By Brady H.B. No. 2393
74R6515 ESH-D
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
1-1 AN ACT
1-2 relating to limits on political contributions and political
1-3 expenditures and to certain political advertising; providing civil
1-4 and criminal penalties.
1-5 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-6 SECTION 1. Chapter 253, Election Code, is amended by adding
1-7 Subchapter F to read as follows:
1-8 SUBCHAPTER F. CONTRIBUTION AND EXPENDITURE LIMITS
1-9 Sec. 253.151. DEFINITIONS. In this subchapter:
1-10 (1) "Complying candidate" or "complying officeholder"
1-11 means a candidate who files a declaration of compliance under
1-12 Section 253.156.
1-13 (2) "In connection with an election" means:
1-14 (A) with regard to a contribution that is
1-15 designated in writing for a particular election, the election
1-16 designated; or
1-17 (B) with regard to a contribution that is not
1-18 designated in writing for a particular election or that is
1-19 designated as an officeholder contribution, the next election for
1-20 that office occurring after the contribution is made.
1-21 (3) "Noncomplying candidate" means a candidate who
1-22 does not file a declaration of compliance under Section 253.156.
1-23 (4) "Related committee" means:
1-24 (A) with regard to an officeholder, a
2-1 specific-purpose committee for assisting the officeholder; and
2-2 (B) with regard to a candidate, a
2-3 specific-purpose committee for supporting the candidate or opposing
2-4 the candidate's opponent.
2-5 Sec. 253.152. LIMIT ON CONTRIBUTIONS BY INDIVIDUAL OR
2-6 GENERAL-PURPOSE COMMITTEE. (a) An individual may not knowingly
2-7 make or authorize political contributions that in the aggregate
2-8 exceed $1,000 to:
2-9 (1) an officeholder;
2-10 (2) a candidate;
2-11 (3) a specific-purpose committee for:
2-12 (A) assisting an officeholder; or
2-13 (B) supporting or opposing a candidate;
2-14 (4) a combination of an officeholder and a related
2-15 committee;
2-16 (5) a combination of a candidate and a related
2-17 committee; or
2-18 (6) a combination of related committees for:
2-19 (A) assisting an officeholder; or
2-20 (B) supporting or opposing a candidate.
2-21 (b) A general-purpose committee may not knowingly make or
2-22 authorize political contributions that in the aggregate exceed
2-23 $5,000 to:
2-24 (1) an officeholder;
2-25 (2) a candidate;
2-26 (3) a specific-purpose committee for:
2-27 (A) assisting an officeholder; or
3-1 (B) supporting or opposing a candidate;
3-2 (4) a combination of an officeholder and a related
3-3 committee;
3-4 (5) a combination of a candidate and a related
3-5 committee; or
3-6 (6) a combination of related committees for:
3-7 (A) assisting an officeholder; or
3-8 (B) supporting or opposing a candidate.
3-9 (c) The limits prescribed by Subsections (a) and (b) apply
3-10 in connection with each election in which the candidate or
3-11 officeholder is involved.
3-12 (d) A person may not knowingly accept political
3-13 contributions made or authorized in violation of this section.
3-14 (e) A candidate or officeholder who has accepted a political
3-15 contribution from an individual or a general-purpose committee
3-16 that, when aggregated with political contributions accepted from
3-17 the individual or general-purpose committee by a related committee,
3-18 exceeds the limit provided by Subsection (a) or (b), shall, not
3-19 later than the 30th day after the date the candidate or
3-20 officeholder receives notice of acceptance of a contribution by a
3-21 related committee on behalf of the candidate or officeholder under
3-22 Section 254.1281, return to the individual or general-purpose
3-23 committee the lesser of:
3-24 (1) the amount by which the contributions accepted by
3-25 the candidate or officeholder and the related committee exceed the
3-26 limit prescribed by Subsection (a) or (b); or
3-27 (2) the total amount of contributions accepted from
4-1 the individual or general-purpose committee by the candidate or
4-2 officeholder.
4-3 (f) A person who violates this section commits an offense.
4-4 An offense under this section is a Class B misdemeanor.
