Bill Text: TX HB43 | 2021 | 87th Legislature 3rd Special Session | Introduced

Bill Title: Relating to requirements to vote, including presenting proof of identification.

Sponsorship: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2021-09-14 - Filed [HB43 Detail]

Download: Texas-2021-HB43-Introduced.html
 
 
  By: Reynolds H.B. No. 43
 
 
 
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
 
AN ACT
  relating to requirements to vote, including presenting proof of
  identification.
         BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
         SECTION 1.  Section 15.022(a), Election Code, as effective
  September 1, 2021, is amended to read as follows:
         (a)  The registrar shall make the appropriate corrections in
  the registration records, including, if necessary, deleting a
  voter's name from the suspense list:
               (1)  after receipt of a notice of a change in
  registration information under Section 15.021;
               (2)  after receipt of a voter's reply to a notice of
  investigation given under Section 16.033;
               (3)  after receipt of any affidavits executed under
  Section 63.007 [63.006], following an election;
               (4)  after receipt of a voter's statement of residence
  executed under Section 63.0011;
               (5)  before the effective date of the abolishment of a
  county election precinct or a change in its boundary;
               (6)  after receipt of United States Postal Service
  information indicating an address reclassification;
               (7)  after receipt of a voter's response under Section
  15.053;
               (8)  after receipt of a registration application or
  change of address under Chapter 20; or
               (9)  after notification of a data entry error of which
  the voter registrar is made aware under Section 63.0051.
         SECTION 2.  Sections 31.012(a), (b), and (b-1), Election
  Code, are amended to read as follows:
         (a)  The secretary of state and the voter registrar of each
  county that maintains a website shall provide notice [of the
  identification requirements for voting prescribed by Chapter 63
  and] that straight ticket voting has been eliminated pursuant to
  H.B. 25, Acts of the 85th Legislature, Regular Session, 2017, on
  each entity's respective website in each language in which voter
  registration and election materials are available.  The secretary
  of state shall prescribe the wording of the notice to be included on
  the websites.
         (b)  [The secretary of state shall conduct a statewide effort
  to educate voters regarding the identification requirements for
  voting prescribed by Chapter 63.
         [(b-1)]  As soon as practicable after September 1, 2020, the
  secretary of state shall distribute electronically to each county
  election administrator and the county chair of each political party
  notice that straight ticket voting has been eliminated pursuant to
  H.B. 25, Acts of the 85th Legislature, Regular Session, 2017.
         SECTION 3.  Section 32.114(a), Election Code, as effective
  September 1, 2021, is amended to read as follows:
         (a)  The county clerk shall provide one or more sessions of
  training using the standardized training program and materials
  developed and provided by the secretary of state under Section
  32.111 for the election judges and clerks appointed to serve in
  elections ordered by the governor or a county authority.  Each
  election judge shall complete the training program.  The training
  program must include specific procedures related to the early
  voting ballot board and the central counting station, as
  applicable.  [Each election clerk shall complete the part of the
  training program relating to the acceptance and handling of the
  identification presented by a voter to an election officer under
  Section 63.001.]
         SECTION 4.  Sections 63.001(b), (c), (d), (e), and (f),
  Election Code, are amended to read as follows:
         (b)  On [Except as provided by Subsection (h), on] offering
  to vote, a voter must present the voter's voter registration
  certificate to an election officer at the polling place[:
               [(1)  one form of photo identification listed in
  Section 63.0101(a); or
               [(2)  one form of identification listed in Section
  63.0101(b) accompanied by the declaration described by Subsection
  (i)].
         (c)  On presentation of a registration certificate [the
  documentation required under Subsection (b)], an election officer
  shall determine whether the voter's name on the registration
  certificate [documentation] is on the list of registered voters for
  the precinct.  [If in making a determination under this subsection
  the election officer determines under standards adopted by the
  secretary of state that the voter's name on the documentation is
  substantially similar to but does not match exactly with the name on
  the list, the voter shall be accepted for voting under Subsection
