S.B. No. 2217

AN ACT

relating to certain election practices and procedures.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

SECTION 1. Section 15.025, Election Code, is amended by amending Subsection (a) and adding Subsection (e) to read as follows:

(a) Except as provided by Subsections (b), [and] (d), and (e), the registration of a voter described by this subsection whose information is changed on the registration records becomes effective as to the change on the 30th day after:

(1) the date the voter submits to the registrar a notice of a change in registration information under Section 15.021 or a response under Section 15.053, indicating the change; or

(2) the date the voter submits a statement of residence to an election officer under Section 63.0011 or a registration application or change of address to an agency employee under Chapter 20, indicating the change.

(e) A voter's registration takes effect immediately upon the registrar's receipt of a notice of the voter's change of address submitted under Section 15.021, Section 63.0011, Section 15.053, or Chapter 20 if the voter changes residence within the same county as the voter's current registration address.

SECTION 2. Section 31.014, Election Code, is amended by amending Subsection (a) and adding Subsection (a-1) to read as follows:

(a) The secretary of state shall prescribe specific requirements and standards, consistent with this code, for the certification of an electronic device used to accept voters under Chapter 63 that require the device to:

(1) produce an electronic copy of the list of voters who were accepted to vote for delivery to the election judge after the polls close;

(2) display the voter's original signature in accordance with Section 63.002;

(3) accept a voter for voting even when the device is off-line;

(4) provide the full list of voters registered in the county with an indication of the jurisdictional or distinguishing number for each territorial unit in which each voter resides;

(5) time-stamp when each voter is accepted at a polling place, including the voter's unique identifier;

(6) if the county participates in the countywide polling place program under Section 43.007 or has more than one early voting polling place, transmit a time stamp when each voter is accepted, including the voter's unique identifier, to all polling place locations;

(7) time-stamp the receipt of a transmission under Subdivision (6); [and]

(8) produce in an electronic format compatible with the statewide voter registration list under Section 18.061 data for retention and transfer that includes:

(A) the polling location in which the device was used;

(B) the dated time stamp under Subdivision (5); and

(C) the dated time stamp under Subdivision (7);

(9) produce a report with all information required to be included on a combination form under Chapter 63 and Section 64.032; and

(10) produce a copy of the list of all voters who were accepted to vote, including a reference to the voter's county election precinct and polling location where the voter was accepted to vote.

(a-1) Nothing in this section may be construed to prevent an election official from redacting information included on a document described by Subsection (a) as necessary to preserve a voter's right to a secret ballot protected under Section 4, Article VI, Texas Constitution.

SECTION 3. Sections 63.0011(b) and (c), Election Code, are amended to read as follows:

(b) If the voter's residence address is not current because the voter has changed residence within the county, the voter may vote, if otherwise eligible, in the election precinct in which the voter resides [is registered] if the voter resides in the county in which the voter is registered [and, if applicable:

[(1) resides in the political subdivision served by the authority ordering the election if the political subdivision is other than the county; or

[(2) resides in the territory covered by the election in a less-than-countywide election ordered by the governor or a county authority].

(c) Before being accepted for voting, the voter must execute and submit to an election officer a statement including:

(1) a statement that the voter satisfies the applicable residence requirement [requirements] prescribed by Subsection (b);

(2) all of the information that a person must include in an application to register to vote under Section 13.002; [and]

(3) the date the statement is submitted to the election officer; and

(4) a request to the registrar to change the voter's registration address to the address at which the voter resides.

SECTION 4. Section 65.057, Election Code, is amended by adding Subsection (c) to read as follows:

(c) When reporting the results of a count under this section, provisional ballots cast during the early voting period shall be included with the results for early voting by personal appearance, and provisional ballots cast on election day shall be included with the results for election day.

