Texas 2025 - 89th Regular

Texas House Bill HB955 Compare Versions

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

Old	New	Differences
1	1	By: Toth H.B. No. 955
2	2
3	3
4	4
5	5
6	6	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
7	7	AN ACT
8	8	relating to a requirement that an election for a member of a board
9	9	of trustees of an independent school district is partisan.
10	10	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
11	11	SECTION 1. Section 11.055, Education Code, is amended by
12	12	adding Subsection (c) to read as follows:
13	13	(c) An application filed under this section must state the
14	14	political party with which the candidate is aligned or, if the
15	15	candidate is not aligned with a party, state that fact.
16	16	SECTION 2. Section 11.0581(a), Education Code, is amended
17	17	to read as follows:
18	18	(a) An election for trustees of an independent school
19	19	district shall be held on the same date as the general election for
20	20	state and county officers[:
21	21	[(1) the election for the members of the governing
22	22	body of a municipality located in the school district;
23	23	[(2) the general election for state and county
24	24	officers;
25	25	[(3) the election for the members of the governing
26	26	body of a hospital district, if the school district:
27	27	[(A) is wholly or partly located in a county with
28	28	a population of less than 40,000 that is adjacent to a county with a
29	29	population of more than three million; and
30	30	[(B) held its election for trustees jointly with
31	31	the election for the members of the governing body of the hospital
32	32	district before May 2007; or
33	33	[(4) the election for the members of the governing
34	34	board of a public junior college district in which the school
35	35	district is wholly or partly located].
36	36	SECTION 3. Section 11.059, Education Code, is amended to
37	37	read as follows:
38	38	Sec. 11.059. TERMS. (a) A trustee of an independent
39	39	school district serves a term of [three or] four years.
40	40	(b) [Elections for trustees with three-year terms shall be
41	41	held annually. The terms of one-third of the trustees, or as near
42	42	to one-third as possible, expire each year.
43	43	[(c)] Elections for trustees [with four-year terms] shall
44	44	be held biennially. The terms of one-half of the trustees, or as
45	45	near to one-half as possible, expire every two years.
46	46	(c) [(d)] A board policy must state the schedule on which
47	47	specific terms expire.
48	48	SECTION 4. Section 11.065(a), Education Code, is amended to
49	49	read as follows:
50	50	(a) Sections 11.052(g) and (h) [and Sections 11.059(a) and
51	51	(b)] do not apply to the board of trustees of a school district if:
52	52	(1) the district's central administrative office is
53	53	located in a county with a population of more than two million; and
54	54	(2) the district's student enrollment is more than
55	55	125,000 and less than 200,000.
56	56	SECTION 5. Section 41.0052, Election Code, is amended by
57	57	adding Subsection (a-2) to read as follows:
58	58	(a-2) The governing body of an independent school district
59	59	that holds its general election for officers on a date other than
60	60	the date of the general election for state and county officers
61	61	shall, not later than December 31, 2025, change the date on which
62	62	the governing body holds its general election for officers to that
63	63	date. This subsection expires January 1, 2029.
64	64	SECTION 6. Section 144.001, Election Code, is amended to
65	65	read as follows:
66	66	Sec. 144.001. APPLICABILITY OF CHAPTER. (a) Except as
67	67	provided by Subsection (b), this [This] chapter applies to a
68	68	candidate for an office of a political subdivision other than a city
69	69	or county.
70	70	(b) This chapter does not apply to a candidate for a member
71	71	of the board of trustees of an independent school district.
72	72	SECTION 7. Section 172.001, Election Code, is amended to
73	73	read as follows:
74	74	Sec. 172.001. NOMINATING BY PRIMARY ELECTION REQUIRED.
75	75	Except as otherwise provided by this code, a political party's
76	76	nominees in the general election for members of the board of
77	77	trustees of an independent school district, offices of state and
78	78	county government, and offices of the United States Congress must
79	79	be nominated by primary election, held as provided by this code, if
80	80	the party's nominee for governor in the most recent gubernatorial
81	81	general election received 20 percent or more of the total number of
82	82	votes received by all candidates for governor in the election.
83	83	SECTION 8. Section 172.002(a), Election Code, is amended to
84	84	read as follows:
85	85	(a) Except as otherwise provided by this code, a political
86	86	party's nominees in the general election for members of the board of
87	87	trustees of an independent school district, offices of state and
88	88	county government, and offices of the United States Congress may be
89	89	nominated by primary election, held as provided by this code, if the
90	90	party's nominee for governor in the most recent gubernatorial
91	91	general election received at least two percent but less than 20
92	92	percent of the total number of votes received by all candidates for
93	93	governor in the election.
94	94	SECTION 9. Section 172.024(a), Election Code, is amended to
95	95	read as follows:
96	96	(a) The filing fee for a candidate for nomination in the
97	97	general primary election is as follows:
98	98	(1) United States senator $5,000
99	99	(2) office elected statewide, except United States
100	100	senator 3,750
101	101	(3) United States representative 3,125
102	102	(4) state senator 1,250
103	103	(5) state representative 750
104	104	(6) member, State Board of Education 300
105	105	(7) chief justice or justice, court of appeals, other
106	106	than a justice specified by Subdivision (8) 1,875
