Honorable Matt Shaheen, Chair, House Committee on Elections
FROM:
Jerry McGinty, Director, Legislative Budget Board
IN RE:
HB631 by Swanson (Relating to requirements for certain petitions requesting an election and ballot propositions and to related procedures and provisions.), As Introduced
No significant fiscal implication to the State is anticipated.
Upon petition by a qualified voter in a home-rule city, the Secretary of State (SOS) would be required to review the language of a caption and, in certain cases, be required to draft a modified caption. SOS would also be required to develop a standard petition form for petition-initiated elections.
This analysis assumes that any costs incurred by the Secretary of State in reviewing propositions submitted for review could be absorbed within existing resources.
The Office of Court Administration does not anticipate a significant financial impact to the state court system from this bill.
Local Government Impact
The bill would require local jurisdictions to defend ballot proposition language in response to writs of mandamus related to the wording of ballot propositions. The potential cost to these jurisdictions cannot be determined at this time but could include legal fees to conduct any defense, including successful plaintiff attorney's fees and expenses, and the cost of any new elections ordered by a court in response to the writ.
Source Agencies:
212 Office of Court Administration, Texas Judicial Council, 307 Secretary of State