SECTION 5. Subchapter A, Chapter 66, Election Code, is amended by adding Sections 66.005 and 66.006 to read as follows:

Sec. 66.005. POST ELECTION RECONCILIATION. (a) Not later than the 30th day after election day, the general custodian of election records shall prepare a reconciliation of the total number of votes cast and the total number of voters accepted to vote by personal appearance at each polling place in the custodian's county during the early voting period and on election day respectively.

(b) The general custodian of election records shall post the results of a reconciliation conducted under Subsection (a) on the county's Internet website in the same location that the county provides information on election results.

Sec. 66.006. PRODUCTION AND PRESERVATION OF CERTAIN REPORTS FROM ELECTRONIC DEVICES TO ACCEPT VOTERS. (a) The general custodian of election records for an authority holding an election that uses an electronic device certified under Section 31.014 to accept voters shall prepare a report including information described by Sections 31.014(a)(9) and (10) not later than the 30th day after election day.

(b) A report produced under Subsection (a) is an election record under Section 1.012 and shall be retained by the general custodian of election records for the period for preserving the precinct election records.

SECTION 6. Section 121.003, Election Code, is amended by adding Subdivision (14) to read as follows:

(14) "Central accumulator" means a part of a voting system that tabulates or consolidates the vote totals for multiple precincts.

SECTION 7. Subchapter C, Chapter 125, Election Code, is amended by adding Section 125.0635 to read as follows:

Sec. 125.0635. POLLING PLACE REPORT FOR VOTING FOR CERTAIN ELECTRONIC VOTING SYSTEMS. (a) This section only applies to a polling place that requires a voter's ballot to be scanned at the polling place with an optical scanner.

(b) Immediately after closing the polling place at the end of the period for early voting by personal appearance and on election day, the presiding election judge shall generate a report from each optical scanner used at the polling place regarding the total number of ballots scanned by that scanner during the period for early voting by personal appearance or election day, as applicable.

(c) A report produced under Subsection (b) at an early voting polling place may not include information on the number of votes received by a candidate or for or against any proposition.

SECTION 8. Subchapter E, Chapter 127, Election Code, is amended by adding Sections 127.1302 and 127.133 to read as follows:

Sec. 127.1302. REQUIRED REPORT FOR OPTICAL SCANNERS. (a) In an election using centrally counted optical scan ballots, the presiding judge of the central counting station shall prepare a report regarding the total number of ballots scanned by each optical scanner from each data storage device.

(b) The presiding judge of the central counting station shall prepare one report for the total number of ballots from each specific data storage device.

(c) The presiding judge of the central counting station must prepare the report for a data storage device under Subsection (a) before the information from the storage device is read into a central accumulator.

(d) A report prepared under Subsection (a) before the opening of polling locations on election day may not contain information on the number of votes cast for any candidate or for or against any proposition.

Sec. 127.133. REQUIRED REPORT FROM CENTRAL ACCUMULATOR. (a) This section only applies to an election held on or after September 1, 2026.

(b) An election system that uses a central accumulator must be capable of producing a report with the total number of votes received by each candidate and for or against each proposition for each polling place.

SECTION 9. This Act applies only to an election ordered on or after the effective date of this Act.

SECTION 10. This Act takes effect September 1, 2025.

______________________________ ______________________________

President of the Senate Speaker of the House

I hereby certify that S.B. No. 2217 passed the Senate on May 1, 2025, by the following vote: Yeas 27, Nays 4; May 29, 2025, Senate refused to concur in House amendments and requested appointment of Conference Committee; May 30, 2025, House granted request of the Senate; June 1, 2025, Senate adopted Conference Committee Report by the following vote: Yeas 26, Nays 5.

______________________________ Secretary of the Senate

I hereby certify that S.B. No. 2217 passed the House, with amendments, on May 28, 2025, by the following vote: Yeas 139, Nays 1, two present not voting; May 30, 2025, House granted request of the Senate for appointment of Conference Committee; June 1, 2025, House adopted Conference Committee Report by the following vote: Yeas 130, Nays 7, two present not voting.

______________________________ Chief Clerk of the House

Approved:

______________________________

Date

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Governor