Bill Text: TX HCR2 | 2021 | 87th Legislature 1st Special Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Urging Congress to pass the For the People Act.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2021-07-08 - Referred to Constitutional Rights & Remedies [HCR2 Detail]
Download: Texas-2021-HCR2-Introduced.html
87S10191 BPG-D | ||
By: Reynolds | H.C.R. No. 2 |
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WHEREAS, The 2020 election took place amidst the | ||
unprecedented challenges of a global pandemic, but local and state | ||
administrators rose to the occasion, embracing measures that | ||
allowed a record number of Americans to make their voices heard in a | ||
safe, secure, and professional process; and | ||
WHEREAS, The For the People Act currently under consideration | ||
in the United States Congress reflects lessons learned across the | ||
country during recent election cycles, embracing measures to | ||
improve the safety and security of our voting processes and to | ||
strengthen our democracy by engaging more citizens; recognizing the | ||
exigencies of modern life in a 24/7 economy, the legislation | ||
includes many elements to make voting simpler and more convenient, | ||
among them at least two weeks of early in-person voting, online and | ||
same-day voter registration, and automatic voter registration at | ||
motor vehicle departments and other specified government agencies; | ||
it expands and standardizes voting by mail, provides funding for | ||
mail-in ballot tracking, and offers standards for ballot drop | ||
boxes; setting such national policies will ensure that every | ||
eligible voter has equal access to the ballot box, no matter where | ||
they reside; and | ||
WHEREAS, Described by the League of Women Voters as "the most | ||
expansive democracy reform legislation we have seen since the | ||
Voting Rights Act," the For the People Act also bolsters election | ||
security, ensuring that elections are decided by American voters | ||
without interference from foreign adversaries; it creates a | ||
national strategy to protect our democratic institutions, | ||
increases oversight of election vendors, and improves federal | ||
support for state voting system security upgrades, including paper | ||
ballot voting systems; by requiring states to adopt independent | ||
redistricting commissions, it ensures that voters choose their | ||
representatives, not the other way around; moreover, it addresses | ||
the dominance of big money and special interests in politics by | ||
increasing transparency, bolstering oversight by the Federal | ||
Election Commission, and fortifying ethics laws and enforcement for | ||
violations; and | ||
WHEREAS, The provisions in the For the People Act enjoy | ||
overwhelming public support; a recent Global Strategy Group/ALG | ||
Research survey of likely general election voters in a dozen states | ||
found 83 percent agreement for the bill, with provisions to reduce | ||
the influence of money in politics receiving nearly universal | ||
support; and | ||
WHEREAS, Americans can take great pride in the resiliency of | ||
our electoral system and the determination of the voting public | ||
even in the face of historic upheaval, and by passing this | ||
legislation, Congress can provide an even sturdier foundation for | ||
government of the people, by the people, and for the people; now, | ||
therefore, be it | ||
RESOLVED, That the 87th Legislature of the State of Texas, | ||
1st Called Session, hereby respectfully urge the United States | ||
Congress to pass the For the People Act; and, be it further | ||
RESOLVED, That the Texas secretary of state forward official | ||
copies of this resolution to the president of the United States, to | ||
the president of the Senate and the speaker of the House of | ||
Representatives of the United States Congress, and to all the | ||
members of the Texas delegation to Congress with the request that | ||
this resolution be entered in the Congressional Record as a | ||
memorial to the Congress of the United States of America. |