vote in the county of
former residence at the time the person:
(A) offers to vote in the county of new
residence; or
(B) submitted a voter registration application
in the county of new residence; and
(3) a voter registration for the person in the county
of new residence is not effective on or before election day.
(d) A statement executed under Subsection (c) shall be
submitted:
(1) to an election officer at the [main early voting]
polling place, if the person is voting by personal appearance; or
(2) with the person's application for a ballot to be
voted by mail, if the person is voting by mail.
SECTION 4. Chapter 112, Election Code, is amended by adding
Section 112.0025 to read as follows:
Sec. 112.0025. ELIGIBILITY FOR STATEWIDE BALLOT. (a) A
person is eligible to vote a statewide ballot on election day, or by
personal appearance during the early voting period if the person is
registered to vote in the State of Texas at the time the person
offers to vote in a given county and the voter would not otherwise
be eligible to vote a limited ballot in the county the voter seeks
to vote a statewide ballot.
(b) Before being accepted for voting under this chapter, the
voter must execute a statement including:
(1) a statement that the voter satisfies the
applicable requirements prescribed by Subsection (a);
(2) the voter's residence address or, if the residence
has no address, the address at which the voter receives mail and a
concise description of the voter's residence;
(3) the month, day, and year of the voter's birth; and
(4) the date the statement is executed.
(c) A statement executed under Subsection (b) shall be
submitted to an election officer at the polling place where the
person is voting by personal appearance.
(d) A statement executed under Subsection (b) may include
space for disclosure of any necessary information to enable the
person to register to vote under Chapter 13.
(e) The secretary of state shall prescribe the form of a
statement executed under Subsection (b).
SECTION 5. Section 112.004, Election Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 112.004. OFFICES AND MEASURES ON WHICH VOTER ENTITLED
TO VOTE. (a) A person voting a limited ballot is entitled to vote
only on:
(1) each office and proposition stating a measure to
be voted on statewide; and
(2) each office and proposition stating a measure to
be voted on in a territorial unit of which the person was a resident
both before changing county of residence and after the change.
(b) A person voting a statewide ballot is entitled to vote
only on each office and proposition stating a measure to be voted on
statewide.
SECTION 6. Section 112.006, Election Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 112.006. PLACE FOR VOTING BY PERSONAL APPEARANCE. (a)
A person may vote a limited ballot by personal appearance:
(1) at any early voting polling place; or
(2) on election day, at a countywide polling place or
the polling place located in the precinct of the new residence of
the voter [only at the main early voting polling place].
(b) A person may vote a statewide ballot by personal
appearance:
(1) at any early voting polling place; or
(2) on election day, at any polling place in the state.
SECTION 7. Sections 112.008 and 112.009, Election Code, are
amended to read as follows:
Sec. 112.008. DETERMINING OFFICES AND MEASURES TO BE VOTED
ON. (a) For each person who is to vote a limited ballot, the
election officer [early voting clerk] shall determine the offices
and propositions stating measures on which the person is entitled
to vote and shall indicate them on the person's application.
(b) For each person who is to vote a statewide ballot, the
election officer shall first determine whether the person is
eligible for a limited ballot at that polling place, and if not,
shall determine the statewide offices and propositions stating
measures on which the person is entitled to vote and shall indicate
them on the person's application.
Sec. 112.009. PREPARING VOTING MACHINE. Before permitting
a person to vote a limited ballot on a voting machine, the election
officer [early voting clerk] shall adjust the machine so that votes
may be cast only on the offices and propositions stating measures on
which the voter is entitled to vote.
SECTION 8. Section 112.010(a), Election Code, is amended to
read as follows:
(a) If early voting by personal appearance is conducted by
voting machine, the election officer [early voting clerk] may
conduct the personal appearance voting of limited ballots or
statewide ballots by using official ballots for early voting by
mail.
SECTION 9. Section 112.011(b), Election Code, is amended to
read as follows:
(b) The information must include the data necessary to
enable an election officer [early voting clerk] to determine the
district offices on which a voter under this chapter is eligible to
vote.
SECTION 10. Section 112.012, Election Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 112.012. NOTIFICATION TO VOTER REGISTRAR. Not later
than the 30th day after receipt of an application for a limited
ballot or statewide ballot, the county [early voting] clerk shall
notify the voter registrar for the voter's former or current county
of residence that the voter has applied for a limited or statewide
ballot.
SECTION 11. This Act takes effect September 1, 2025.