88R8220 MLH-D
 
  By: Schwertner S.B. No. 994
 
 
 
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
 
AN ACT
  relating to the declaration of a candidate's ineligibility on the
  basis of failure to pay a filing fee or submit a petition in lieu of
  a filing fee.
         BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
         SECTION 1.  Sections 145.003(b) and (f), Election Code, are
  amended to read as follows:
         (b)  A candidate in the general election for state and county
  officers may be declared ineligible before the 30th day preceding
  election day by:
               (1)  the party officer responsible for certifying the
  candidate's name for placement on the general election ballot, in
  the case of a candidate who is a political party's nominee; [or]
               (2)  the authority with whom the candidate's
  application for a place on the ballot is required to be filed, in
  the case of an independent candidate; or
               (3)  the secretary of state, if the candidate is
  ineligible under Subsection (f)(3).
         (f)  A candidate may be declared ineligible only if:
               (1)  the information on the candidate's application for
  a place on the ballot indicates that the candidate is ineligible for
  the office; [or]
               (2)  facts indicating that the candidate is ineligible
  are conclusively established by another public record; or
               (3)  the candidate fails to pay the filing fee or submit
  a petition in lieu of a filing fee.
         SECTION 2.  This Act takes effect September 1, 2023.