BILL ANALYSIS

C.S.H.B. 332

By: Aycock

Elections

Committee Report (Substituted)

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE

Currently, many people who work at the polls on general primary election day in rural counties are unable to attend county conventions because, when the polls close, those people are responsible for tallying votes and closing down machines.  In many instances, these people are election clerks and judges.  Large counties do not necessarily have this problem because they have larger numbers of people who work at polling places.      

C.S.H.B. 332 requires precinct conventions to be held in the regular county election precincts on general primary election day or on a date determined by the county chair that occurs not later than the 10th day after the date of the general primary election. 

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly grant any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, department, agency, or institution.

ANALYSIS

C.S.H.B. 332 amends the Election Code to allow precinct conventions, which currently can be held only on general primary election day, to be held on a date determined by the county chair that occurs not later than the 10th day after the date of the general primary election. The bill provides that the requirement that a convention convene not earlier than 7 p.m. or later than 9 p.m. applies only if the precinct convention is held on general primary election day and requires the county chair to set the hour for convening or a time frame in which the convention must convene if the convention is held on a day other than general primary election day.

C.S.H.B. 332 requires the date for convening each precinct convention to be included in the notice the county chair must post on the bulletin board used for posting notice of meetings of the commissioners court and must deliver to the county clerk.

EFFECTIVE DATE

September 1, 2009.

COMPARISON OF ORIGINAL AND SUBSTITUTE

C.S.H.B. 332 differs from the original by allowing the county chair to determine the date of precinct elections, whereas the original allows the state executive committee to determine that date. The substitute differs from the original by requiring the county chair to set the hour for convening or a time frame in which the convention must convene if the convention is held on a day other than general primary election day, whereas the original requires the state executive committee to set the hour or time frame.