By Krusee H.B. No. 497
76R1045 ESH-D
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
1-1 AN ACT
1-2 relating to personal financial disclosure by certain county
1-3 officers and candidates.
1-4 BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
1-5 SECTION 1. Section 159.002, Local Government Code, is
1-6 amended to read as follows:
1-7 Sec. 159.002. DEFINITIONS [DEFINITION]. In this subchapter:
1-8 (1) "County judicial officer" means the judge of a
1-9 statutory county court or statutory probate court.
1-10 (2) "County [, "county] officer" means a county judge,
1-11 county commissioner, [or] county attorney, or county judicial
1-12 officer.
1-13 SECTION 2. Section 159.003, Local Government Code, is
1-14 amended by amending Subsection (b) and adding Subsection (c) to
1-15 read as follows:
1-16 (b) The statement must:
1-17 (1) except as provided by Subsection (c), be filed
1-18 with the county clerk of the county in which the officer or
1-19 candidate resides; and
1-20 (2) comply with Sections 572.022 and 572.023,
1-21 Government Code.
1-22 (c) A county judicial officer or candidate may file a
1-23 financial statement with the Texas Ethics Commission in lieu of
1-24 filing with the county clerk. A person who files a financial
2-1 statement with the commission under this subsection shall file with
2-2 the county clerk a document stating that the person is filing the
2-3 financial statement with the commission. The document must be
2-4 filed by the deadline for filing the financial statement.
2-5 SECTION 3. Section 159.007, Local Government Code, is
2-6 amended to read as follows:
2-7 Sec. 159.007. PUBLIC ACCESS TO STATEMENTS. (a) Except as
2-8 provided by Subsection (b), financial [Financial] statements filed
2-9 under this subchapter and documents filed under Section 159.003(c)
2-10 are public records. The county clerk or the Texas Ethics
2-11 Commission shall maintain the statements or documents in separate
2-12 alphabetical files and in a manner that is accessible to the
2-13 public during regular office hours.
2-14 (b) On the written request of a county judicial officer or
2-15 candidate, the county clerk or the commission shall remove the
2-16 names of the officer's or candidate's dependent children from the
2-17 officer's or candidate's financial statement before the statement
2-18 is made available to a member of the public.
2-19 (c) During the one-year period following the date of filing
2-20 of a financial statement, each time a person, other than the county
2-21 clerk or an employee of the county clerk or the commission who is
2-22 acting on official business, requests to see the financial
2-23 statement, the county clerk or the commission shall place in the
2-24 file a statement of the person's name and address, whom the person
2-25 represents, and the date of the request. The county clerk or the
2-26 commission shall retain that statement in the file for one year
2-27 after the date the requested financial statement is filed.
3-1 (d) [(c)] The county clerk or the commission may, and on
3-2 notification from a former officer or candidate shall, destroy any
3-3 financial statements filed by the officer or candidate two years
3-4 after the date the person ceases to be an officer or candidate, as
3-5 applicable.
3-6 SECTION 4. Section 571.061(a), Government Code, is amended
3-7 to read as follows:
3-8 (a) The commission shall administer and enforce:
3-9 (1) Chapters 302, 303, 305, 572, and 2004;
3-10 (2) Subchapter A [C], Chapter 159, Local Government
3-11 Code, in connection with a county judicial officer, as defined by
3-12 Section 159.002 [159.051], Local Government Code, who elects to
3-13 file a financial statement with the commission; and
3-14 (3) Title 15, Election Code.
3-15 SECTION 5. Section 571.091(a), Government Code, as amended
3-16 by Chapters 506, 507, and 1154, Acts of the 75th Legislature,
3-17 Regular Session, 1997, is reenacted and amended to read as follows:
3-18 (a) The commission shall prepare a written opinion answering
3-19 the request of a person subject to any of the following laws for an
3-20 opinion about the application of any of these laws to the person in
3-21 regard to a specified existing or hypothetical factual situation:
3-22 (1) Chapter 302;
3-23 (2) Chapter 303;
3-24 (3) Chapter 305;
3-25 (4) Chapter 572;
3-26 (5) [(4)] Chapter 2004;
3-27 (6) [(4)] Subchapter A [C], Chapter 159, Local
4-1 Government Code, as provided by Section 571.061(a)(2);
4-2 (7) [(5)] Title 15, Election Code;
4-3 (8) [(6)] Chapter 36, Penal Code; or
4-4 (9) [(7)] Chapter 39, Penal Code.
4-5 SECTION 6. Section 159.001, Local Government Code, and
4-6 Subchapter C, Chapter 159, Local Government Code, are repealed.
4-7 SECTION 7. (a) This Act takes effect September 1, 1999, and
4-8 applies only to a financial statement under Subchapter A, Chapter
4-9 159, Local Government Code, that is required to be filed on or
4-10 after that date. A financial statement under Subchapter A or C,
4-11 Chapter 159, Local Government Code, that is required to be filed
4-12 before September 1, 1999, is governed by the law in effect at the
4-13 time the financial statement is required to be filed, and that law
4-14 is continued in effect for that purpose.
4-15 (b) The repeal by this Act of Section 159.056, Local
4-16 Government Code, does not apply to an offense committed under that
4-17 section before September 1, 1999. For the purposes of this
4-18 section, an offense is committed before September 1, 1999, if any
4-19 element of the offense occurs before the effective date. An offense
4-20 committed before September 1, 1999, is covered by the law in effect
4-21 when the offense was committed, and the former law is continued in
4-22 effect for that purpose.
4-23 SECTION 8. (a) In addition to the substantive changes made
4-24 by this Act, this Act conforms Section 571.091(a), Government Code,
4-25 to Chapters 506, 507, and 1134, Acts of the 75th Legislature,
4-26 Regular Session, 1997.
4-27 (b) To the extent of any conflict, this Act prevails over
5-1 another Act of the 76th Legislature, Regular Session, 1999,
5-2 relating to nonsubstantive additions to and corrections in enacted
5-3 codes.
5-4 SECTION 9. The importance of this legislation and the
5-5 crowded condition of the calendars in both houses create an
5-6 emergency and an imperative public necessity that the
5-7 constitutional rule requiring bills to be read on three several
5-8 days in each house be suspended, and this rule is hereby suspended.