Texas 2025 - 89th Regular

Texas House Bill HB5492 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

Old	New	Differences
1	1	89R3338 BEF-D
2	2	By: Vasut H.B. No. 5492
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7	7	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
8	8	AN ACT
9	9	relating to the impeachment or removal from office of certain
10	10	public officers, including procedures governing the impeachment,
11	11	trial on impeachment, and disqualification of state officers, and
12	12	to the grounds for which certain public officers may be removed from
13	13	office.
14	14	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
15	15	SECTION 1. Subchapter A, Chapter 665, Government Code, is
16	16	amended by adding Sections 665.008, 665.009, 665.010, and 665.011
17	17	to read as follows:
18	18	Sec. 665.008. TESTIMONY IN IMPEACHMENT PROCEEDING. All
19	19	witness testimony in an impeachment proceeding, including
20	20	testimony by the officer who is the subject of the proceeding, must
21	21	be given:
22	22	(1) under oath; and
23	23	(2) in a session open to all members of the house or,
24	24	if the proceeding is conducted by a committee, to all members of the
25	25	committee.
26	26	Sec. 665.009. REVIEW OF COMMITTEE MATERIALS. (a) This
27	27	section applies to an impeachment proceeding in which an
28	28	investigation or other portion of the proceeding is conducted by a
29	29	committee.
30	30	(b) The committee must provide to each member of the house
31	31	the committee's report and other materials related to the
32	32	impeachment at least 48 hours before the house begins deliberating
33	33	or votes on the impeachment.
34	34	Sec. 665.010. INELIGIBILITY TO VOTE IN PROCEEDING INVOLVING
35	35	FAMILY MEMBER. A member of the house is ineligible to vote in an
36	36	impeachment proceeding, including in a portion of the proceeding
37	37	conducted by a committee, if the member is related within the third
38	38	degree by consanguinity or affinity as determined under Subchapter
39	39	B, Chapter 573, to the officer who is the subject of the proceeding.
40	40	Sec. 665.011. REPORT OF COSTS OF IMPEACHMENT PROCEEDING.
41	41	(a) The house shall keep an accounting of all costs incurred by the
42	42	house in connection with an impeachment proceeding, including
43	43	investigative costs and costs incurred during the trial by the
44	44	senate, if applicable.
45	45	(b) Not later than the 60th day after the conclusion of an
46	46	impeachment proceeding by the house, the house shall deliver a
47	47	report of the costs described by Subsection (a) incurred in
48	48	connection with the proceedings to the comptroller, lieutenant
49	49	governor, speaker of the house, Legislative Budget Board, chair of
50	50	the senate committee on finance, and chair of the house committee on
51	51	appropriations. If the senate conducts a trial on the impeachment,
52	52	the house shall update the report to include the additional costs
53	53	incurred by the house during the trial and deliver the updated
54	54	report to those entities not later than the 60th day after the
55	55	conclusion of the trial.
56	56	SECTION 2. Subchapter B, Chapter 665, Government Code, is
57	57	amended by adding Sections 665.029, 665.030, 665.031, and 665.032
58	58	to read as follows:
59	59	Sec. 665.029. PRESIDING OFFICER IN TRIAL OF GOVERNOR OR
60	60	LIEUTENANT GOVERNOR. The presiding officer for the court of
61	61	impeachment in a trial of the governor or lieutenant governor is:
62	62	(1) the chief justice of the Supreme Court of Texas; or
63	63	(2) if the chief justice recuses himself or herself,
64	64	the presiding judge of the Court of Criminal Appeals of Texas.
65	65	Sec. 665.030. TESTIMONY IN IMPEACHMENT TRIAL. All witness
66	66	testimony in a trial on impeachment, including testimony by the
67	67	officer who is the subject of the trial, must be given:
68	68	(1) under oath; and
69	69	(2) in a session open to all members of the senate.
70	70	Sec. 665.031. INELIGIBILITY TO VOTE IN TRIAL INVOLVING
71	71	FAMILY MEMBER. A member of the senate is ineligible to vote on the
72	72	removal of an individual from office following impeachment or the
73	73	disqualification of an individual from holding any office of honor,
74	74	trust, or profit under this state if the member of the senate is
75	75	related to the individual within the third degree by consanguinity
76	76	or affinity as determined under Subchapter B, Chapter 573.
77	77	Sec. 665.032. REPORT OF COSTS OF TRIAL. (a) The senate
78	78	shall keep an accounting of all costs incurred by the senate in
79	79	connection with the trial of an impeachment, including any costs
80	80	incurred during the house impeachment proceeding.
81	81	(b) Not later than the 60th day after the conclusion of the
82	82	trial of an impeachment, the senate shall deliver a report of all
83	83	costs described by Subsection (a) to the comptroller, lieutenant
84	84	governor, speaker of the house, Legislative Budget Board, chair of
85	85	the senate committee on finance, and chair of the house committee on
86	86	appropriations.
87	87	SECTION 3. Section 665.081, Government Code, is amended to
88	88	read as follows:
89	89	Sec. 665.081. [NO] REMOVAL ONLY FOR ACTS COMMITTED WHILE
90	90	HOLDING [BEFORE ELECTION TO] OFFICE. (a) An officer in this state
91	91	is subject to removal [may not be removed] from office only for an
92	92	act the officer [may have] committed while holding an elected or
93	93	appointed [before the officer's election to] office.
94	94	(b) The prohibition against the removal from office for an
95	95	act the officer commits while not an officeholder [before the
96	96	officer's election] is covered by:
97	97	(1) Section 21.024 [21.002], Local Government Code,
98	98	for a mayor or alderman of a general law municipality; or
99	99	(2) Chapter 87, Local Government Code, for a county or
100	100	precinct officer.
101	101	SECTION 4. Section 21.024, Local Government Code, is
102	102	amended to read as follows:
103	103	Sec. 21.024. [NO] REMOVAL ONLY FOR ACTS COMMITTED WHILE
104	104	HOLDING OFFICE [BEFORE ACTION]. An officer is subject to removal
105	105	[may not be removed] under this subchapter only for an act the
106	106	officer committed while holding an elected or appointed [before
107	107	election to] office [if the act was a matter of public record or
108	108	otherwise known to the voters].
109	109	SECTION 5. Section 87.001, Local Government Code, is
110	110	amended to read as follows:
111	111	Sec. 87.001. [NO] REMOVAL ONLY FOR ACTS COMMITTED WHILE
112	112	HOLDING OFFICE [PRIOR ACTION]. An officer is subject to removal
113	113	[may not be removed] under this chapter only for an act the officer
114	114	committed while holding an elected or appointed [before election
115	115	to] office.
116	116	SECTION 6. The changes in law made by this Act apply only to
117	117	an impeachment proceeding, trial, or other removal proceeding
118	118	commenced on or after the effective date of this Act. A proceeding
119	119	or trial commenced before the effective date of this Act is governed
120	120	by the law in effect when the proceeding was commenced, and the
121	121	former law is continued in effect for that purpose.
122	122	SECTION 7. This Act takes effect January 1, 2026, but only
123	123	if the constitutional amendment proposed by the 89th Legislature,
124	124	Regular Session, 2025, clarifying and implementing certain
125	125	provisions governing the impeachment, trial, removal from office,
126	126	and disqualification of public officers is approved by the
127	127	voters. If that amendment is not approved by the voters, this Act
128	128	has no effect.