| TO: | Honorable Kino Flores, Chair, House Committee on Licensing & Administrative Procedures |
| FROM: | John Keel, Director, Legislative Budget Board |
| IN RE: | HB1199 by Krusee (Relating to local option elections for the sale of alcoholic beverages.), As Introduced |
The bill would require that a petition for a local option election for the sale of alcoholic beverages comply with the provisions of Chapter 277 of the Election Code, which outlines requirements for petitions. The bill would change the requirements for verifying the petition and would decrease from 35 percent to 25 percent the amount of qualified voters in the subdivision required to have signed the petition, and would adjust the definition of what constitutes a qualified voter.
The requirements for ordering an election in response to a petition would be adjusted based on the population of the political subdivision. Additionally, elections in an incorporated city or town that is located in more than one county would be conducted by the city or town instead of the county. Under current statute, that provision applies to a city in counties of a certain population size. The proposed provisions of the bill would remove the population bracket. The bill would remove certain requirements related to election judges, clerks, and watchers, as well as allow persons in annexed areas to vote regarding the status of the sale of alcoholic beverages in the city annexing the area.
The bill would also repeal requirements related to posting notice of the election, the time frame of when the election would be required to be held, and holding a public school of instruction for the persons conducting the election. The bill would take effect September 1, 2003.
It is anticipated that most of the costs associated with elections and lowering the percent of voters' signatures required on the petition requesting an election would be offset by the savings experienced as a result of removing requirements for posting notice of the election and for holding a public school for the persons conducting the election.
No significant fiscal implication to units of local government is anticipated.
| Source Agencies: | |
| LBB Staff: | JK, JRO, DLBa
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