By:  Barrientos                                       S.B. No. 1199
                                A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
 1-1                                   AN ACT
 1-2     relating to a primary election filing fee and petition requirements
 1-3     for certain judicial candidates.
 1-4           BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
 1-5           SECTION 1.  Subsection (e), Section 172.021, Election Code,
 1-6     is amended to read as follows:
 1-7           (e)  A candidate for an office specified by Section
 1-8     172.024(a)(8), (10), or (12), or for justice of the peace in a
 1-9     county with a population of more than 725,000 [850,000], who
1-10     chooses to pay the filing fee must also accompany the application
1-11     with a petition that complies with the requirements prescribed for
1-12     the petition authorized by Subsection (b), except that the minimum
1-13     number of signatures that must appear on the petition required by
1-14     this subsection is 250.  If the candidate chooses to file the
1-15     petition authorized by Subsection (b) instead of the filing fee,
1-16     the minimum number of signatures required for that petition is
1-17     increased by 250.  Signatures on a petition filed under this
1-18     subsection or Subsection (b) by a candidate covered by this
1-19     subsection may not be obtained on the grounds of a county
1-20     courthouse or courthouse annex.
1-21           SECTION 2.  Subsection (a), Section 172.024, Election Code,
1-22     is amended to read as follows:
1-23           (a)  The filing fee for a candidate for nomination in the
1-24     general primary election is as follows:
1-25                 (1)  United States senator.......................$4,000
 2-1                 (2)  office elected statewide, except United States
 2-2                      senator......................................3,000
 2-3                 (3)  United States representative.................2,500
 2-4                 (4)  state senator................................1,000
 2-5                 (5)  state representative...........................600
 2-6                 (6)  member, State Board of Education...............250
 2-7                 (7)  chief justice or justice, court of appeals, other
 2-8                      than a justice specified by Subdivision (8)..1,500
 2-9                 (8)  chief justice or justice of a court of appeals
2-10                      that serves a court of appeals district in which a
2-11                      county with a population of more than 725,000
2-12                      [850,000] is wholly or partly situated.......2,000
2-13                 (9)  district judge or judge specified by Section
2-14                      52.092(d) for which this schedule does not
2-15                      otherwise prescribe a fee....................1,200
2-16                 (10)  district or criminal district judge of a court in
2-17                       a judicial district wholly contained in a county
2-18                       with a population   of   more   than 725,000
2-19                       [850,000]...................................2,000
2-20                 (11)  judge, statutory county court, other than a judge
2-21                       specified by Subdivision (12)...............1,200
2-22                 (12)  judge of a statutory county court in a county
2-23                       with  a  population of more than 725,000
2-24                       [850,000]...................................2,000
2-25                 (13)  district attorney, criminal district attorney, or
2-26                       county attorney performing the duties of a
 3-1                       district attorney...........................1,000
 3-2                 (14)  county commissioner or judge, constitutional
 3-3                       county court:
 3-4                       (A)  county  with  a  population  of  200,000  or
 3-5                            more...................................1,000
 3-6                       (B)  county    with   a    population  of   under
 3-7                            200,000..................................600
 3-8                 (15)  justice of the peace or constable:
 3-9                       (A)  county   with   a   population   of 200,000
3-10                            or more..................................800
3-11                       (B)  county  with  a  population  of  under
3-12                            200,000..................................300
3-13                 (16)  county surveyor, inspector of hides and animals,
3-14                       or public weigher..............................50
3-15                 (17)  office of the county government for which this
3-16                       schedule does not otherwise prescribe a fee...600
3-17           SECTION 3.  This Act takes effect September 1, 2001.
3-18                          COMMITTEE AMENDMENT NO. 1
3-19           Amend Senate Bill 1199, Engrossed, on page 1, line 9, by
3-20     striking "725,000" and substituting "300,000".
3-21                                                                  Capelo