75R11341 GGS-D
By Danburg, Denny, Jones of Dallas, Gallego, H.B. No. 1483
Madden, et al.
Substitute the following for H.B. No. 1483:
By Denny C.S.H.B. No. 1483
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
1-1 AN ACT
1-2 relating to certain early voting processes and procedures;
1-3 providing a criminal penalty.
1-4 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-5 SECTION 1. Chapter 81, Election Code, is amended by adding
1-6 Section 81.005 to read as follows:
1-7 Sec. 81.005. COMMON OR CONTRACT CARRIER. A common or
1-8 contract carrier may not be used to perform an act in accordance
1-9 with this title unless the carrier is a bona fide, for profit
1-10 carrier, the primary business of which is transporting or
1-11 delivering property for compensation and the business practices of
1-12 which are reasonable and prudent according to the usual standards
1-13 for the business in which it is engaged.
1-14 SECTION 2. Sections 84.001(a) and (e), Election Code, are
1-15 amended to read as follows:
1-16 (a) To be entitled to vote an early voting ballot by mail, a
1-17 person who is eligible for early voting must make an application
1-18 for an early voting ballot to be voted by mail as provided by this
1-19 title.
1-20 (e) A person who has not made an application as provided by
1-21 this title is not entitled to receive an early voting ballot to be
1-22 voted by mail.
1-23 SECTION 3. Section 84.002(a), Election Code, is amended to
1-24 read as follows:
2-1 (a) An early voting ballot application must include:
2-2 (1) the applicant's name and the address at which the
2-3 applicant is registered to vote;
2-4 (2) for an application for a ballot to be voted by
2-5 mail on the ground of absence from the county of residence, the
2-6 address outside the applicant's county of residence to which the
2-7 ballot is to be mailed;
2-8 (3) for an application for a ballot to be voted by
2-9 mail on the ground of age or disability, the address of the
2-10 hospital, nursing home or other long-term care facility, or
2-11 retirement center, or of a person related to the applicant within
2-12 the second degree by affinity or the third degree by consanguinity,
2-13 as determined under Chapter 573, Government Code, if the applicant
2-14 is living at that address and that address is different from the
2-15 address at which the applicant is registered to vote;
2-16 (4) for an application for a ballot to be voted by
2-17 mail on the ground of confinement in jail, the address of the jail
2-18 or of a person related to the applicant within the degree described
2-19 by Subdivision (3);
2-20 (5) for an application for a ballot to be voted by
2-21 mail on any ground, [and] an indication of each election for which
2-22 the applicant [voter] is applying for a ballot; and
2-23 (6) [(3)] an indication of the ground of eligibility
2-24 for early voting.
2-25 SECTION 4. Section 84.0041(b), Election Code, is amended to
2-26 read as follows:
2-27 (b) An offense under this section is a Class A [B]
3-1 misdemeanor.
3-2 SECTION 5. Section 84.011(a), Election Code, is amended to
3-3 read as follows:
3-4 (a) The officially prescribed application form for an early
3-5 voting ballot must include:
3-6 (1) immediately preceding the signature space the
3-7 statement: "I certify that the information given in this
3-8 application is true, and I understand that giving false information
3-9 in this application is a crime.";
3-10 (2) a statement informing the applicant [voters] of
3-11 the offense prescribed by Section 84.004;
3-12 (3) spaces for entering an applicant's voter
3-13 registration number and county election precinct of registration,
3-14 with a statement informing the applicant that failure to furnish
3-15 that information does not invalidate the application; and
3-16 (4) on an application for a ballot to be voted by
3-17 mail:
3-18 (A) a space for an applicant applying on the
3-19 ground of absence from the county of residence to indicate the date
3-20 on or after which the applicant can receive mail at the address
3-21 outside the county;
3-22 (B) a space for indicating the fact that an
3-23 applicant whose application is signed by a witness cannot make the
3-24 applicant's [his] mark and a space for indicating the relationship
3-25 or [the] lack of relationship of the witness to the applicant;
3-26 [and]
3-27 (C) a space for entering an applicant's
4-1 telephone number, with a statement informing the applicant that
4-2 failure to furnish that information does not invalidate the
4-3 application;
4-4 (D) a space or box for an applicant applying on
4-5 the ground of age or disability to indicate that the address to
4-6 which the ballot is to be mailed is the address of a facility or
4-7 relative described by Section 84.002(a)(3), if applicable;
4-8 (E) a space or box for an applicant applying on
4-9 the ground of confinement in jail to indicate that the address to
4-10 which the ballot is to be mailed is the address of a relative
4-11 described by Section 84.002(a)(4), if applicable;
4-12 (F) a space for entering the name of any person
4-13 assisting the applicant;
4-14 (G) a statement informing the applicant of the
4-15 condition prescribed by Section 81.005; and
4-16 (H) a statement informing the applicant of the
4-17 requirement prescribed by Section 86.003(c).
