H.B. No. 1
AN ACT
relating to the dates of and procedures for certain elections, the
procedures for canvassing the ballots for an election, and the
counting of certain ballots voted by mail.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Effective January 1, 2005, Section 41.001(a),
Election Code, as amended by Section 14, Chapter 1315, Acts of the
78th Legislature, Regular Session, 2003, is amended to read as
follows:
(a) Except as otherwise provided by this subchapter, each
general or special election in this state shall be held on one of
the following dates:
(1) the first Saturday in February;
(2) the first [third] Saturday in May;
(3) the second Saturday in September; or
(4) the first Tuesday after the first Monday in
November.
SECTION 2. Section 41.007(b), Election Code, as amended by
Section 1, Chapter 292, and Section 16, Chapter 1315, Acts of the
78th Legislature, Regular Session, 2003, is reenacted and amended
to read as follows:
(b) The runoff primary election date is the second [third]
Tuesday in April following the general primary election.
SECTION 3. Section 67.003, Election Code, as amended by
Section 42, Chapter 1315, and Section 17, Chapter 1316, Acts of the
78th Legislature, Regular Session, 2003, is reenacted and amended
to read as follows:
Sec. 67.003. TIME FOR LOCAL CANVASS. Each local canvassing
authority shall convene to conduct the local canvass at the time set
by the canvassing authority's presiding officer[:
[(1) on the seventh day after election day for:
[(A) the general election for state and county
officers; or
[(B) an election of a political subdivision that
is held jointly with an election of:
[(i) a county; or
[(ii) one or more other political
subdivisions under an election services contract with the county
election officer; or
[(2)] not earlier than the eighth [third] day or later
than the 11th [sixth] day after election day [for an election other
than an election described by Subdivision (1)].
SECTION 4. Section 86.007(d), Election Code, as amended by
Section 24, Chapter 1316, Acts of the 78th Legislature, Regular
Session, 2003, is amended to read as follows:
(d) A marked ballot voted by mail that arrives after the
time prescribed by Subsection (a) shall be counted if:
(1) the ballot was cast from an address outside the
United States;
(2) the carrier envelope was placed for delivery
before the time the ballot is required to arrive under Subsection
(a); and
(3) the ballot arrives at the address on the carrier
envelope not later than[:
[(A)] the fifth day after the date of the
election[:
[(i) the general election for state and
county officers; or
[(ii) an election of a political
subdivision that is held jointly with an election of:
[(a) a county; or
[(b) one or more political
subdivisions under an election services contract with the county
election officer; or
[(B) the second day after the date of an election
other than an election described by Paragraph (A)].
SECTION 5. Section 87.125(a), Election Code, as amended by
Section 30, Chapter 1316, Acts of the 78th Legislature, Regular
Session, 2003, is amended to read as follows:
(a) The early voting ballot board shall convene to count
ballots voted by mail described by Section 86.007(d) at the time set
by the presiding judge of the board[:
[(1)] on the sixth day after the date of an election[:
[(A) the general election for state and county
officers; or
[(B) an election of a political subdivision that
is held jointly with an election of:
[(i) a county; or
[(ii) one or more political subdivisions
under an election services contract with the county election
officer;
[(2) on the second day after the date of a primary
election, at a time following the last mail delivery,] or on an
earlier day [or at an earlier time] if the early voting clerk
certifies that all ballots mailed from outside the United States
have been received[; or
[(3) not earlier than the third day or later than the
fifth day after the date of an election other than an election
described by Subdivision (1) or (2)].
SECTION 6. (a) To allow for the use of the districts
established by H.B. No. 3 as enacted by the 78th Legislature, 3rd
Called Session, 2003, in the 2004 general primary election, if the
effective date of H.B. No. 3 occurs after December 3, 2003:
(1) an application for a place on the ballot for the
2004 general primary election for the office of United States
Representative must:
(A) be filed with the appropriate authority
described by Section 172.022, Election Code, not later than 6 p.m.
on January 16, 2004; and
(B) relate to a congressional district as
constituted by H.B. No. 3;
(2) the date of the 2004 general primary election and
the 2004 presidential primary election is March 9, 2004; and
(3) the date of the 2004 runoff primary election is
April 13, 2004.
(b) An application for a place on the ballot for the 2004
general primary election for the office of United States
Representative filed on or after December 3, 2003, and before 6 p.m.
on January 2, 2004, is considered to have been filed on or after the
effective date of this Act and before the deadline prescribed by
Subsection (a)(1)(A) of this section.
(c) This section does not affect other requirements of the
Election Code relating to the validity of an application for a place
on the general primary election ballot or the holding of the general
primary, presidential primary, and runoff primary elections that
are not in conflict with this section.
(d) This section expires January 1, 2005.
SECTION 7. This Act takes effect on the 91st day after the
last day of the legislative session.
______________________________ ______________________________
President of the Senate Speaker of the House
I certify that H.B. No. 1 was passed by the House on September
17, 2003, by a non-record vote; that the House refused to concur in
Senate amendments to H.B. No. 1 on October 2, 2003, and requested
the appointment of a conference committee to consider the
differences between the two houses; and that the House adopted the
conference committee report on H.B. No. 1 on October 10, 2003, by
the following vote: Yeas 77, Nays 52, 1 present, not voting.
______________________________
Chief Clerk of the House
I certify that H.B. No. 1 was passed by the Senate, with
amendments, on September 25, 2003, by the following vote: Yeas 18,
Nays 11; at the request of the House, the Senate appointed a
conference committee to consider the differences between the two
houses; and that the Senate adopted the conference committee report
on H.B. No. 1 on October 10, 2003, by the following vote: Yeas 19,
Nays 12.
______________________________
Secretary of the Senate
APPROVED: __________________
Date
__________________
Governor