107	107	(8) chief justice or justice of a court of appeals that
108	108	serves a court of appeals district in which a county with a
109	109	population of more than one million is wholly or partly situated
110	110	2,500
111	111	(9) district judge or judge specified by Section
112	112	52.092(d) for which this schedule does not otherwise prescribe a
113	113	fee 1,500
114	114	(10) district or criminal district judge of a court in
115	115	a judicial district wholly contained in a county with a population
116	116	of more than 1.5 million 2,500
117	117	(11) judge, statutory county court, other than a judge
118	118	specified by Subdivision (12) 1,500
119	119	(12) judge of a statutory county court in a county with
120	120	a population of more than 1.5 million 2,500
121	121	(13) district attorney, criminal district attorney,
122	122	or county attorney performing the duties of a district attorney
123	123	1,250
124	124	(14) county commissioner, district clerk, county
125	125	clerk, sheriff, county tax assessor-collector, county treasurer,
126	126	or judge, constitutional county court:
127	127	(A) county with a population of 200,000 or more
128	128	1,250
129	129	(B) county with a population of under 200,000
130	130	750
131	131	(15) justice of the peace or constable:
132	132	(A) county with a population of 200,000 or more
133	133	1,000
134	134	(B) county with a population of under 200,000
135	135	375
136	136	(16) county surveyor 75
137	137	(17) member of the board of trustees of an independent
138	138	school district 75
139	139	(18) office of the county government for which this
140	140	schedule does not otherwise prescribe a fee 750
141	141	SECTION 10. Section 172.025, Election Code, is amended to
142	142	read as follows:
143	143	Sec. 172.025. NUMBER OF PETITION SIGNATURES REQUIRED. The
144	144	minimum number of signatures that must appear on the petition
145	145	authorized by Section 172.021(b) is:
146	146	(1) 5,000, for a statewide office; or
147	147	(2) for a district, county, independent school
148	148	district, or precinct office, the lesser of:
149	149	(A) 500; or
150	150	(B) two percent of the total vote received in the
151	151	district, county, school district, or precinct, as applicable, by
152	152	all the candidates for governor in the most recent gubernatorial
153	153	general election, unless that number is under 50, in which case the
154	154	required number of signatures is the lesser of:
155	155	(i) 50; or
156	156	(ii) 20 percent of that total vote.
157	157	SECTION 11. Section 181.002, Election Code, is amended to
158	158	read as follows:
159	159	Sec. 181.002. NOMINATING BY CONVENTION AUTHORIZED. A
160	160	political party may make nominations for the general election for
161	161	state and county officers and members of the board of trustees of an
162	162	independent school district by convention, as provided by this
163	163	chapter, if the party is authorized by Section 172.002 to make
164	164	nominations by primary election.
165	165	SECTION 12. Section 181.003, Election Code, is amended to
166	166	read as follows:
167	167	Sec. 181.003. NOMINATING BY CONVENTION REQUIRED. A
168	168	political party must make nominations for the general election for
169	169	state and county officers and members of the board of trustees of an
170	170	independent school district by convention, as provided by this
171	171	chapter, if the party is not required or authorized to nominate by
172	172	primary election.
173	173	SECTION 13. Section 181.0311(a), Election Code, is amended
174	174	to read as follows:
175	175	(a) In addition to any other requirements, to be considered
176	176	for nomination by convention, a candidate must:
177	177	(1) pay a filing fee to the secretary of state for a
178	178	statewide, [or] district, or school district office or the county
179	179	judge for a county or precinct office; or
180	180	(2) submit to the secretary of state for a statewide,
181	181	[or] district, or school district office or the county judge for a
182	182	county or precinct office a petition in lieu of a filing fee that
183	183	satisfies the requirements prescribed by Subsection (e) and Section
184	184	141.062.
185	185	SECTION 14. Section 181.032(a), Election Code, is amended
186	186	to read as follows:
187	187	(a) An application for nomination by a convention must be
188	188	filed with:
189	189	(1) the state chair, for a statewide, [or] district,
190	190	or school district office; or
191	191	(2) the county chair, for a county or precinct office.
192	192	SECTION 15. Sections 181.061(b) and (c), Election Code, are
193	193	amended to read as follows:
194	194	(b) A party nominating by convention must make its
195	195	nominations for offices of districts and school districts situated
196	196	in more than one county at district conventions held on the second
197	197	Saturday after the second Tuesday in March. A district convention
198	198	consists of delegates selected at the county conventions held under
199	199	Subsection (c).
200	200	(c) A party nominating by convention must make its
201	201	nominations for county and precinct offices and for offices of
202	202	districts and school districts not situated in more than one county
203	203	at county conventions held on the first Saturday after the second
204	204	Tuesday in March. A county convention consists of delegates
205	205	selected at precinct conventions held on the second Tuesday in
206	206	March in the regular county election precincts.
207	207	SECTION 16. Sections 11.054 and 11.065(c), Education Code,
208	208	are repealed.
209	209	SECTION 17. The change in law made by this Act applies only
210	210	to an election ordered on or after the effective date of this Act.
211	211	An election ordered before the effective date of this Act is
212	212	governed by the law in effect when the election was ordered, and the
213	213	former law is continued in effect for that purpose.
214	214	SECTION 18. This Act takes effect September 1, 2025.