  (d) if the voter submits an affidavit stating that the voter is the
  person on the list of registered voters.]
         (d)  If[, as determined under Subsection (c),] the voter's
  name is on the precinct list of registered voters [and the voter's
  identity can be verified from the documentation presented under
  Subsection (b)], the voter shall be accepted for voting.  [An
  election officer may not question the reasonableness of an
  impediment sworn to by a voter in a declaration described by
  Subsection (i).]
         (e)  On accepting a voter, an election officer shall indicate
  beside the voter's name on the list of registered voters that the
  voter is accepted for voting.  [If the voter executes a declaration
  of reasonable impediment to meet the requirement for identification
  under Subsection (b), the election officer must affix the voter's
  voter registration number to the declaration either in numeric or
  bar code form.]
         (f)  After determining whether to accept a voter, an election
  officer shall return the voter's registration certificate 
  [documentation] to the voter.
         SECTION 5.  Section 63.0011(a), Election Code, is amended to
  read as follows:
         (a)  Before a voter may be accepted for voting, an election
  officer shall ask the voter if the voter's residence address on the
  precinct list of registered voters is current and whether the voter
  has changed residence within the county. If the voter's address is
  omitted from the precinct list under Section 18.005(c), the officer
  shall ask the voter if the voter's residence as [, if] listed [,] on
  the voter's voter registration certificate [identification
  presented by the voter under Section 63.001(b)] is current and
  whether the voter has changed residence within the county.
         SECTION 6.  Section 63.004(a), Election Code, is amended to
  read as follows:
         (a)  The secretary of state may prescribe forms that combine
  the poll list, the signature roster, or any other form used in
  connection with the acceptance of voters at polling places with
  each other or with the list of registered voters.  The secretary
  shall prescribe any special instructions necessary for using the
  combination forms.  [The combination forms must include space for
  an election officer to indicate whether a voter executed a
  declaration of reasonable impediment under Section 63.001(i).]
         SECTION 7.  Section 63.006, Election Code, is amended to
  read as follows:
         Sec. 63.006.  VOTER WITH CORRECT CERTIFICATE [REQUIRED
  DOCUMENTATION] WHO IS NOT ON LIST. (a) A voter who, when offering to
  vote, presents a voter registration certificate indicating that the
  voter is currently registered in the precinct in which the voter is
  offering to vote, [the documentation required under Section
  63.001(b)] but whose name is not on the precinct list of registered
  voters, shall be accepted for voting [if the voter also presents a
  voter registration certificate indicating that the voter is
  currently registered:
               [(1)  in the precinct in which the voter is offering to
  vote; or
               [(2)  in a different precinct in the same county as the
  precinct in which the voter is offering to vote and the voter
  executes an affidavit stating that the voter:
                     [(A)  is a resident of the precinct in which the
  voter is offering to vote or is otherwise entitled by law to vote in
  that precinct;
                     [(B)  was a resident of the precinct in which the
  voter is offering to vote at the time the information on the voter's
  residence address was last provided to the voter registrar;
                     [(C)  did not deliberately provide false
  information to secure registration in a precinct in which the voter
  does not reside; and
                     [(D)  is voting only once in the election].
         (b)  After the voter is accepted, an election officer shall
  [:
               [(1)]  indicate beside the voter's name on the poll list
  that the voter was accepted under this section[; and
               [(2)  enter the voter's name on the registration
  omissions list].
         SECTION 8.  Chapter 63, Election Code, is amended by adding
  Sections 63.007 and 63.008 to read as follows:
         Sec. 63.007.  VOTER WITH INCORRECT CERTIFICATE WHO IS NOT ON
  LIST. (a) A voter who, when offering to vote, presents a voter
  registration certificate indicating that the voter is currently
  registered in a different precinct from the one in which the voter
  is offering to vote, and whose name is not on the precinct list of
  registered voters, shall be accepted for voting if the voter
  executes an affidavit stating that the voter:
               (1)  is a resident of the precinct in which the voter is
  offering to vote or is otherwise entitled by law to vote in that
  precinct;
               (2)  was a resident of the precinct in which the voter
