By Krusee                                        H.B. No. 665

      75R1581 DAK-D                           

                                A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

 1-1                                   AN ACT

 1-2     relating to the contents of reports of political contributions.

 1-3           BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

 1-4           SECTION 1.  Section 254.031(a), Election Code, is amended to

 1-5     read as follows:

 1-6           (a)  Except as otherwise provided by this chapter, each

 1-7     report filed under this chapter must include:

 1-8                 (1)  the amount of political contributions from each

 1-9     person [that in the aggregate exceed $50 and] that are accepted

1-10     during the reporting period by the person or committee required to

1-11     file a report under this chapter, the full name and address of the

1-12     person making the contributions, and the dates of the

1-13     contributions;

1-14                 (2)  the amount of loans that are made during the

1-15     reporting period for campaign or officeholder purposes to the

1-16     person or committee required to file the report and that in the

1-17     aggregate exceed $50, the dates the loans are made, the interest

1-18     rate, the maturity date, the type of collateral for the loans, if

1-19     any, the full name and address of the person or financial

1-20     institution making the loans, the full name and address, principal

1-21     occupation, and name of the employer of each guarantor of the

1-22     loans, the amount of the loans guaranteed by each guarantor, and

1-23     the aggregate principal amount of all outstanding loans as of the

1-24     last day of the reporting period;

 2-1                 (3)  the amount of political expenditures that in the

 2-2     aggregate exceed $50 and that are made during the reporting period,

 2-3     the full name and address of the persons to whom the expenditures

 2-4     are made, and the dates and purposes of the expenditures;

 2-5                 (4)  the amount of each payment made during the

 2-6     reporting period from a political contribution if the payment is

 2-7     not a political expenditure, the full name and address of the

 2-8     person to whom the payment is made, and the date and purpose of the

 2-9     payment;

2-10                 (5)  [the total amount or a specific listing of the

2-11     political contributions of $50 or less accepted and] the total

2-12     amount or a specific listing of the political expenditures of $50

2-13     or less made during the reporting period;

2-14                 (6)  the total amount of all political contributions

2-15     accepted and the total amount of all political expenditures made

2-16     during the reporting period;  and

2-17                 (7)  the name of each candidate or officeholder who

2-18     benefits from a direct campaign expenditure made during the

2-19     reporting period by the person or committee required to file the

2-20     report, and the office sought or held, excluding a direct campaign

2-21     expenditure that is made by the principal political committee of a

2-22     political party on behalf of a slate of two or more nominees of

2-23     that party.

2-24           SECTION 2.  Sec. 254.0311(b), Election Code, is amended to

2-25     read as follows:

2-26           (b)  A report filed under this section must include:

2-27                 (1)  the amount of contributions from each person,

 3-1     other than a caucus member, [that in the aggregate exceed $50 and]

 3-2     that are  accepted during the reporting period by the legislative

 3-3     caucus, the full name and address of the person making the

 3-4     contributions, and the dates of the contributions;

 3-5                 (2)  the amount of loans that are made during the

 3-6     reporting period to the legislative caucus and that in the

 3-7     aggregate exceed $50, the dates the loans are made, the interest

 3-8     rate, the maturity date, the type of collateral for the loans, if

 3-9     any, the full name and address of the person or financial

3-10     institution making the loans, the full name and address, principal

3-11     occupation, and name of the employer of each guarantor of the

3-12     loans, the amount of the loans guaranteed by each guarantor, and

3-13     the aggregate principal amount of all outstanding loans as of the

3-14     last day of the reporting period;

3-15                 (3)  the amount of expenditures that in the aggregate

3-16     exceed $50 and that are made during the reporting period, the full

3-17     name and address of the persons to whom the expenditures are made,

3-18     and the dates and purposes of the expenditures;

3-19                 (4)  [the total amount or a specific listing of

3-20     contributions of $50 or less accepted from persons other than

3-21     caucus members and] the  total amount or a specific listing of

3-22     expenditures of $50 or less made during the reporting period;  and

3-23                 (5)  the total amount of all contributions accepted,

3-24     including total contributions from caucus members, and the total

3-25     amount of all expenditures made during the reporting period.

