By: Hirschi H.J.R. No. 85
73R2099 JSA-D
A JOINT RESOLUTION
1-1 proposing a constitutional amendment providing for redistricting by
1-2 the Texas Ethics Commission and relating to the election of members
1-3 of the legislature and to restrictions on members of the Texas
1-4 Ethics Commission.
1-5 BE IT RESOLVED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-6 SECTION 1. Article III, Section 2, of the Texas Constitution
1-7 is amended to read as follows:
1-8 Sec. 2. The Senate shall consist of thirty-one members<, and
1-9 shall never be increased above this number>. The House of
1-10 Representatives shall consist of one hundred and fifty-five
1-11 <ninety-three> members <until the first apportionment after the
1-12 adoption of this Constitution, when or at any apportionment
1-13 thereafter, the number of Representatives may be increased by the
1-14 Legislature, upon the ratio of not more than one Representative for
1-15 every fifteen thousand inhabitants; provided, the number of
1-16 Representatives shall never exceed one hundred and fifty>.
1-17 SECTION 2. Article III, Section 24a, of the Texas
1-18 Constitution is amended by adding Subsection (g) to read as
1-19 follows:
1-20 (g) The legislature by general law may restrict the persons
1-21 eligible to serve as members of the commission.
1-22 SECTION 3. Article III, Sections 25, 26, and 28, of the
1-23 Texas Constitution are amended to read as follows:
1-24 Sec. 25. (a) The State shall be divided into Senatorial
2-1 Districts of contiguous territory <according to the number of
2-2 qualified electors, as nearly as may be>, and each district shall
2-3 be entitled to elect one Senator<; and no single county shall be
2-4 entitled to more than one Senator>.
2-5 (b) Each Senatorial District must contain an equal number of
2-6 whole Representative Districts.
2-7 Sec. 26. The State shall be divided into Representative
2-8 Districts of contiguous territory, and each district shall be
2-9 entitled to elect one Representative <members of the House of
2-10 Representatives shall be apportioned among the several counties,
2-11 according to the number of population in each, as nearly as may be,
2-12 on a ratio obtained by dividing the population of the State, as
2-13 ascertained by the most recent United States census, by the number
2-14 of members of which the House is composed; provided, that whenever
2-15 a single county has sufficient population to be entitled to a
2-16 Representative, such county shall be formed into a separate
2-17 Representative District, and when two or more counties are required
2-18 to make up the ratio of representation, such counties shall be
2-19 contiguous to each other; and when any one county has more than
2-20 sufficient population to be entitled to one or more
2-21 Representatives, such Representative or Representatives shall be
2-22 apportioned to such county, and for any surplus of population it
2-23 may be joined in a Representative District with any other
2-24 contiguous county or counties>.
2-25 Sec. 28. (a) The Texas Ethics Commission <Legislature>
2-26 shall, <at its first regular session> after the publication of each
2-27 United States decennial census, apportion the state into senatorial
3-1 and representative districts, districts for members of the United
3-2 States House of Representatives, and districts for any other board,
3-3 commission, court, or other body elected statewide from districts
3-4 <agreeable to the provisions of Sections 25, 26, and 26-a of this
3-5 Article>. The commission may change those districts at other times
3-6 as provided by general law.
3-7 (b) The legislature has no authority to reapportion or
3-8 otherwise change the districts of any body for which the Texas
3-9 Ethics Commission has redistricting authority. The legislature by
3-10 general law may establish standards, procedures, and other
3-11 requirements governing redistricting by the commission. The
3-12 legislature by general law may prohibit a member or former member
3-13 of the commission from becoming a candidate under a redistricting
3-14 plan considered or adopted by the commission during the person's
3-15 service on the commission.
3-16 (c) The legislature by general law may provide for automatic
3-17 judicial review of a redistricting plan or change adopted by the
3-18 commission and may provide for original jurisdiction of that review
3-19 in the Supreme Court of Texas. The legislature may provide that
3-20 automatic judicial review of a redistricting plan precludes other
3-21 judicial review of the plan. The legislature may prescribe the
3-22 procedures for judicial review under this subsection. <In the
3-23 event the Legislature shall at any such first regular session
3-24 following the publication of a United States decennial census, fail
3-25 to make such apportionment, same shall be done by the Legislative
3-26 Redistricting Board of Texas, which is hereby created, and shall be
3-27 composed of five (5) members, as follows: The Lieutenant Governor,
4-1 the Speaker of the House of Representatives, the Attorney General,
4-2 the Comptroller of Public Accounts and the Commissioner of the
4-3 General Land Office, a majority of whom shall constitute a quorum.
4-4 Said Board shall assemble in the City of Austin within ninety (90)
4-5 days after the final adjournment of such regular session. The
4-6 Board shall, within sixty (60) days after assembling, apportion the
4-7 state into senatorial and representative districts, or into
4-8 senatorial or representative districts, as the failure of action of
4-9 such Legislature may make necessary. Such apportionment shall be
4-10 in writing and signed by three (3) or more of the members of the
4-11 Board duly acknowledged as the act and deed of such Board, and,
4-12 when so executed and filed with the Secretary of State, shall have
4-13 force and effect of law. Such apportionment shall become effective
4-14 at the next succeeding statewide general election. The Supreme
4-15 Court of Texas shall have jurisdiction to compel such Commission to
4-16 perform its duties in accordance with the provisions of this
4-17 section by writ of mandamus or other extraordinary writs
4-18 conformable to the usages of law. The Legislature shall provide
4-19 necessary funds for clerical and technical aid and for other
4-20 expenses incidental to the work of the Board, and the Lieutenant
4-21 Governor and the Speaker of the House of Representatives shall be
4-22 entitled to receive per diem and travel expense during the Board's
4-23 session in the same manner and amount as they would receive while
4-24 attending a special session of the Legislature. This amendment
4-25 shall become effective January 1, 1951.>
4-26 SECTION 4. Article III, Section 26a, of the Texas
4-27 Constitution is repealed.
5-1 SECTION 5. This proposed constitutional amendment shall be
5-2 submitted to the voters at an election to be held November 2, 1993.
5-3 The ballot shall be printed to provide for voting for or against
5-4 the following proposition: "The constitutional amendment to
5-5 provide for redistricting by the Texas Ethics Commission, providing
5-6 for automatic judicial review of redistricting plans, increasing
5-7 the number of Texas House of Representative districts to 155,
5-8 requiring each district of the Texas House of Representatives to be
5-9 included wholly within a Texas Senate district, and authorizing
5-10 certain restrictions on members of the Texas Ethics Commission."