By Danburg H.B. No. 3141
75R7489 ESH-F
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
1-1 AN ACT
1-2 relating to applications for early voting ballots.
1-3 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-4 SECTION 1. Section 84.001, Election Code, is amended to read
1-5 as follows:
1-6 Sec. 84.001. APPLICATION REQUIRED. (a) To be entitled to
1-7 vote an early voting ballot, a person who is eligible for early
1-8 voting must make an application for an early voting ballot as
1-9 provided by this title.
1-10 (b) An application must be in writing and signed by the
1-11 applicant.
1-12 (c) An applicant is not required to use an official
1-13 application form.
1-14 (d) An applicant may not use an application form that is
1-15 part of or is included with a campaign communication or political
1-16 advertising, as defined by Section 251.001, unless the application
1-17 form and campaign communication or political advertising are
1-18 provided to the applicant by:
1-19 (1) an individual, candidate, or officeholder not
1-20 working in concert with another person; or
1-21 (2) the principal political committee of the state
1-22 executive committee or a county executive committee of a political
1-23 party.
1-24 (e) An applicant for a ballot to be voted by mail may apply
2-1 for ballots for the main election and any resulting runoff election
2-2 on the same application. The timeliness of the application for
2-3 both elections is determined in relation to the main election.
2-4 However, if the application is not timely for the main election,
2-5 the timeliness of the application for the runoff election is
2-6 determined in relation to that election.
2-7 (f) [(e)] A person who has not made an application as
2-8 provided by this title is not entitled to receive an early voting
2-9 ballot.
2-10 SECTION 2. This Act takes effect September 1, 1997.
2-11 SECTION 3. The importance of this legislation and the
2-12 crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
2-13 emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
2-14 constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
2-15 days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.