  is offering to vote at the time the information on the voter's
  residence address was last provided to the voter registrar;
               (3)  did not deliberately provide false information to
  secure registration in a precinct in which the voter does not
  reside; and
               (4)  is voting only once in the election.
         (b)  After the voter is accepted, an election officer shall
  indicate beside the voter's name on the poll list that the voter was
  accepted under this section.
         Sec. 63.008.  VOTER WITHOUT CERTIFICATE WHO IS ON LIST. (a) A
  voter who does not present a voter registration certificate when
  offering to vote, but whose name is on the list of registered voters
  for the precinct in which the voter is offering to vote, shall be
  accepted for voting if the voter executes an affidavit stating that
  the voter does not have the voter's voter registration certificate
  in the voter's possession at the polling place at the time of
  offering to vote and the voter presents proof of identification in a
  form described by Section 63.0101.
         (b)  If the requirements prescribed by Subsection (a) are not
  met, the voter may be accepted for provisional voting only under
  Section 63.011.
         SECTION 9.  Section 63.009, Election Code, is amended to
  read as follows:
         Sec. 63.009.  VOTER WITHOUT CERTIFICATE WHO IS NOT ON LIST.
  (a) Except as provided by Subsection (b), a [A] voter who does not
  present a voter registration certificate when offering to vote, and
  whose name is not on the list of registered voters for the precinct
  in which the voter is offering to vote, shall be accepted for
  provisional voting if the voter executes an affidavit in accordance
  with Section 63.011.
         (b)  If an election officer can determine from the voter
  registrar that the person is a registered voter of the county and
  the person presents proof of identification, the affidavits
  required by Sections 63.007 and 63.008 are substituted for the
  affidavit required by Section 63.011 in complying with that
  section. After the voter is accepted under this subsection, an
  election officer shall also indicate beside the voter's name on the
  poll list that the voter was accepted under this section.
         SECTION 10.  Section 63.0101(a), Election Code, is amended
  to read as follows:
         (a)  The following documentation is [an] acceptable as proof
  [form] of [photo] identification under this chapter:
               (1)  a driver's license[, election identification
  certificate,] or personal identification card issued to the person
  by the Department of Public Safety or a similar document issued to
  the person by an agency of another state, regardless of whether the
  license or card [that] has [not] expired [or that expired no earlier
  than four years before the date of presentation];
               (2)  a form of identification containing the person's
  photograph that establishes the person's identity [United States
  military identification card that contains the person's photograph
  that has not expired or that expired no earlier than four years
  before the date of presentation];
               (3)  a birth certificate or other document confirming
  birth that is admissible in a court of law and establishes the
  person's identity;
               (4)  United States citizenship papers [certificate
  issued to the person that contains the person's photograph];
               (5) [(4)]  a United States passport book or card issued
  to the person [that has not expired or that expired no earlier than
  four years before the date of presentation];
               (6)  official mail addressed to the person by name from
  a governmental entity;
               (7)  a copy of a current utility bill, bank statement,
  government check, paycheck, or other government document that shows
  the name and address of the voter; or
               (8)  any other form of identification prescribed by the
  secretary of state [or
               [(5)  a license to carry a handgun issued to the person
  by the Department of Public Safety that has not expired or that
  expired no earlier than four years before the date of
  presentation].
         SECTION 11.  Sections 63.011(a) and (b), Election Code, are
  amended to read as follows:
         (a)  A person to whom Section 63.008(b) or 63.009(a)
  [63.001(g) or 63.009] applies may cast a provisional ballot if the
  person executes an affidavit stating that the person:
               (1)  is a registered voter in the precinct in which the
  person seeks to vote; and
               (2)  is eligible to vote in the election.
         (b)  A form for an affidavit required by this section must be
  printed on an envelope in which the provisional ballot voted by the
  person may be placed and must include[:
               [(1)]  a space for entering the identification number
  of the provisional ballot voted by the person[; and
