BILL ANALYSIS
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Senate Research Center |
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AUTHOR'S / SPONSOR'S STATEMENT OF INTENT
Currently, legislative caucuses that do not accept any monetary donations are still required to file a report with the Texas Ethics Commission. Interested parties contend that the primary purpose of filing such a report is to ensure transparency regarding contributions and expenditures and that it stands to reason that no report is necessary if no contributions or expenditures are made. H.B. 1104 seeks to align legislative caucus reporting requirements with actual reportable contributions and expenditures occurring during a reporting period.
H.B. 1104 amends the Election Code to exempt a legislative caucus from being required to file a report of contributions and expenditures for a reporting period in which no reportable activity occurs.
H.B. 1104 amends current law relating to an exemption from the requirement that a legislative caucus file reports of contributions and expenditures if no reportable activity occurs.
RULEMAKING AUTHORITY
SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS
SECTION 1. Amends Sections 254.0311(c) and (d), Election Code, as follows:
(c) Provides that a legislative caucus, if no reportable activity occurs during a reporting period, is not required to file a report for that period, rather than requiring the legislative caucus, if no reportable activity occurs during a reporting period, to indicate that fact in the report.
(d) Requires a legislative caucus, except as provided by Subsection (c), to file with the Texas Ethics Commission two reports for each year.
SECTION 2. Provides that the changes in law made by this Act apply only to a report of contributions to and expenditures by a legislative caucus that is required to be filed on or after the effective date of this Act. Provides that a report that is required to be filed before that date is governed by the law in effect when the report was filed, and the former law is continued in effect for that purpose.
SECTION 3. Effective date: September 1, 2013.