4-18 SECTION 6. Section 84.012, Election Code, is amended to read
4-19 as follows:
4-20 Sec. 84.012. CLERK TO MAIL APPLICATION FORM ON REQUEST. The
4-21 early voting clerk shall mail without charge an appropriate
4-22 official application form for an early voting ballot to each
4-23 applicant [person] requesting the clerk to send the applicant [him]
4-24 an application form.
4-25 SECTION 7. Section 84.032(d), Election Code, is amended to
4-26 read as follows:
4-27 (d) An applicant may also submit a request [on election day]
5-1 by appearing in person [at the applicant's precinct polling place]
5-2 and returning the ballot to be voted by mail or presenting a notice
5-3 received under Section 86.006(e) to:
5-4 (1) the early voting clerk or deputy early voting
5-5 clerk at any polling place that is open for early voting by
5-6 personal appearance; or
5-7 (2) the presiding election judge on election day at
5-8 the applicant's precinct polling place.
5-9 SECTION 8. Section 84.033(c), Election Code, is amended to
5-10 read as follows:
5-11 (c) If the request complies, the presiding election judge
5-12 shall enter on the returned ballot or the notice, as applicable,
5-13 "canceled," place it and the request in an envelope, and deposit
5-14 the envelope in ballot box no. 4. The applicant's application is
5-15 considered to be canceled.
5-16 SECTION 9. Section 85.031, Election Code, is amended to read
5-17 as follows:
5-18 Sec. 85.031. ACCEPTING VOTER. (a) For each person [If an
5-19 applicant is] entitled to vote an early voting ballot by personal
5-20 appearance, the early voting clerk shall follow the procedure for
5-21 accepting a regular voter on election day, with the modifications
5-22 necessary for the conduct of early voting.
5-23 (b) A signature roster is not required to be maintained at
5-24 an early voting polling place.
5-25 (c) On accepting a voter [If an applicant does not enter the
5-26 applicant's voter registration number or county election precinct
5-27 of residence on the application, or enters an incorrect number or
6-1 precinct, the clerk shall enter the appropriate information on the
6-2 application before permitting the applicant to vote.]
6-3 [(d) If the applicant is accepted to vote], the clerk shall
6-4 indicate beside the voter's [applicant's] name on the list of
6-5 registered voters or registration omissions list, as applicable,
6-6 that the voter is [applicant was] accepted to vote by personal
6-7 appearance unless the form of either list makes it impracticable to
6-8 do so, and the clerk shall enter the voter's [applicant's] name on
6-9 the poll list.
6-10 SECTION 10. Subchapter B, Chapter 85, Election Code, is
6-11 amended by adding Section 85.0311 to read as follows:
6-12 Sec. 85.0311. EARLY VOTING CLERK TO SIGN BALLOTS. (a) The
6-13 early voting clerk's initials shall be placed on the back of each
6-14 ballot to be used at the polling place.