4-5 Sec. 253.153. DIRECT CAMPAIGN EXPENDITURE BY INDIVIDUAL OR
4-6 GENERAL-PURPOSE COMMITTEE. (a) For purposes of Section 253.152, a
4-7 direct campaign expenditure is considered to be a campaign
4-8 contribution to a candidate if it is made by an individual or a
4-9 general-purpose committee with the cooperation or prior consent of,
4-10 in consultation with, or at the suggestion of:
4-11 (1) the candidate;
4-12 (2) a specific-purpose committee for supporting the
4-13 candidate or opposing the candidate's opponent; or
4-14 (3) a person acting with the candidate's knowledge and
4-15 consent.
4-16 (b) An individual who makes a direct campaign expenditure
4-17 covered by Subsection (a) shall give notice of that fact to the
4-18 affected candidate or officeholder as provided by Section 254.128
4-19 for a specific-purpose committee and shall include the amount of
4-20 the direct campaign expenditure in the notice.
4-21 (c) A general-purpose committee that makes a direct campaign
4-22 expenditure covered by Subsection (a) shall include the amount of
4-23 the direct campaign expenditure in the notice required by Section
4-24 254.161.
4-25 Sec. 253.154. LIMIT ON CONTRIBUTIONS BY INDIVIDUAL TO
4-26 CERTAIN COMMITTEES. (a) An individual may not knowingly make or
4-27 authorize political contributions in a calendar year that in the
5-1 aggregate exceed $5,000 to:
5-2 (1) a specific-purpose committee for supporting or
5-3 opposing a measure; or
5-4 (2) a general-purpose committee.
5-5 (b) A political committee may not knowingly accept political
5-6 contributions in violation of Subsection (a).
5-7 (c) An individual who violates this section commits an
5-8 offense. An offense under this section is a Class B misdemeanor.
5-9 Sec. 253.155. ANNUAL LIMIT ON TOTAL CONTRIBUTIONS BY
5-10 INDIVIDUAL. (a) Subject to the limits prescribed by Sections
5-11 253.152 and 253.154, an individual may not knowingly make or
5-12 authorize political contributions in a calendar year that in the
5-13 aggregate exceed $25,000.
5-14 (b) For purposes of this section, a campaign contribution
5-15 made to a candidate or to a specific-purpose committee for
5-16 supporting or opposing a candidate in a year other than the year in
5-17 which the election in connection with which the contribution is
5-18 made occurs is considered to be made in the year in which the
5-19 election occurs.
5-20 (c) An individual who violates this section commits an
5-21 offense. An offense under this section is a Class B misdemeanor.
5-22 Sec. 253.156. VOLUNTARY COMPLIANCE BY CERTAIN CANDIDATES.
5-23 (a) A candidate may voluntarily comply with the limits on
5-24 expenditures prescribed by Section 253.158 by filing a sworn
5-25 declaration of compliance with the commission when the person
5-26 becomes a candidate.
5-27 (b) The declaration of compliance must state that the
6-1 person:
6-2 (1) voluntarily agrees to comply with the limits on
6-3 expenditures; and
6-4 (2) is aware of the civil penalty under Section
6-5 253.159 for a violation of those limits.
6-6 (c) The limits on contributions prescribed by this
6-7 subchapter apply to complying and noncomplying candidates.
6-8 Sec. 253.157. EFFECT OF NONCOMPLYING CANDIDATE. (a) A
6-9 complying candidate or a specific-purpose committee for supporting
6-10 or opposing a complying candidate is not required to comply with
6-11 the limits on expenditures prescribed by Section 253.158 if another
6-12 person becomes a candidate for the same office and does not file
6-13 the declaration of compliance.
6-14 (b) The commission shall issue an order suspending the
6-15 limits on expenditures for a specific office not later than the
6-16 10th day after the date the commission determines a person has
6-17 become a candidate for that office and has not filed the
6-18 declaration of compliance authorized by Section 253.156.
6-19 Sec. 253.158. EXPENDITURE LIMITS FOR CERTAIN OFFICES. (a)
6-20 Not later than November 1 of each year, the commission shall adopt
6-21 political expenditure limits as provided by this section. A limit
6-22 applies to each election occurring in the calendar year following
6-23 the year in which the limit is adopted.
6-24 (b) The commission shall adopt limits for elections to the
6-25 following offices:
6-26 (1) a statewide office;
6-27 (2) state senator;
7-1 (3) state representative;
7-2 (4) member, State Board of Education;
7-3 (5) chief justice or justice, court of appeals;
7-4 (6) district judge; and
7-5 (7) judge, statutory county court or statutory probate
7-6 court.
