1-1 By: Jones of Dallas (Senate Sponsor - Henderson) H.B. No. 654 1-2 (In the Senate - Received from the House April 10, 1995; 1-3 April 11, 1995, read first time and referred to Committee on State 1-4 Affairs; May 8, 1995, rereferred to Committee on Jurisprudence; 1-5 May 9, 1995, reported favorably by the following vote: Yeas 6, 1-6 Nays 0; May 9, 1995, sent to printer.) 1-7 A BILL TO BE ENTITLED 1-8 AN ACT 1-9 relating to permitting a sequestered juror to vote on election day. 1-10 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: 1-11 SECTION 1. Chapter 276, Election Code, is amended by adding 1-12 Section 276.009 to read as follows: 1-13 Sec. 276.009. VOTING BY SEQUESTERED JUROR. (a) The judge 1-14 of a court that has issued an order that a jury not be allowed to 1-15 separate shall permit a juror reasonable time to vote on election 1-16 day. 1-17 (b) The court may provide the juror with a means of 1-18 transportation to and from the appropriate polling place. 1-19 SECTION 2. This Act takes effect September 1, 1995. 1-20 SECTION 3. The importance of this legislation and the 1-21 crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an 1-22 emergency and an imperative public necessity that the 1-23 constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several 1-24 days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended. 1-25 * * * * *