Bill Text: TX HB2283 | 2021-2022 | 87th Legislature | Enrolled

Texas House Bill 2283 (Prior Session Legislation)

Bill Title: Relating to the acceptance of certain gifts and donations for the administration of elections.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 11-0)

Status: (Passed) 2021-06-18 - Effective on 9/1/21 [HB2283 Detail]

Download: Texas-2021-HB2283-Enrolled.html



	H.B. No. 2283




	AN ACT
	relating to the acceptance of certain gifts and donations for the
	administration of elections.
	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
	SECTION 1. Subchapter E, Chapter 31, Election Code, is
	amended by adding Section 31.126 to read as follows:
	Sec. 31.126. PROHIBITED CONTRIBUTIONS. (a) Without the
	written consent of the secretary of state, the joint elections
	commission, county election commission, and county election board
	may not:
	(1) accept a contribution of $1,000 or more, including
	the value of in-kind donations, offered by:
	(A) a private individual;
	(B) a business entity, including a:
	(i) corporation;
	(ii) partnership; or
	(iii) trust; or
	(C) another third party; or
	(2) use a contribution described by Subdivision (1) to
	perform a function of administering elections.
	(b) The secretary of state may grant consent under
	Subsection (a) only if:
	(1) the secretary consults with the governor, the
	lieutenant governor, and the speaker of the house of
	representatives on the proposed donation; and
	(2) the governor, the lieutenant governor, and the
	speaker of the house of representatives unanimously agree to the
	secretary's grant of consent.
	(c) The joint elections commission, county election
	commission, and county election board may accept a contribution of
	less than $1,000 only with written consent from the relevant
	political subdivision.
	(d) This section does not prohibit the acceptance of:
	(1) an in-kind contribution of food or beverage for
	election workers during the administration of an election;
	(2) any state or federal funds administered or
	distributed by the secretary of state, including funds administered
	and distributed under Section 31.009, or other state or federal
	funds made available to political subdivisions to perform a
	function related to elections; or
	(3) an offer for use, without charge or for a reduced
	fee, of a public or private building or a portion of a building for
	the purposes of conducting an election, including for use as a
	polling place designated under Chapter 43.
	SECTION 2. Section 405.005, Government Code, is amended by
	adding Subsections (c) and (d) to read as follows:
	(c) The secretary of state shall ensure that any gift,
	grant, or donation accepted under Subsection (a) to perform a
	function of administering elections is equitably distributed
	throughout the state based on a percentage of the population of each
	county or another method determined by the secretary.
	(d) Not later than January 1 of each odd-numbered year, the
	secretary shall submit a report to the governor, the lieutenant
	governor, and the speaker of the house of representatives that
	includes a detailed summary of any gifts, grants, or donations
	described by Subsection (a) and the manner in which those amounts
	were expended in the administration of an election.
	SECTION 3. Section 81.032, Local Government Code, is
	amended to read as follows:
	Sec. 81.032. ACCEPTANCE OF DONATIONS AND BEQUESTS. (a) The
	commissioners court may accept a donation of labor or services,
	gift, grant, donation, bequest, or devise of money or other
	property on behalf of the county, including a donation under
	Chapter 38, Government Code, for the purpose of performing a
	function conferred by law on the county or a county officer.
	(b) The commissioners court may not accept a donation
	described in Subsection (a) of over $1,000 for use in administering
	elections without the written consent of the secretary of state.
	(c) The secretary of state may grant consent under
	Subsection (b) only if:
	(1) the secretary consults with the governor, the
	lieutenant governor, and the speaker of the house of
	representatives on the proposed donation; and
	(2) the governor, the lieutenant governor, and the
	speaker of the house of representatives unanimously agree to the
	secretary's grant of consent.
	SECTION 4. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives
	a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as
	provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this
	Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this
	Act takes effect September 1, 2021.


	______________________________	______________________________
	President of the Senate	Speaker of the House


	I certify that H.B. No. 2283 was passed by the House on April
	29, 2021, by the following vote: Yeas 89, Nays 52, 1 present, not
	voting; and that the House concurred in Senate amendments to H.B.
	No. 2283 on May 28, 2021, by the following vote: Yeas 96, Nays 50,
	1 present, not voting.

	______________________________
	Chief Clerk of the House

	I certify that H.B. No. 2283 was passed by the Senate, with
	amendments, on May 25, 2021, by the following vote: Yeas 18, Nays
	13.

	______________________________
	Secretary of the Senate
	APPROVED: __________________
	Date

	__________________
	Governor