7-7 (c) For each election in which the candidate is involved, a
7-8 complying candidate may not knowingly make or authorize political
7-9 expenditures that in the aggregate exceed the limit adopted by the
7-10 commission.
7-11 Sec. 253.159. CIVIL PENALTY FOR VIOLATING EXPENDITURE LIMIT.
7-12 (a) A complying candidate who violates Section 253.158 is civilly
7-13 liable to the state in an amount equal to:
7-14 (1) 50 percent of the amount by which the candidate
7-15 exceeded the limit to the extent that the candidate exceeded the
7-16 limit by five percent or less; and
7-17 (2) 100 percent of the amount by which the candidate
7-18 exceeded the limit to the extent that the candidate exceeded the
7-19 limit by more than five percent.
7-20 (b) The commission shall notify a person who violates
7-21 Section 253.158 by registered mail. A penalty under this section
7-22 is due on the later of the 30th day after the date:
7-23 (1) of the general election for the office the person
7-24 sought; or
7-25 (2) the commission notifies the person of the penalty.
7-26 (c) If a person subject to a civil penalty under this
7-27 section does not voluntarily pay the penalty, the commission shall
8-1 direct the attorney general to file suit to collect the penalty.
8-2 If the person was a candidate for attorney general, the commission
8-3 shall direct the district attorney for the 53rd Judicial District
8-4 to file suit to collect the penalty.
8-5 Sec. 253.160. EXPENDITURE BY CERTAIN COMMITTEES CONSIDERED
8-6 EXPENDITURE BY CANDIDATE. For purposes of Section 253.158, an
8-7 expenditure by a specific-purpose committee for the purpose of
8-8 supporting a candidate, opposing the candidate's opponent, or
8-9 assisting the candidate as an officeholder is considered to be an
8-10 expenditure by the candidate unless the candidate, after proper
8-11 notification of proposed expenditures by the specific-purpose
8-12 committee states in an affidavit filed with the commission that the
8-13 candidate has not directly or indirectly communicated with the
8-14 committee in regard to a strategic matter, including polling data,
8-15 advertising, campaign speeches, or voter demographics, in
8-16 connection with the candidate's campaign.
8-17 SECTION 2. Section 254.061, Election Code, is amended to
8-18 read as follows:
8-19 Sec. 254.061. ADDITIONAL CONTENTS OF REPORTS. In addition
8-20 to the contents required by Section 254.031, each report by a
8-21 candidate must include:
8-22 (1) the candidate's full name and address, the office
8-23 sought, and the identity and date of the election for which the
8-24 report is filed;
8-25 (2) the campaign treasurer's name, residence or
8-26 business street address, and telephone number;
8-27 (3) for each political committee from which the
9-1 candidate received notice under Section 254.128 or 254.161:
9-2 (A) the committee's full name and address;
9-3 (B) an indication of whether the committee is a
9-4 general-purpose committee or a specific-purpose committee; and
9-5 (C) the full name and address of the committee's
9-6 campaign treasurer;
9-7 (4) the full name and address of each individual
9-8 acting as a campaign treasurer of a political committee under
9-9 Section 253.062 from whom the candidate received notice under
9-10 Section 254.128 or 254.161; <and>
9-11 (5) on a separate page or pages of the report, the
9-12 identification of any payment from political contributions made to
9-13 a business in which the candidate has a participating interest of
9-14 more than 10 percent, holds a position on the governing body of the
9-15 business, or serves as an officer of the business; and
9-16 (6) the amount of political contributions from each
9-17 individual or general-purpose committee of which the candidate has
9-18 received notice under Section 254.1281, the full name and address
9-19 of the individual or general-purpose committee making the
9-20 contributions and the specific-purpose committee accepting the
9-21 contributions, and the dates of the contributions.
