89R9262 CJD-F
By: Darby H.B. No. 5111
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to the regulation of campaign treasurer appointments and
related matters and the content of and posting of information
contained in a campaign treasurer appointment; providing a civil
penalty.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Chapter 252, Election Code, is amended by adding
Section 252.0015 to read as follows:
Sec. 252.0015. CAMPAIGN TREASURER APPOINTMENT ELIGIBILITY.
(a) Except as provided by Subsection (b), a person is eligible for
appointment as a campaign treasurer if the person is:
(1) 18 years of age or older; and
(2) a legal resident of this state.
(b) A person is not eligible for appointment as a campaign
treasurer if:
(1) the person is currently the campaign treasurer for
a candidate or political committee;
(2) the person has been convicted of an offense under
Chapter 276;
(3) the commission has made a determination during the
five-year period preceding the date of the person's appointment
that the person committed a Category One violation or a Category Two
violation, as those terms are defined by Section 571.1211,
Government Code;
(4) the person is required to register as a lobbyist
under Chapter 305, Government Code;
(5) the person is an employee of or contracted by a
political committee; or
(6) the person is a candidate and the appointment is
for a political committee.
(c) For purposes of this title, a candidate or political
committee that appoints a person as a campaign treasurer who is
ineligible for appointment under Subsection (b) at the time of
appointment is considered to not have a campaign treasurer
appointment in effect.
(d) If the commission receives notice that a candidate's or
political committee's campaign treasurer was ineligible under
Subsection (b) at the time of the appointment or became ineligible
under that subsection after the appointment, the commission shall
conduct an investigation to determine whether the campaign
treasurer is ineligible for appointment. If the commission
determines that a campaign treasurer is ineligible for appointment,
the commission shall provide notice of that determination to the
campaign treasurer and the candidate or political committee as soon
as practicable after making the determination.
(e) A candidate or political committee shall appoint a new
campaign treasurer as provided by this chapter not later than the
14th business day after the date:
(1) the candidate or political committee becomes aware
that the candidate's or political committee's campaign treasurer
became ineligible under Subsection (b) after the appointment; or
(2) the candidate or political committee receives
notice under Subsection (d) that the candidate's or political
committee's campaign treasurer is ineligible.
(f) A candidate or political committee that violates this
section is liable for a civil penalty in an amount not to exceed
three times the amount of political contributions the candidate or
political committee accepted during the period the candidate or
political committee was in violation of this section.
(g) Subsections (b)(2), (3), (4), and (5) do not apply to a
person who is a candidate and who appoints the person as the
person's own campaign treasurer under Section 252.004.
SECTION 2. Section 252.002, Election Code, is amended to
read as follows:
Sec. 252.002. CONTENTS OF APPOINTMENT. (a) A campaign
treasurer appointment must be in writing and include:
(1) the campaign treasurer's name;
(1-a) the campaign treasurer's date of birth;
(2) the campaign treasurer's residence [or business
street] address;
(3) the campaign treasurer's telephone number and
e-mail address;
(3-a) the campaign treasurer's driver's license
number, state identification card number, or social security
number; [and]
(4) the name of the person making the appointment; and
(5) an affidavit signed by the person making the
appointment that the campaign treasurer is not ineligible for
appointment under Section 252.0015.
(b) A candidate or political committee that files its
campaign treasurer appointment with the commission must notify the
commission in writing of any change in the campaign treasurer's
residence address not later than the 10th business day after the
date on which the change occurs.
SECTION 3. Section 252.0031(b), Election Code, is amended
to read as follows:
(b) The name of a specific-purpose committee for supporting
or opposing a candidate for an office specified by Section
252.005(1) must include the name of the candidate that the
committee supports or opposes.
SECTION 4. Section 252.015(c), Election Code, is amended to
read as follows:
(c) Sections 252.0015, 252.011, 252.012, 252.013, and
252.014 apply to the appointment and removal of an assistant
campaign treasurer.
SECTION 5. Section 254.0401, Election Code, is amended by
adding Subsection (e-2) to read as follows:
(e-2) Before making a report filed under this chapter
available on the Internet, the commission or authority with whom
the report is filed must remove the following information:
(1) the campaign treasurer's date of birth, other than
year;
(2) the campaign treasurer's residence address, other
than city, state, and zip code; and
(3) the campaign treasurer's driver's license number,
state identification card number, or social security number.
SECTION 6. Section 252.0011, Election Code, is repealed.
SECTION 7. (a) As soon as practicable after the effective
date of this Act but not later than January 1, 2026, the Texas
Ethics Commission shall adopt rules necessary to implement the
changes in law made by this Act.
(b) The changes in law made by this Act to Chapter 252,
Election Code, apply only to a campaign treasurer appointment made
on or after January 1, 2026. A campaign treasurer appointment made
before January 1, 2026, is governed by the law in effect on the date
the appointment was made, and the former law is continued in effect
for that purpose.
SECTION 8. This Act takes effect September 1, 2025.