79R14590 EAM-D


By:  Denny                                                      H.C.R. No. 44 

Substitute the following for H.C.R. No. 44:                                   

By:  Bohac                                                  C.S.H.C.R. No. 44 



HOUSE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
	WHEREAS, The current Texas Election Code was enacted by the 
69th Legislature in 1985, after eight years of study and review that 
ultimately incorporated such dramatic changes in election law as 
the federal Voting Rights Act of 1965 and its amendments in 1970, 
1975, and 1982; and
	WHEREAS, Since that 1985 recodification, significant 
developments have occurred in the electoral process, including the 
enactment of such federal legislation as the National Voter 
Registration Act of 1993, the Help America Vote Act of 2002, and the 
Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act of 2002, as well as the use of early 
voting and electronic voting machines; and
	WHEREAS, Texas election law, through its numerous revisions 
over the last two decades, has become an inefficient and often 
confusing body of law that now includes nonconforming code 
sections, election provisions located in statutes other than the 
Election Code, and statutory language that fails to reflect 
technological advancements in the electoral process; and
	WHEREAS, The consolidation of all election provisions into 
the Election Code would greatly assist the secretary of state and 
other agencies that respond to inquiries relating to the state's 
election laws; and
	WHEREAS, In the past, although recodification of Texas 
election laws was a charge of the House Committee on Elections, most 
substantive work relating to the statutory revision of the state's 
election laws was completed by the Texas Legislative Council's 
Election Code Study Committee and Election Code Revision 
Commission, both of which included House and Senate members, 
assisted by a subcommittee of the House Committee on Elections and 
an advisory panel that included the secretary of state and local 
election officials; now, therefore, be it
	RESOLVED, That the 79th Legislature of the State of Texas 
hereby request the lieutenant governor and the speaker of the house 
of representatives to create a joint interim committee on Election 
Code recodification to review the Texas Election Code and other 
pertinent statutes in preparation for an omnibus recodification, as 
recommended by the House Committee on Elections in its interim 
report to the 79th Legislature; and, be it further
	RESOLVED, That the membership of the committee include:                        
		(1)  the secretary of state, who shall be the chair of 
the committee;       
		(2)  the chair of the house committee on elections and 
the chair of the senate committee on state affairs, who shall be 
joint vice chairs;
		(3)  one member of the senate, chosen by the lieutenant 
governor;           
		(4)  one member of the house of representatives, chosen 
by the speaker;     
		(5)  one member of the staff of the office of the 
governor, chosen by the governor;
		(6)  one member of the legal staff of the attorney 
general's office, chosen by the attorney general;
		(7)  the presiding officer, or a person designated by 
the presiding officer, of each of the following organizations: the 
State Bar of Texas; the County and District Clerks Association of 
Texas; the Tax Assessor-Collectors Association of Texas; the Texas 
Association of Elections Administrators; and the Texas Municipal 
Clerks Association, Inc.;
		(8)  the state chair, or a person designated by the 
state chair, of each political party that will be required to make 
nominations by primary elections in 2006; for each 
ballot-qualifying party that does not hold a primary election in 
2006, an individual representing that party; and
		(9)  two citizens of the state, chosen by the governor; 
and, be it further  
	RESOLVED, That the committee's proceedings and operations be 
governed by such general rules and policies for joint committees as 
the 79th Legislature may adopt and that such rules and policies 
supersede the provisions of this resolution to the extent of any 
conflict; and, be it further
	RESOLVED, That the committee shall cause to be prepared a 
proposed draft of a complete revision of the present Texas Election 
Code, in a format complying with the rules that have been adopted 
for implementation of the statutory revision program authorized by 
Section 323.007, Government Code; and, be it further
	RESOLVED, That the committee be authorized to incorporate 
into the draft any changes, including substantive changes, that in 
its opinion are needed to eliminate conflicts within the Texas 
Election Code itself or between that code and other Texas statutes; 
to clarify vague and ambiguous provisions in the Election Code; and 
to improve the election processes and procedures that are regulated 
by that code; and, be it further
	RESOLVED, That the committee complete its work before the 
convening of the 80th Legislature and submit its draft of proposed 
revisions to the 80th Legislature, along with a complete and 
detailed report of all substantive changes that are embodied in the 
draft and a table showing the disposition of existing provisions.