1-1 By: Black, et al. (Senate Sponsor - Brown) H.B. No. 2
1-2 (In the Senate - Received from the House March 8, 1995;
1-3 March 9, 1995, read first time and referred to Committee on State
1-4 Affairs; April 11, 1995, reported favorably by the following vote:
1-5 Yeas 13, Nays 0; April 11, 1995, sent to printer.)
1-6 A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
1-7 AN ACT
1-8 relating to restrictions on contributions to legislative caucuses
1-9 during regular sessions of the legislature and to reporting
1-10 requirements concerning caucus contributions and expenditures;
1-11 providing penalties.
1-12 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-13 SECTION 1. Subchapter B, Chapter 253, Election Code, is
1-14 amended by adding Section 253.0341 to read as follows:
1-15 Sec. 253.0341. RESTRICTIONS ON CONTRIBUTIONS TO LEGISLATIVE
1-16 CAUCUSES DURING REGULAR LEGISLATIVE SESSION. (a) During the
1-17 period beginning on the 30th day before the date a regular
1-18 legislative session convenes and continuing through the day of
1-19 final adjournment, a person not a member of the caucus may not
1-20 knowingly make a contribution to a legislative caucus.
1-21 (b) A legislative caucus may not knowingly accept from a
1-22 nonmember a contribution, and shall refuse a contribution from a
1-23 nonmember that is received, during the period prescribed by
1-24 Subsection (a). A contribution that is received and refused during
1-25 that period shall be returned to the contributor not later than the
1-26 30th day after the date of receipt. A contribution made by mail is
1-27 not considered received during that period if it was placed with
1-28 postage prepaid and properly addressed in the United States mail
1-29 before the beginning of the period. The date indicated by the post
1-30 office cancellation mark is considered to be the date the
1-31 contribution was placed in the mail unless proven otherwise.
1-32 (c) A person who violates this section commits an offense.
1-33 An offense under this section is a Class A misdemeanor.
1-34 (d) A person who knowingly makes or accepts a contribution
1-35 in violation of this section is liable for damages to the state in
1-36 the amount of triple the value of the unlawful contribution.
1-37 (e) In this section, "legislative caucus" means an
1-38 organization that is composed exclusively of members of the
1-39 legislature, that elects or appoints officers and recognizes
1-40 identified legislators as members of the organization, and that
1-41 exists for research and other support of policy development and
1-42 interests that the membership hold in common. An organization
1-43 whose only nonlegislator members are the lieutenant governor or the
1-44 governor remains a "legislative caucus" for purposes of this
1-45 section.
1-46 SECTION 2. Subchapter B, Chapter 254, Election Code, is
1-47 amended by adding Section 254.0311 to read as follows:
1-48 Sec. 254.0311. REPORT BY LEGISLATIVE CAUCUS. (a) A
1-49 legislative caucus shall file a report of contributions and
1-50 expenditures as required by this section.
1-51 (b) A report filed under this section must include:
1-52 (1) the amount of contributions from each person,
1-53 other than a caucus member, that in the aggregate exceed $50 and
1-54 that are accepted during the reporting period by the legislative
1-55 caucus, the full name and address of the person making the
1-56 contributions, and the dates of the contributions;
1-57 (2) the amount of loans that are made during the
1-58 reporting period to the legislative caucus and that in the
1-59 aggregate exceed $50, the dates the loans are made, the interest
1-60 rate, the maturity date, the type of collateral for the loans, if
1-61 any, the full name and address of the person or financial
1-62 institution making the loans, the full name and address, principal
1-63 occupation, and name of the employer of each guarantor of the
1-64 loans, the amount of the loans guaranteed by each guarantor, and
1-65 the aggregate principal amount of all outstanding loans as of the
1-66 last day of the reporting period;
1-67 (3) the amount of expenditures that in the aggregate
1-68 exceed $50 and that are made during the reporting period, the full
2-1 name and address of the persons to whom the expenditures are made,
2-2 and the dates and purposes of the expenditures;
2-3 (4) the total amount or a specific listing of
2-4 contributions of $50 or less accepted from persons other than
2-5 caucus members and the total amount or a specific listing of
2-6 expenditures of $50 or less made during the reporting period; and
2-7 (5) the total amount of all contributions accepted,
2-8 including total contributions from caucus members, and the total
2-9 amount of all expenditures made during the reporting period.
2-10 (c) If no reportable activity occurs during a reporting
2-11 period, the legislative caucus shall indicate that fact in the
2-12 report.
2-13 (d) A legislative caucus shall file with the commission two
2-14 reports for each year.
2-15 (e) The first report shall be filed not later than July 15.
2-16 The report covers the period beginning January 1 or the day the
2-17 legislative caucus is organized, as applicable, and continuing
2-18 through June 30.
2-19 (f) The second report shall be filed not later than January
2-20 15. The report covers the period beginning July 1 or the day the
2-21 legislative caucus is organized, as applicable, and continuing
2-22 through December 31.
2-23 (g) A legislative caucus shall maintain a record of all
2-24 reportable activity under this section and shall preserve the
2-25 record for at least two years beginning on the filing deadline for
2-26 the report containing the information in the record.
2-27 (h) In this section, "legislative caucus" has the meaning
2-28 assigned by Section 253.0341.
2-29 SECTION 3. Section 254.036, Election Code, is amended by
2-30 adding Subsection (d) to read as follows:
2-31 (d) The commission shall prescribe forms for purposes of
2-32 legislative caucus reports under Section 254.0311 that are separate
2-33 and distinct from forms for other reports under this chapter.
2-34 SECTION 4. Subchapter A, Chapter 251, Election Code, is
2-35 amended by adding Section 251.009 to read as follows:
2-36 Sec. 251.009. LEGISLATIVE CAUCUS CONTRIBUTION OR EXPENDITURE
2-37 NOT CONSIDERED TO BE OFFICEHOLDER CONTRIBUTION OR EXPENDITURE. A
2-38 contribution to or expenditure by a legislative caucus, as defined
2-39 by Section 253.0341, is not considered to be an officeholder
2-40 contribution or officeholder expenditure for purposes of this
2-41 title.
2-42 SECTION 5. The importance of this legislation and the
2-43 crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
2-44 emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
2-45 constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
2-46 days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended,
2-47 and that this Act take effect and be in force from and after its
2-48 passage, and it is so enacted.
2-49 * * * * *