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89(R) HB 4508 - House Committee Report version - Bill Text
89R26709 MLH-F
By: Smithee
H.B. No. 4508
Substitute the following for H.B. No. 4508:
By: Shaheen
C.S.H.B. No. 4508
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to the days and hours in which counties of certain sizes
conduct early voting by personal appearance.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Section 85.005, Election Code, is amended by
amending Subsection (c) and adding Subsection (c-1) to read as
follows:
(c)
In a county with a population of 10,000 or more, voting
[
Voting
] in a primary election or the general election for state and
county officers shall be conducted at the main early voting polling
place for at least 12 consecutive hours on each weekday of the last
week of the early voting period, and the voting in a special
election ordered by the governor shall be conducted at the main
early voting polling place for at least 12 consecutive hours on each
of the last two days of the early voting period. Voting under this
subsection may not be conducted earlier than 6 a.m. or later than 10
p.m.
(c-1)
In a county with a population of less than 10,000,
voting in a primary election or the general election for state and
county officers shall, on receipt of a written request submitted by
at least 15 registered voters of the territory covered by the
election, be conducted at the main early voting polling place
during the hours described by Subsection (c).
SECTION 2. Section 85.006, Election Code, is amended by
amending Subsection (e) and adding Subsection (f) to read as
follows:
(e) In a primary election or the general election for state
and county officers
:
(1)
[
,
] the early voting clerk
of a county with a
population of 10,000 or more
shall order voting by personal
appearance at the main early voting polling place to be conducted on
the last Saturday of the early voting period for at least 12
consecutive hours, except that voting may not be conducted earlier
than 6 a.m. or later than 10 p.m., and on the last Sunday of the
early voting period for at least six consecutive hours, except that
voting may not be conducted earlier than 9 a.m. or later than 10
p.m.
; and
(2)
the early voting clerk of a county with a
population of less than 10,000 shall order voting by personal
appearance at the main early voting polling place to be conducted on
either the last Saturday or the last Sunday of the early voting
period for at least 12 consecutive hours, except that voting may not
be conducted earlier than 9 a.m. or later than 10 p.m., provided
that the county chair of each party that made nominations by primary
election for the last general election for state and county
officers must agree on the day for the voting to be conducted.
(f) Subsection (e)
[
This subsection
] supersedes any
provision of this subchapter to the extent of any conflict.
SECTION 3. Section 85.064, Election Code, is amended by
amending Subsection (d) and adding Subsection (e) to read as
follows:
(d) The authority authorized under Section 85.006 to order
early voting on a Saturday or Sunday may also order, in the manner
prescribed by that section, early voting to be conducted on a
Saturday or Sunday at any one or more of the temporary branch
polling places
, if the territory served by the authority is
situated in a county with a population of 10,000 or more
. In
addition, the early voting clerk shall order such voting in
accordance with Section 85.006(e) at each temporary branch polling
place established under Section 85.062(d).
(e)
For purposes of Subsection (d), if the territory served
by the authority is situated in more than one county, the population
of the territory served by the authority is determined using the
combined populations of all counties in which the territory is
situated.
SECTION 4. This Act applies only to an election for which
early voting begins on or after the effective date of this Act.
SECTION 5. This Act takes effect September 1, 2025.