               [(2)  a space for an election officer to indicate
  whether the person presented a form of identification described by
  Section 63.0101].
         SECTION 12.  Section 64.012(b), Election Code, is amended to
  read as follows:
         (b)  An offense under this section is a felony of the third
  [second] degree unless the person is convicted of an attempt. In
  that case, the offense is a Class A misdemeanor [state jail felony].
         SECTION 13.  Section 65.054(b), Election Code, is amended to
  read as follows:
         (b)  A provisional ballot may [shall] be accepted only if the
  board determines that, [:
               [(1)]  from the information in the affidavit or
  contained in public records, the person is eligible to vote in the
  election and has not previously voted in that election[;
               [(2)  the person:
                     [(A)  meets the identification requirements of
  Section 63.001(b) at the time the ballot was cast or in the period
  prescribed under Section 65.0541;
                     [(B)  notwithstanding Chapter 110, Civil Practice
  and Remedies Code, executes an affidavit under penalty of perjury
  that states the voter has a religious objection to being
  photographed and the voter has consistently refused to be
  photographed for any governmental purpose from the time the voter
  has held this belief; or
                     [(C)  executes an affidavit under penalty of
  perjury that states the voter does not have any identification
  meeting the requirements of Section 63.001(b) as a result of a
  natural disaster that was declared by the president of the United
  States or the governor, occurred not earlier than 45 days before the
  date the ballot was cast, and caused the destruction of or inability
  to access the voter's identification; and
               [(3)  the voter has not been challenged and voted a
  provisional ballot solely because the voter did not meet the
  requirements for identification prescribed by Section 63.001(b)].
         SECTION 14.  Section 66.0241, Election Code, is amended to
  read as follows:
         Sec. 66.0241.  CONTENTS OF ENVELOPE NO. 4. Envelope no. 4
  must contain:
               (1)  the precinct list of registered voters;
               (2)  the registration correction list;
               (3)  any statements of residence executed under Section
  63.0011; and
               (4)  any affidavits executed under Section 63.007
  [63.006] or 63.011.
         SECTION 15.  Section 272.011(b), Election Code, is amended
  to read as follows:
         (b)  The secretary of state shall prepare the translation for
  election materials required to be provided in a language other than
  English or Spanish for the following state prescribed voter forms:
               (1)  voter registration application form required by
  Section 13.002;
               (2)  the confirmation form required by Section 15.051;
               (3)  the voting instruction poster required by Section
  62.011;
               (4)  [the reasonable impediment declaration required
  by Section 63.001(b);
               [(5)]  the statement of residence form required by
  Section 63.0011;
               (5) [(6)]  the provisional ballot affidavit required
  by Section 63.011;
               (6) [(7)]  the application for a ballot by mail
  required by Section 84.011;
               (7) [(8)]  the carrier envelope and voting
  instructions required by Section 86.013; and
               (8) [(9)]  any other voter forms that the secretary of
  state identifies as frequently used and for which state resources
  are otherwise available.
         SECTION 16.  (a)  The following provisions of the Election
  Code are repealed:
               (1)  Section 13.002(i);
               (2)  Section 15.001(c);
               (3)  Section 15.005;
               (4)  Section 31.013;
               (5)  Section 32.111(c);
               (6)  Section 62.016;
               (7)  Sections 63.001(c-1), (g), (h), and (i);
               (8)  Section 63.0013;
               (9)  Sections 63.0101(b) and (c); and
               (10)  Section 65.0541.
         (b)  Sections 191.0046(e) and (f), Health and Safety Code,
  are repealed.
         (c)  Chapter 521A, Transportation Code, is repealed.
         SECTION 17.  The changes in law made by this Act in amending
  Section 64.012(b), Election Code, and repealing Section 63.0013,
  Election Code, apply only to an offense committed on or after the
  effective date of this Act. An offense committed before the
  effective date of this Act is governed by the law in effect on the
  date the offense was committed, and the former law is continued in
  effect for that purpose. For purposes of this section, an offense
  was committed before the effective date of this Act if any element
  of the offense occurred before that date.
         SECTION 18.  This Act takes effect on the 91st day after the
  last day of the legislative session.

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