SRC-MAX S.B. 130 75(R)    BILL ANALYSIS


Senate Research CenterS.B. 130
By: West
State Affairs
3-13-97
As Filed


DIGEST 

Currently, the county clerk recommends to the commissioners court a
presiding judge and alternate presiding judge for each precinct and
submits the list to the commissioners court for approval.  The
commissioners court is not required to appoint precinct judges from the
list submitted by the county clerk.   

Precinct election judges appointed by the commissioners court usually
represent the two majority political parties in the county.  Recently,
some commissioners courts have changed the traditional bipartisan
appointment method to a method of appointment representing the majority
political party of the court only.  

S.B. 130 provides procedural changes which affect the way election judges
are recommended and appointed.  This bill also provides requirements for
election judges that include party affiliation and other conditions for
appointment.    
             
PURPOSE

As proposed, S.B. 130 provides procedural specifications for the
recommendation and appointment of election judges for county election
precincts. 

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

This bill does not grant any additional rulemaking authority to a state
officer, institution, or agency. 

SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS

SECTION 1. Amends Section 32.002, Election Code, to amend Subsections (c)
and (d) and adding Subsection (f), as follows: 

(c)  Requires the presiding judge and alternate presiding judge to be
affiliated or aligned with different political parties.  Requires the
county chair of a political party whose candidate for governor received
the highest or second highest number of votes in the county in the most
recent gubernatorial general election to submit to the commissioners court
in writing the name of a each eligible person for each precinct for
appointment as an election judge before July of each year.  Requires the
commissioners court to appoint the person whose name is submitted by the
party with the highest number of votes in the precinct as the presiding
judge and the person whose name is submitted by the party with the second
highest number of votes in the precinct as the alternate presiding judge.
Requires the commissioners court to appoint an eligible person if a name
is not submitted in compliance with this subsection. 

(d)  Requires the county chair of the same political party with which the
original judge was affiliated or aligned to submit to the commissioners
court in writing the name of a person who is eligible for the appointment
no later than the 30th day after the date the vacancy occurs.  Requires
the commissioners court to appoint the person to an unexpired term.
Requires the commissioners court to appoint an eligible person who is
affiliated or aligned with the same party if a name is not submitted.
Deletes existing Subsection (d), regarding requirements for the county
clerk. 

 (f)  Requires submissions and appointments made under this section to
fairly reflect the ethnic and racial composition of the population of the
election precinct according to the most recent federal decennial census.   

SECTION 2. Amends Section 32.007, Election Code, to amend Subsections (a)
and (b) to make conforming changes and add Subsection (f), as follows:  

(f)  Requires a person who is appointed as a replacement for a judge
originally appointed under Section 32.002 to be affiliated or aligned with
the same political party as was the original judge, if possible. 
 
SECTION 3. Effective date:  September 1, 1997.

SECTION 4. Emergency clause.