HBA-GUM H.B. 1711 76(R) BILL ANALYSIS Office of House Bill AnalysisH.B. 1711 By: Maxey Elections 4/12/1999 Introduced BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Low voter turn-out is a problem in Texas. Some voters find it difficult to keep up with the location at which they are assigned to vote because it is not unusual for different elections in the same year to be held at several different polling locations. Assuring voters that the polling place for their precinct will not move from election to election may improve voter turn-out. H.B. 1711 requires that a county-designated polling location serve as the polling location for all elections. This bill also authorizes the county chair, the governing body of a municipality, and the authority establishing election precincts to designate a polling place for a primary election, election of other political subdivisions, and certain special elections, respectively, if the polling location assigned by the county cannot be used as the polling place. RULEMAKING AUTHORITY It is the opinion of the Office of House Bill Analysis that this bill does not expressly delegate any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, department, agency, or institution. SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS SECTION 1. Amends Section 43.002, Election Code, by adding Subsection (c), to prohibit a polling place location from being changed for two years following its designation under this section unless the location is unavailable for use in the election or the precinct the polling place serves is divided or eliminated. SECTION 2. Amends Section 43.003, Election Code, as follows: Sec. 43.003. DESIGNATION OF LOCATION: PRIMARY ELECTION. (a) Creates this subsection from existing text and requires the county chair of a political party holding a primary election to use the polling places designated under Section 43.002, rather than to designate the location of the polling place, for each election precinct in the primary. Makes conforming changes. (b) Creates this subsection from existing text and requires the county chair, rather than the executive committee, to designate the location of the polling place, if a polling place designated under Section 43.002 cannot be used. Makes a conforming change. SECTION 3. Amends Section 43.004, Election Code, as follows: Sec. 43.004. DESIGNATION OF LOCATION. (a) Requires the specified governing body of each political subdivision to use the polling places designated under Section 43.002, rather than to designate the location of the polling place, for each of its election precincts. Creates this subsection from existing text. Makes conforming changes. (b) Requires the governing body to designate the location of the polling place if a polling place designated under Section 43.002 cannot be used. SECTION 4. Amends Section 43.005, Election Code, as follows: Sec. 43.005. DESIGNATION OF LOCATION: CERTAIN SPECIAL ELECTIONS. (a) Requires the authority establishing election precincts under Section 42.062 (Precincts for Certain Special Elections) to use the polling places designated under Section 43.002, rather than to designate the location of the polling place for each precinct. Adds to the exemptions from this section a polling place that does not correspond to the county election precinct. Creates this subsection from existing text. Makes conforming changes. (b) Requires the authority to designate the location of the polling place if a polling place designated under Section 43.002 cannot be used. SECTION 5. Amends Section 43.006, Election Code, to provide that this subchapter (Number And Location Of Polling Places) supersedes a law outside this subchapter, rather than a law outside this subchapter supersedes this subchapter, to the extent of any conflict. SECTION 6. Effective date: September 1, 1999. SECTION 7. Emergency clause.