81R10310 CAE-D
 
  By: Smith of Tarrant H.B. No. 2511
 
 
 
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
 
AN ACT
  relating to political contributions to and political expenditures
  made by or on behalf of candidates, officeholders, and political
  committees; providing a criminal penalty.
         BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
         SECTION 1.  Section 251.001(2), Election Code, is amended to
  read as follows:
               (2)  "Contribution" means a direct or indirect transfer
  of money, goods, services, or any other thing of value [and includes
  an agreement made or other obligation incurred, whether legally
  enforceable or not, to make a transfer].  The term includes a loan
  or extension of credit, other than those expressly excluded by this
  subdivision, and a guarantee of a loan or extension of credit,
  including a loan described by this subdivision. The term does not
  include:
                     (A)  a loan made in the due course of business by a
  corporation that is legally engaged in the business of lending
  money and that has conducted the business continuously for more
  than one year before the loan is made; or
                     (B)  an expenditure required to be reported under
  Section 305.006(b), Government Code.
         SECTION 2.  Subchapter A, Chapter 253, Election Code, is
  amended by adding Section 253.006 to read as follows:
         Sec. 253.006.  STUDY OF LIMITS ON CONTRIBUTIONS AND
  EXPENDITURES. The commission shall conduct a study regarding
  limits on political contributions to and political expenditures
  made by or on behalf of candidates, officeholders, and political
  committees in connection with legislative and executive offices.
  The study must include a survey of states that have such limits to
  determine the effect those limits have had.  Recommendations under
  this section must be made to the legislature not later than January
  1, 2011.  This section expires January 15, 2011.
         SECTION 3.  Section 253.035, Election Code, is amended by
  adding Subsection (j) to read as follows:
         (j)  A person who violates this section commits an offense.
  An offense under this section is a Class C misdemeanor.
         SECTION 4.  Section 253.042(g), Election Code, is amended to
  read as follows:
         (g)  The commission shall study possible restrictions on
  amounts of reimbursements under Subsection (a) in connection with
  the offices of state senator and state representative and member,
  State Board of Education, and shall make appropriate
  recommendations to the legislature on those matters.
  Recommendations under this section must be made to the legislature
  not later than January 1, 2011, and may be combined with
  recommendations made under Section 253.006.  This subsection
  expires January 15, 2011.
         SECTION 5.  Section 253.061, Election Code, is amended to
  read as follows:
         Sec. 253.061.  DIRECT EXPENDITURE OF $200 [$100] OR LESS.
  Except as otherwise provided by law, an individual not acting in
  concert with another person may make one or more direct campaign
  expenditures in an election from the individual's own property if:
               (1)  the total expenditures on any one or more
  candidates or measures do not exceed $200 [$100]; and
               (2)  the individual receives no reimbursement for the
  expenditures.
         SECTION 6.  The heading to Section 253.062, Election Code,
  is amended to read as follows:
         Sec. 253.062.  DIRECT EXPENDITURE EXCEEDING $200 [$100].
         SECTION 7.  Section 253.062(a), Election Code, is amended to
  read as follows:
         (a)  Except as otherwise provided by law, an individual not
  acting in concert with another person may make one or more direct
  campaign expenditures in an election from the individual's own
  property that exceed $200 [$100] on any one or more candidates or
  measures if:
               (1)  the individual complies with Chapter 254 as if the
  individual were a campaign treasurer of a political committee; and
               (2)  the individual receives no reimbursement for the
  expenditures.
         SECTION 8.  Section 254.031(a), Election Code, is amended to
  read as follows:
         (a)  Except as otherwise provided by this chapter, each
  report filed under this chapter must include:
               (1)  the amount of political contributions from each
  person that in the aggregate exceed $75 [$50] and that are accepted
  during the reporting period by the person or committee required to
  file a report under this chapter, the full name and address of the
  person making the contributions, and the dates of the
  contributions;
               (2)  the amount of loans that are made during the
  reporting period for campaign or officeholder purposes to the
  person or committee required to file the report and that in the
  aggregate exceed $75 [$50], the dates the loans are made, the
  interest rate, the maturity date, the type of collateral for the
  loans, if any, the full name and address of the person or financial
  institution making the loans, the full name and address, principal
  occupation, and name of the employer of each guarantor of the loans,
  the amount of the loans guaranteed by each guarantor, and the
  aggregate principal amount of all outstanding loans as of the last
  day of the reporting period;
               (3)  the amount of political expenditures that in the
  aggregate exceed $75 [$50] and that are made during the reporting
  period, the full name and address of the persons to whom the
  expenditures are made, and the dates and purposes of the
  expenditures;
               (4)  the amount of each payment made during the
  reporting period from a political contribution if the payment is
  not a political expenditure, the full name and address of the person
  to whom the payment is made, and the date and purpose of the
  payment;
               (5)  the total amount or a specific listing of the
  political contributions of $75 [$50] or less accepted and the total
  amount or a specific listing of the political expenditures of $75 
  [$50] or less made during the reporting period;
               (6)  the total amount of all political contributions
  accepted and the total amount of all political expenditures made
  during the reporting period;
               (7)  the name of each candidate or officeholder who
  benefits from a direct campaign expenditure made during the
  reporting period by the person or committee required to file the
  report, and the office sought or held, excluding a direct campaign
  expenditure that is made by the principal political committee of a
  political party on behalf of a slate of two or more nominees of that
  party; and
               (8)  as of the last day of a reporting period for which
  the person is required to file a report, the total amount of
  political contributions accepted, including interest or other
  income on those contributions, maintained in one or more accounts
  in which political contributions are deposited as of the last day of
  the reporting period.
         SECTION 9.  This Act applies only to a political
  contribution accepted or an expenditure made from political
  contributions on or after September 1, 2009. A political
  contribution accepted or an expenditure made from political
  contributions before September 1, 2009, is governed by the law in
  effect at the time the contribution was accepted or the expenditure
  was made.
         SECTION 10.  This Act takes effect September 1, 2009.