BILL ANALYSIS

H.B. 239

By: Parker

Elections

Committee Report (Unamended)

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE

Interested parties contend that there have been recent reports of numerous voter registration scandals across the country. In many of the scandals, the convicted individuals specifically cited compensation or performance quotas as the incentive to fraudulently complete voter registration forms. H.B. 239 seeks to prevent such scandals in Texas by making it a criminal offense for any person or organization engaged in voter registration efforts to pay or receive certain forms of compensation for facilitating the registration of voters. This bill does not prohibit a person from being compensated for voter registration efforts in a flat hourly or salary rate model.

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

H.B. 239 amends the Election Code to make it a Class A misdemeanor offense to compensate another person based on the number of voter registrations that the other person successfully facilitates, present another person with a quota of voter registrations to facilitate as a condition of payment or employment, engage in another practice that causes another person's compensation from or employment status with the person to be dependent on the number of voter registrations that the other person facilitates, or accept compensation for any of those activities. The bill makes an officer, director, or other agent of an entity that commits an offense under the bill's provisions punishable for the offense and includes such an offense among the actions that are grounds for termination of an appointed volunteer deputy registrar.

EFFECTIVE DATE

September 1, 2011.