6-15 (b) The early voting clerk shall enter the initials on each
6-16 ballot or a deputy early voting clerk shall stamp a facsimile of
6-17 the initials on each ballot.
6-18 SECTION 11. Section 85.032, Election Code, is amended by
6-19 adding Subsection (f) to read as follows:
6-20 (f) The secretary of state shall prescribe procedures
6-21 providing for the security of the voted early voting ballots from
6-22 the last day of voting by personal appearance at a polling place
6-23 until the day the ballots are counted. The procedures must include
6-24 security measures covering the transfer of the ballots between the
6-25 early voting clerk and the early voting ballot board.
6-26 SECTION 12. Section 85.062, Election Code, is amended by
6-27 amending Subsections (a) and (e) and adding Subsections (f) and (g)
7-1 to read as follows:
7-2 (a) Except as provided by Subsection (d) or (e), one or more
7-3 early voting polling places other than the main early voting
7-4 polling place may be established by:
7-5 (1) the commissioners court, for an election in which
7-6 the county clerk is the early voting clerk; or
7-7 (2) the governing body of the political subdivision
7-8 served by the authority ordering the election, for an election in
7-9 which a person other than the county clerk is the early voting
7-10 clerk.
7-11 (e) In an election covered by Subsection (d), a temporary
7-12 branch polling place that is movable may be established only with
7-13 the approval of the county clerk. If a movable temporary branch
7-14 polling place is established on the request of a political party,
7-15 each other political party whose nominee for governor in the most
7-16 recent gubernatorial general election received more than 10 percent
7-17 of the total number of votes received by all candidates for
7-18 governor in the election is entitled to establishment of such a
7-19 polling place. The election officers serving a polling place
7-20 covered by this subsection must be affiliated or aligned with
7-21 different political parties to the extent possible. The secretary
7-22 of state, after consulting the state chair of each affected
7-23 political party, shall prescribe the procedures necessary to
7-24 implement this subsection.
7-25 (f) In a countywide election, the total number of permanent
7-26 branch polling places and temporary branch polling places open for
7-27 voting at the same time in a commissioners precinct may not exceed
8-1 twice the number of permanent branch and temporary branch polling
8-2 places open at that time in another commissioners precinct.
8-3 (g) In this subchapter, "temporary branch polling place"
8-4 means an early voting polling place established under this section.
8-5 SECTION 13. Section 86.001(c), Election Code, is amended to
8-6 read as follows:
8-7 (c) Except as provided by Section 86.008, if the applicant
8-8 is not entitled to vote by mail, the clerk shall reject the
8-9 application, [and] enter on the application "rejected" and the
8-10 reason for and date of rejection, and deliver written notice of the
8-11 reason for the rejection to the applicant at both the residence
8-12 address and mailing address on the application. A ballot may not
8-13 be provided to an applicant whose application is rejected.
8-14 SECTION 14. Section 86.003, Election Code, is amended to
8-15 read as follows:
8-16 Sec. 86.003. METHOD OF PROVIDING BALLOT TO VOTER: REQUIRED
8-17 ADDRESS. (a) The balloting materials for voting by mail shall be
8-18 provided to the voter by mail. A ballot provided by any other
8-19 method may not be counted.
8-20 (b) Subject to Subsection (c), the balloting materials shall
8-21 be addressed to the applicable [mailing] address specified in the
8-22 voter's application. [If no mailing address is specified, the
8-23 materials shall be mailed to the voter's residence address unless a
8-24 different address is required by Subsection (c).] The election
8-25 officer providing the ballot may not knowingly mail the materials
8-26 to an address other than that prescribed by this section.
