BILL ANALYSIS

S.B. 1539

By: Bettencourt

Judiciary & Civil Jurisprudence

Committee Report (Unamended)

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE

Currently, the governor may not declare the official result of an election contest of a proposed constitutional amendment until the contest is resolved. The bill sponsor has informed the committee that it can take well over a year for such a contest to be decided. S.B. 1539 seeks to resolve these issues by establishing that the filing of an election contest does not suspend the implementation of a constitutional amendment that was approved by the majority of the votes cast in the election.

CRIMINAL JUSTICE IMPACT

It is the committee's opinion that this bill does not expressly create a criminal offense, increase the punishment for an existing criminal offense or category of offenses, or change the eligibility of a person for community supervision, parole, or mandatory supervision.

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

S.B. 1539 amends the Election Code to establish that the filing of an election contest does not suspend implementation of a constitutional amendment that was approved by the majority of the votes cast. The bill subsequently removes provisions that do the following:

· prohibit the declaration of the official result of a contested election from being made until the contest is finally determined;

· require the secretary of state to tabulate the county returns and the governor to announce the final vote count, as ascertained from the returns, in a written document; and

· require the document announcing the final vote count to state that a contest of the election has been filed and that the declaration of the official result will not be made until the contest is finally determined.

S.B. 1539 removes a provision prohibiting a trial date from being later than the 180th day after the date of the contested election and requires a trial court instead to do the following:

· ensure that a written ruling on a pretrial motion before the court is entered not later than the 30th day after the date the motion is filed; and

· ensure the judgment of the court is not filed later than the 180th day after the date of the contested election.

The bill clarifies that an order included in a court's judgment in a contest directs the governor to declare the election as valid or void, as appropriate. The bill changes the deadline by which the appellate court is required to ensure that an action is brought to final disposition if a contestant files an appeal of the contest from the 180th day after the date the judgment becomes final to the 60th day after that date.

S.B. 1539 applies only to a contest of a constitutional amendment election filed on or after the bill's effective date. A contest of a constitutional amendment election filed before the bill's effective date is governed by the law in effect on the date that the suit is filed, and the former law is continued in effect for that purpose.

EFFECTIVE DATE

September 1, 2025.