9-22 SECTION 3. Section 254.091, Election Code, is amended to
9-23 read as follows:
9-24 Sec. 254.091. ADDITIONAL CONTENTS OF REPORTS. In addition
9-25 to the contents required by Section 254.031, each report by an
9-26 officeholder must include:
9-27 (1) the officeholder's full name and address and the
10-1 office held;
10-2 (2) for each political committee from which the
10-3 officeholder received notice under Section 254.128 or 254.161:
10-4 (A) the committee's full name and address;
10-5 (B) an indication of whether the committee is a
10-6 general-purpose committee or a specific-purpose committee; and
10-7 (C) the full name and address of the committee's
10-8 campaign treasurer; <and>
10-9 (3) on a separate page or pages of the report, the
10-10 identification of any payment from political contributions made to
10-11 a business in which the officeholder has a participating interest
10-12 of more than 10 percent, holds a position on the governing body of
10-13 the business, or serves as an officer of the business; and
10-14 (4) the amount of political contributions from each
10-15 individual or general-purpose committee of which the officeholder
10-16 has received notice under Section 254.1281, the full name and
10-17 address of the individual or general-purpose committee making the
10-18 contributions and the specific-purpose committee accepting the
10-19 contributions, and the dates of the contributions.
10-20 SECTION 4. Section 254.128(a), Election Code, is amended to
10-21 read as follows:
10-22 (a) Except as provided by Section 254.1281, if <If> a
10-23 specific-purpose committee accepts political contributions or makes
10-24 political expenditures for a candidate or officeholder, the
10-25 committee's campaign treasurer shall deliver written notice of that
10-26 fact to the affected candidate or officeholder not later than the
10-27 end of the period covered by the report in which the reportable
11-1 activity occurs.
11-2 SECTION 5. Subchapter E, Chapter 254, Election Code, is
11-3 amended by adding Section 254.1281 to read as follows:
11-4 Sec. 254.1281. NOTICE TO CANDIDATE OR OFFICEHOLDER OF
11-5 CONTRIBUTIONS FROM INDIVIDUAL OR GENERAL-PURPOSE COMMITTEE.
11-6 (a) If a specific-purpose committee accepts political
11-7 contributions from an individual or general-purpose committee for a
11-8 candidate or officeholder, the specific-purpose committee's
11-9 campaign treasurer shall deliver written notice of that fact to the
11-10 affected candidate or officeholder not later than the third day
11-11 after the date the specific-purpose committee accepts the
11-12 contribution.
11-13 (b) The notice must include:
11-14 (1) the full name and address of the individual making
11-15 the contribution or of the general-purpose committee making the
11-16 contribution and its campaign treasurer and an indication that the
11-17 committee is a general-purpose committee;
11-18 (2) the full name and address of the specific-purpose
11-19 committee and its campaign treasurer and an indication that the
11-20 committee is a specific-purpose committee; and
11-21 (3) the amount and date of the contribution.
11-22 (c) A specific-purpose committee that notifies a candidate
11-23 or officeholder of a contribution under this section does not need
11-24 to deliver a separate notice of the contribution under Section
11-25 254.128.
11-26 (d) A campaign treasurer who fails to comply with this
11-27 section commits an offense. An offense under this section is a
12-1 Class B misdemeanor.
12-2 SECTION 6. Chapter 255, Election Code, is amended by adding
12-3 Section 255.008 to read as follows:
12-4 Sec. 255.008. DISCLOSURE ON POLITICAL ADVERTISING BY CERTAIN
12-5 CANDIDATES AND COMMITTEES. (a) This section applies only to a
12-6 candidate for an office for which limits on expenditures are
12-7 adopted under Section 253.158.
12-8 (b) Political advertising by a candidate who does not file a
12-9 declaration of intent to comply with the limits on expenditures or
12-10 a specific-purpose committee for supporting such a candidate must
12-11 include the following statement: "Political advertising paid for
12-12 by (name of candidate or committee), (who or which) has rejected
12-13 the voluntary limits on campaign spending set by the Texas Ethics
12-14 Commission under the Election Code."
12-15 (c) A person who violates this section commits an offense.
12-16 An offense under this section is a Class A misdemeanor.
12-17 SECTION 7. This Act takes effect September 1, 1995, and
12-18 applies only to a political contribution made or accepted, or a
12-19 political expenditure made, on or after that date. A political
12-20 contribution made or accepted, or a political expenditure made,
12-21 before that date is not aggregated with political contributions
12-22 made or accepted, or political expenditures made, on or after that
12-23 date for purposes of Subchapter F, Chapter 253, Election Code, as
12-24 added by this Act.
12-25 SECTION 8. The importance of this legislation and the
12-26 crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
12-27 emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
13-1 constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
13-2 days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.