BILL ANALYSIS C.S.H.B. 2243 By: Danburg April 21, 1995 Committee Report (Substituted) BACKGROUND HB 2243 is an omnibus bill that incorporates the non-controversial legislation relating to election precincts and polling places. The bill is a combination of portions of HB 540 (Danburg), HB 1096 (Madden), HB 583 (Madden), HB 260 (Madden), HB 258 (Madden), and HB 271 (Denny). The bill addresses many perceived problems with the polling places and precincts as they are currently arranged. Current law allows for the combination of adjoining election precincts in order to save cost as long as the election precincts do not have more than 500 registered voters. The combined election precincts must contain a number of registered voters less than a certain number of registered voters that is determined by the size of the county. Large urban counties must have precincts with no more than 3,000 registered voters, while small rural counties may create precincts with up to 5,000 registered voters. The combination of precincts has allowed several election precincts that are not endowed with polling places to combine with those that do have them. There are still precincts that do not have convenient polling places, however, and because they have more than 500 registered voters they are not allowed to combine with adjoining precincts that do have convenient polling places. Harris County Election Precinct 763 for instance, consists of only single family homes. No available public building exists for a polling place inside the boundaries of Election Precinct 763. Citizens from Harris County Election Precinct 763 voted in a single car garage owned by a resident who lives in Precinct 763 during the 1994 elections. There is, however, a church facility outside, but adjacent to the boundaries of Election Precinct 763 that is better suited to serve as a polling place. There is a prohibition against electioneering within a defined perimeter of the polling place, yet there have been instances where a candidate has been loitering around inside the polling place for purposes other than voting which could be construed to be electioneering. During a previous legislature, a bill was passed that, by 1994, required all counties with a population between 100,000 and 400,000 to establish an early voting polling place in each commissioners court precinct in addition to a main early voting polling place if it contained such already. This is a state mandate that requires the costs to be picked up by the local government. Some of the counties, particularly those with one central community, believe this is an unnecessary expense. The provision of a limited ballot has certain drawbacks, particularly if ballots must be supplied to everyone casting a ballot who is eligible to request it. Currently only Harris County is allowed the time and cost saving afforded by requiring anyone requesting a limited ballot during early voting to do so at the main early voting polling place only. Voting a limited ballot is seldom done and is confusing owing to the rarity of its use. It would serve both election officials and the electorate best if the voter requesting a limited ballot were instructed to do so at the main early voting polling place in each and every county. Texas currently holds separate primaries for Democrats and Republicans. The county executive committee in each county is responsible for the conduct of a primary election. It is then the county chair who conduct the primary elections. However, not all counties in the state have both Republican and Democrat primaries. When a joint election occurs but no familiar common polling place is used, a voter may become confused and often is inconvenienced by such a discourtesy. The way to end such an avoidable scenario is to have the regular county polling place in joint elections when nothing would prohibit its use. PURPOSE HB 2243 will allow those counties with a population greater than 250,000 people to combine precincts when the resulting precinct does not have more than 750 registered voters. HB 2243 would prohibit a candidate from being present at the polls at any time for any reason other than voting by personal appearance or official business that happens to be in the building that is also the polling place. It also attaches a criminal penalty of a class C misdemeanor to such an offense. HB 2243 is intended to allow smaller counties where a central community is the hub of activity to best determine their own early voting needs, though nothing would prohibit a county from setting up early voting sites in every county commissioners precinct if it so desired. HB 2243 would specify that a person could vote a limited ballot by personal appearance only at the main early voting polling place. HB 2243 would allow precincts to hold primary elections in the same building. This bill would minimize the cost of conducting primary elections to the state. Further, whereas not all counties have both Republican and Democrat primaries, this bill would allow voters the availability of both Democrat and Republican primaries in the counties that desired them by holding them jointly under the supervision of those most knowledgeable about elections, the county clerks. HB 2243 would allow regular county polling places to be used for the common polling places in a joint election. RULEMAKING AUTHORITY It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly grant any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, department, agency or institution. SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS SECTION 1. Amends Section 42.0051, Election Code, by adding 42.0051 (b) which allows county election precincts in counties with populations of 250,000 or more to combine if the resulting precinct is greater than 500 and less than 750 registered voters. SECTION 2. Amends Section 61.001, Election Code, by adding a provision for the unlawful presence of a candidate which makes it illegal for a candidate to be in a polling place for purposes other than voting or official business in the building in which the polling place is located. The penalty for this offense is class C misdemeanor. SECTION 3. Amends Subchapter B, Chapter 85, Election Code, by adding Section 85.037 which makes Section 61.001, BYSTANDERS EXCLUDED; UNLAWFUL PRESENCE OF CANDIDATE applicable to early voting. SECTION 4. Amends Section 85062 (d), Election Code, by striking 100,000 and substituting in its place 150,000 as the baseline population in a spectrum that rises to 400,000 where the county must establish one or more early voting polling places other than the main early voting polling place in each commissioners precinct containing territory covered by the election. The section also provides that in counties with a population of 100,000 or more and less than 150,000, shall establish an early voting polling place in a particular precinct if 15 registered voters of that precinct submit a written request. SECTION 5. Amends Section 112.006, Election Code, by striking subsection (a) and altering subsection (b) so that limited ballots may only be voted by personal appearance at the main early voting polling place. SECTION 6. Amends Section 161.006, Election Code, which prohibits holding primary or the precinct convention of more than one party in the same building to allow primary to allow primary elections to be held jointly. SECTION 7. Amends Section 172.1111, Election Code, by dividing the section into subsections (a) adding the requirement to post at each outside door and in bold print the information about the precinct convention; (b); and (c) to prescribe the times the posting notice of precinct conventions are required to be posted. SECTION 8. Amends Section 271.003, Election Code, by adding a subsection that allows a regular county polling place to be used for each common polling place in a joint election. SECTION 9. Effective date. SECTION 10. Emergency clause. COMPARISON OF ORIGINAL TO SUBSTITUTE The original bill was merely a shell bill, a broad caption with no substantive legislation. The substitute contains portions of HB 540 (Danburg) found in SECTION 1 of the substitute, HB 1096 (Madden) found in SECTION 2 and 3 of the substitute, HB 583 (Madden) found in SECTION 4 of the substitute, HB 260 (Madden) found in , HB 258 (Madden), and HB 271 (Denny). SUMMARY OF COMMITTEE ACTION HB 2243 was considered by the Committee on elections in a public hearing on March 22, 1995. The Committee considered a complete substitute for the bill. The bill was left pending. HB 2243 was considered by the Committee in a public hearing on March 29, 1995. The Committee considered a complete substitute for the bill. Two amendments were offered to the substitute. Two of those amendments were adopted without objection. The substitute as amended was adopted without objection. The Chair directed the staff to incorporate the amendments into the substitute. The bill was reported favorably as substituted to the full committee by a record vote of 8 AYES, 1 NAY, 0 PNV, 0 ABSENT.