8-27 (c) The [mailing] address to which the balloting materials
9-1 must be addressed is the address at which the voter is registered
9-2 to vote [the voter's residence or temporary living quarters]
9-3 unless[:]
9-4 [(1)] the ground for voting by mail is:
9-5 (1) absence from the county of residence, in which
9-6 case the address must be an address outside the voter's county of
9-7 residence; [or]
9-8 (2) [the ground for voting by mail is] confinement in
9-9 jail, in which case the address must be the address of the jail or
9-10 of a relative described by Section 84.002(a)(4); or
9-11 (3) age or disability and the voter is living at a
9-12 hospital, nursing home or other long-term care facility, or
9-13 retirement center, or with a relative described by Section
9-14 84.002(a)(3), in which case the address must be the address of that
9-15 facility or relative.
9-16 (d) If the applicable [mailing] address specified in a
9-17 voter's application is an address other than that prescribed by
9-18 Subsection (c), the voter's application shall be rejected in
9-19 accordance with Section 86.001(c) [ballot may not be counted].
9-20 SECTION 15. Section 86.006, Election Code, is amended by
9-21 amending Subsections (c) and (d) and adding Subsection (e) to read
9-22 as follows:
9-23 (c) The carrier envelopes of persons [spouses or parents and
9-24 children] who are registered to vote at the same address may be
9-25 returned in the same envelope or package.
9-26 (d) Each carrier envelope that is delivered by a common or
9-27 contract carrier must be accompanied by an individual delivery
10-1 receipt for that particular carrier envelope that indicates the
10-2 date, hour, and address at which the carrier envelope was received
10-3 by the carrier unless the carrier does not routinely issue a
10-4 receipt, in which case the secretary of state shall prescribe
10-5 appropriate procedures for accounting for the delivery. A delivery
10-6 of carrier envelopes is prohibited by a common or contract carrier
10-7 if the delivery originates from the address of:
10-8 (1) the headquarters of a political party or a
10-9 candidate in the election;
10-10 (2) a candidate in the election unless the address is
10-11 the residence of the early voter;
10-12 (3) a specific-purpose or general-purpose political
10-13 committee involved in the election; or
10-14 (4) an entity that requested that the election be
10-15 held, unless the delivery is a forwarding to the early voting
10-16 clerk.
10-17 (e) A ballot returned in violation of this section may not
10-18 be counted. If the early voting clerk determines that the ballot
10-19 was returned in violation of this section, the clerk shall make a
10-20 notation on the carrier envelope and treat it as a ballot not
10-21 timely returned in accordance with Section 86.011(c). If the
10-22 ballot is returned before the end of the period for early voting by
10-23 personal appearance, the early voting clerk shall promptly mail or
10-24 otherwise deliver to the voter a written notice informing the voter
10-25 that:
10-26 (1) the voter's ballot will not be counted because of
10-27 a violation of this code; and
11-1 (2) the voter may vote if otherwise eligible at an
11-2 early voting polling place or the election day precinct polling
11-3 place on presentation of the notice.
11-4 SECTION 16. Section 86.010, Election Code, is amended by
11-5 amending Subsection (c) and adding Subsection (d) to read as
11-6 follows:
11-7 (c) The person assisting the voter must sign a written oath
11-8 prescribed by Section 64.034.
11-9 (d) If a voter is assisted in violation of this section, the
11-10 voter's ballot may not be counted.
11-11 SECTION 17. Section 86.013, Election Code, is amended by
11-12 amending Subsections (d) and (e) and adding Subsection (f) to read
11-13 as follows:
11-14 (d) The following textual material, as [prohibition
11-15 prescribed by Section 86.006(b), in wording] prescribed by the
11-16 secretary of state, must be printed on the reverse side of the
11-17 official carrier envelope or on a separate sheet accompanying the
11-18 carrier envelope when it is provided:
11-19 (1) the prohibition prescribed by Section 86.006(b);
11-20 (2) the conditions for delivery by common or contract
11-21 carrier prescribed by Sections 81.005 and 86.006; and
11-22 (3) the requirements for the legal execution and
11-23 delivery of the carrier envelope.