3-26           SECTION 3.  Section 254.0611(a), Election Code, is amended to

3-27     read as follows:

 4-1           (a)  In addition to the contents required by Sections 254.031

 4-2     and 254.061, each report by a candidate for a judicial office

 4-3     covered by Subchapter F, Chapter 253, must include:

 4-4                 (1)  the total amount of political contributions,

 4-5     including interest or other income, maintained in one or more

 4-6     accounts in which political contributions are deposited as of the

 4-7     last day of the reporting period;

 4-8                 (2)  for each individual from whom the person filing

 4-9     the report has accepted political contributions [that in the

4-10     aggregate exceed $50 and that are accepted] during the reporting

4-11     period:

4-12                       (A)  the principal occupation and job title of

4-13     the individual and the full name of the employer of the individual

4-14     or of the law firm of which the individual or the individual's

4-15     spouse is a member, if any;  or

4-16                       (B)  if the individual is a child, the full name

4-17     of the law firm of which either of the individual's parents is a

4-18     member, if any;

4-19                 (3)  a specific listing of each asset valued at $500 or

4-20     more that was purchased with political contributions and on hand as

4-21     of the last day of the reporting period;

4-22                 (4)  for each political contribution accepted by the

4-23     person filing the report but not received as of the last day of the

4-24     reporting period:

4-25                       (A)  the full name and address of the person

4-26     making the contribution;

4-27                       (B)  the amount of the contribution;  and

 5-1                       (C)  the date of the contribution;  and

 5-2                 (5)  for each outstanding loan to the person filing the

 5-3     report as of the last day of the reporting period:

 5-4                       (A)  the full name and address of the person or

 5-5     financial institution making the loan; and

 5-6                       (B)  the full name and address of each guarantor

 5-7     of the loan other than the candidate.

 5-8           SECTION 4.  Section 254.151, Election Code, is amended to

 5-9     read as follows:

5-10           Sec. 254.151.  ADDITIONAL CONTENTS OF REPORTS.  In addition

5-11     to the contents required by Section 254.031, each report by a

5-12     campaign treasurer of a general-purpose committee must include:

5-13                 (1)  the committee's full name and address;

5-14                 (2)  the full name, residence or business street

5-15     address, and telephone number of the committee's campaign

5-16     treasurer;

5-17                 (3)  the identity and date of the election for which

5-18     the report is filed, if applicable;

5-19                 (4)  the name of each identified candidate or measure

5-20     or classification by party of candidates supported or opposed by

5-21     the committee, indicating whether the committee supports or opposes

5-22     each listed candidate, measure, or classification by party of

5-23     candidates;

5-24                 (5)  the name of each identified officeholder or

5-25     classification by party of officeholders assisted by the committee;

5-26                 (6)  the principal occupation of each person from whom

5-27     political contributions [that in the aggregate exceed $50] are

 6-1     accepted during the reporting period;

 6-2                 (7)  the amount of each political expenditure in the

 6-3     form of a political contribution made to a candidate, officeholder,

 6-4     or another political committee that is returned to the committee

 6-5     during the reporting period, the name of the person to whom the

 6-6     expenditure was originally made, and the date it is returned;  and

 6-7                 (8)  on a separate page or pages of the report, the

 6-8     identification of any contribution from a corporation or labor

 6-9     organization made and accepted under Subchapter D, Chapter 253.

6-10           SECTION 5.  This Act takes effect January 1, 1998, and

6-11     applies only to a report for a reporting period that begins on or

6-12     after that date.  A report for a reporting period that begins

6-13     before that date is governed by the law applicable to the report

6-14     immediately before the effective date of this Act, and that law is

6-15     continued in effect for that purpose.

6-16           SECTION 6.  The importance of this legislation and the

6-17     crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an

6-18     emergency and an imperative public necessity that the

6-19     constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several

6-20     days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.