Bill Text: TX HCR5 | 2021 | 87th Legislature 2nd Special Session | Introduced

Texas House Concurrent Resolution 5 (Prior Session Legislation)

Introduced

Bill Title: Urging Congress to pass the For the People Act.

Sponsorship: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2021-08-23 - Referred to Constitutional Rights & Remedies [HCR5 Detail]

Download: Texas-2021-HCR5-Introduced.html

	87S20766 TBO-D

	By: Reynolds	H.C.R. No. 5



	CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
	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,
	2nd 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.