11-24 (e) The following notice must be printed on the reverse side
11-25 of the official carrier envelope, near the space provided for the
11-26 voter's signature: "This envelope must be sealed by the voter
11-27 before it leaves the voter's hands. Do not sign this envelope
12-1 unless the ballot has been marked by you or at your direction."
12-2 (f) The oath of a person assisting a voter must be included
12-3 on the official carrier envelope.
12-4 SECTION 18. Section 86.014(a), Election Code, is amended to
12-5 read as follows:
12-6 (a) A copy of an application for a ballot to be voted by
12-7 mail may be obtained from the early voting clerk:
12-8 (1) 72 hours after the time a ballot is mailed to the
12-9 voter; or
12-10 (2) 48 hours after the time a ballot is mailed to the
12-11 voter if the mailing occurs on the fourth day before election day
12-12 [receipt of the application by the clerk].
12-13 SECTION 19. Section 87.027(i), Election Code, is amended to
12-14 read as follows:
12-15 (i) The signature verification committee shall compare the
12-16 signature on each carrier envelope certificate, except those signed
12-17 for a voter by a witness, with the signature on the voter's ballot
12-18 application to determine whether the signatures are those of the
12-19 same person. The committee may also compare the signatures with
12-20 the signature on the voter's registration application to confirm
12-21 that the signatures match but may not use the registration
12-22 application signature to determine that the signatures do not
12-23 match. The committee shall place the jacket envelopes, carrier
12-24 envelopes, and applications of voters whose signatures do not match
12-25 in separate containers from those of voters whose signatures match.
12-26 The committee chairman shall deliver the sorted materials to the
12-27 early voting ballot board at the time specified by the board's
13-1 presiding judge but within the period permitted for the early
13-2 voting clerk's delivery of early voting ballots to the board.
13-3 SECTION 20. Section 87.041, Election Code, is amended by
13-4 adding Subsection (e) to read as follows:
13-5 (e) In making the determination under Subsection (b)(2), the
13-6 board may also compare the signatures with the signature on the
13-7 voter's registration application to confirm that the signatures
13-8 match but may not use the registration application signature to
13-9 determine that the signatures do not match.
13-10 SECTION 21. Section 87.121(f), Election Code, is amended to
13-11 read as follows:
13-12 (f) Information on the roster for a person to whom an early
13-13 voting mail ballot has been sent is not available for public
13-14 inspection, except to the voter seeking to verify that the
13-15 information pertaining to the voter [him] is accurate, until:
13-16 (1) 72 hours after the time a ballot is mailed to the
13-17 voter; or
13-18 (2) 48 [24] hours after the time a ballot is [was]
13-19 mailed to the voter if the mailing occurs on the fourth day before
13-20 election day.
13-21 SECTION 22. Section 112.006, Election Code, is amended to
13-22 read as follows:
13-23 Sec. 112.006. Place for Voting by Personal Appearance. A
13-24 [(a) Except as provided by Subsection (b), a person may vote a
13-25 limited ballot by personal appearance only at an early voting
13-26 polling place serving the voters of the election precinct in which
13-27 the person resides.]
14-1 [(b) In a county with a population of more than 1,500,000,
14-2 a] person may vote a limited ballot by personal appearance only at
14-3 the main early voting polling place.
14-4 SECTION 23. Section 84.006, Election Code, is repealed.
14-5 SECTION 24. (a) The change in law made by this Act applies
14-6 only to an offense committed on or after the effective date of this
14-7 Act. For purposes of this section, an offense is committed before
14-8 the effective date of this Act if any element of the offense occurs
14-9 before that date.
14-10 (b) An offense committed before the effective date of this
14-11 Act is covered by the law in effect when the offense was committed,
14-12 and the former law is continued in effect for that purpose.
14-13 SECTION 25. This Act takes effect September 1, 1997.
14-14 SECTION 26. The importance of this legislation and the
14-15 crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
14-16 emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
14-17 constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
14-18 days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.