88R28370 MPF-F
 
  By: Bettencourt, et al. S.B. No. 1039
 
  (Toth, et al.)
 
  Substitute the following for S.B. No. 1039:  No.
 
 
 
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
 
AN ACT
  relating to processes to address election irregularities;
  providing a civil penalty.
         BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
         SECTION 1.  Title 16, Election Code, is amended by adding
  Chapter 280 to read as follows:
  CHAPTER 280.  REQUEST TO ADDRESS ELECTION IRREGULARITY
         Sec. 280.001.  REQUEST FOR EXPLANATION. (a) A person
  described by Subsection (f) may issue a written request to the
  county clerk or other authority conducting an election for an
  explanation and supporting documentation for:
               (1)  an action taken by an election officer that
  appears to violate this code;
               (2)  irregularities in results in a precinct or at a
  polling place or early voting polling place;
               (3)  inadequacy or irregularity of documentation
  required to be maintained under this code; or
               (4)  discrepancies in the results of a reconciliation
  of ballots between the number of voters and the number of votes
  cast.
         (b)  Not later than the 20th day after the date a request is
  received under Subsection (a), the county clerk or other authority
  shall provide the requested explanation and any supporting
  documentation.
         (c)  A requestor who is not satisfied with the explanation
  and supporting documentation provided under Subsection (b) may
  issue a request for further explanation and supporting
  documentation to the county clerk or other authority.
         (d)  Not later than the 10th day after the date a request is
  received under Subsection (c), the county clerk or other authority
  shall provide the requested explanation and any supporting
  documentation.
         (e)  A requestor who is not satisfied with the explanation
  and supporting documentation provided under Subsection (d) may
  issue a request to the secretary of state for an audit of the issue
  described by Subsection (a), as provided by Section 280.002.
         (f)  A person may make a request under this section if the
  person participated in the relevant election as:
               (1)  a candidate;
               (2)  a county chair or state chair of a political party;
               (3)  a presiding judge;
               (4)  an alternate presiding judge; or
               (5)  the head of a specific-purpose political committee
  that supports or opposes a ballot measure.
         Sec. 280.002.  AUDIT BY SECRETARY OF STATE. (a)  A person to
  whom Section 280.001(e) applies may submit a request for an audit to
  the secretary of state for investigation. A request for an audit
  must include copies of:
               (1)  the requests made by the person to the county clerk
  or other authority conducting the election under Sections
  280.001(a) and (c); and
               (2)  the explanations and any supporting documentation
  provided by the county clerk or other authority to the person under
  Sections 280.001(b) and (d).
         (b)  Not later than the 30th day after the date the secretary
  of state receives a request for an audit under this section, the
  secretary must determine whether the information submitted under
  Subsection (a) sufficiently explains the irregularity identified
  under Section 280.001(a). If the information is insufficient, the
  secretary of state shall immediately begin an audit of the
  identified irregularity at the expense of the county or other
  authority conducting the election.
         (c)  The county clerk or other authority conducting the
  election shall cooperate with the office of the secretary of state
  and may not interfere with or obstruct the audit.
         (d)  On conclusion of the audit, the secretary of state shall
  provide notice of the findings of the audit to the person who
  submitted the request for the audit and the county clerk or other
  authority conducting the election.
         (e)  The secretary of state may, in the secretary's
  discretion, make a determination that a violation of this code has
  occurred solely on the basis of evidence submitted under Subsection
  (a) without conducting an audit. The secretary of state shall send
  notice of the determination to the person who submitted the request
  for the audit and to the county clerk or other authority conducting
  the election.
         (f)  If, following an audit, the secretary of state
  determines that a violation of this code has occurred, the
  secretary may appoint a conservator to oversee elections in the
  county where the violation occurred. The conservator shall serve
  for two federal election cycles.
         (g)  A county for which a conservator is appointed under
  Subsection (f) shall pay the costs of providing the conservator,
  including the salary and benefits of the conservator.
         Sec. 280.003.  FINDING OF VIOLATION. (a) In addition to the
  notice required under Section 280.002(d), the secretary of state
  shall provide special notice to the county clerk or other authority
  conducting an election detailing any violation of this code found
  by the secretary under Section 280.002.
         (b)  If the county clerk or other authority conducting an
  election does not remedy a violation detailed in a notice under
  Subsection (a) by the 30th day after the date the clerk or other
  authority receives the notice, the secretary of state shall assess
  a civil penalty of $500 for each violation not remedied and, if
  possible, remedy the violation on behalf of the county clerk or
  other authority.  The remedy provided under this subsection is in
  addition to any other remedy available under law for a violation of
  this code.
         (c)  If the secretary of state is not able to remedy the
  violation on behalf of the county clerk or other authority, the
  secretary shall assess an additional penalty under Subsection (b)
  for each day the county clerk or other authority does not remedy the
  violation until the violation is remedied.
         (d)  The secretary of state shall maintain a record of county
  clerks or other authorities that conduct elections who have been
  assessed a civil penalty under Subsection (b).  The secretary of
  state shall publish the record on the secretary of state's Internet
  website.
         (e)  The attorney general may bring an action under this
  section to recover a civil penalty that has not been paid.
         (f)  A civil penalty collected under this section shall be
  deposited in the state treasury to the credit of the general revenue
  fund.
         SECTION 2.  A person may make a request under Section
  280.001, Election Code, as added by this Act, only for an election
  held on or after the effective date of this Act.
         SECTION 3.  This Act takes effect September 1, 2023.