HB 5645

ethics chair term goes from six months to one year

Did not pass

Verdict: No flags

No flagsInitial review

Initial review · graded Oct 20, 2026 · Headline, summary and grade are analysis of the bill text, not a finding about any person · How we grade

Caption

relating to the term of the chair of a county ethics commission.

Caption from analyzed text · version I.

Summary

County ethics commissions keep their chair longer.

The bill lengthens the term of the chair of a county ethics commission from six months to one year. It touches county ethics commissions and the members they pick as chair. Starting September 1, 2025, a newly selected chair serves a full year instead of half a year, while chairs picked before that date finish their old six-month terms.

Labels

Labels: STALLED AFTER COMMITTEE. Voted out of the House Intergovernmental Affairs committee 10-0 on May 6, 2025. Never placed on a calendar. The bill died.

Receipt

The receipt

89R-HB5645 · 2025-03-14

SOLD BY

Rep. Janis HoltRHouse 18

ITEM

relating to the term of the chair of a county ethics commission.

WHAT IT DOES

County ethics commissions keep their chair longer.

CHARGES

[ ] NONE FOUND

TOTAL

No fiscal implication to the State is anticipated.

LBB estimate · fiscal note version I · source

Sources

Fiscal note · version I · May 1, 2025

No first-year general revenue figure available here.

LBB published estimates · flow over the stated periods.

Source snapshot 2026-10-19, Central time.

HISTORY

Mar 14, 2025Filed
Apr 7, 2025Read first time
Apr 7, 2025Referred to s/c on County & Regional Government by Speaker
May 5, 2025Scheduled for public hearing in s/c on . . .
May 5, 2025Considered by s/c in public hearing
May 5, 2025Testimony taken/registration(s) recorded in subcommittee
May 5, 2025Left pending in subcommittee
May 6, 2025Recalled from subcommittee
May 6, 2025Considered in public hearing
May 6, 2025Reported favorably w/o amendment(s)
May 12, 2025Comte report filed with Committee Coordinator
May 12, 2025Committee report distributed
May 12, 2025Committee report sent to Calendars

FILED UNDER

No verified beat found.

No flags

THANK YOU FOR CHECKING THE RECEIPT

CAMPAIGN PAID FOR BY

Janis Holt

Donors

Texas Trial Lawyers Association PAC$20K Texans for Truth and Liberty PAC$15KMarcus Goering$11,251

Not tied to this bill.

Sources

The author's campaign account only. Own money and internal transfers are separate on the member page.

Derived itemized flow · Oct 28, 2024 to Oct 17, 2026. State data as of Nov 4, 2026.

Derived itemized contributions on live regular reports and uncovered special-session dates. Internal account transfers and daily reports are excluded.

Texas Trial Lawyers Association PAC$20,000.00

Texas Trial Lawyers Association PAC

$20,000.00

Cash: $20,000.00
Paid by others: $0.00
Total: $20,000.00

Also funds 137 other sitting lawmakers.

Derived recipient stock · Jul 24, 2024 to Oct 23, 2026. State data as of Nov 4, 2026.

TEC account match.

Team

Sources

Derived itemized flow · Jul 18, 2025 to Oct 7, 2026. State data as of Nov 4, 2026.

Derived itemized contributions on live regular reports and uncovered special-session dates. Internal account transfers and daily reports are excluded.

Report IDs: 101012140, 101061664, 101070603.

Texans for Truth and Liberty PAC$15,000.00

Texans for Truth and Liberty PAC

$15,000.00

Cash: $15,000.00
Paid by others: $0.00
Total: $15,000.00

Also funds 44 other sitting lawmakers.

Derived recipient stock · Jun 24, 2025 to Oct 23, 2026. State data as of Nov 4, 2026.

TEC account match.

Team

Sources

Derived itemized flow · Jun 24, 2025 to Jun 4, 2026. State data as of Nov 4, 2026.

Derived itemized contributions on live regular reports and uncovered special-session dates. Internal account transfers and daily reports are excluded.

Report IDs: 101005987, 101061664.

Marcus Goering$11,250.63

Money

Missing data does not establish zero giving. Display amounts are rounded.

Texas Trial Lawyers Association PAC

$20,000.00

Cash: $20,000.00
Paid by others: $0.00
Total: $20,000.00

Also funds 137 other sitting lawmakers.

Derived recipient stock · Jul 24, 2024 to Oct 23, 2026. State data as of Nov 4, 2026.

TEC account match.

Team

Sources

Derived itemized flow · Jul 18, 2025 to Oct 7, 2026. State data as of Nov 4, 2026.

Derived itemized contributions on live regular reports and uncovered special-session dates. Internal account transfers and daily reports are excluded.

Report IDs: 101012140, 101061664, 101070603.

Texans for Truth and Liberty PAC

$15,000.00

Cash: $15,000.00
Paid by others: $0.00
Total: $15,000.00

Also funds 44 other sitting lawmakers.

Derived recipient stock · Jun 24, 2025 to Oct 23, 2026. State data as of Nov 4, 2026.

TEC account match.

Team

Sources

Derived itemized flow · Jun 24, 2025 to Jun 4, 2026. State data as of Nov 4, 2026.

Derived itemized contributions on live regular reports and uncovered special-session dates. Internal account transfers and daily reports are excluded.

Report IDs: 101005987, 101061664.

Votes

No floor vote loaded for this bill.

Witnesses1

For: 0
Against: 1
On: 0

Names

Against

Self1 registration

Sources

1 parsed registrations across the loaded witness lists.

Derived stock of witness registrations. Repeated appearances count separately. Organizations and self-representation appear as printed.

House witness list. Source snapshot 2026-10-20, Central time.

Fiscal

No fiscal implication to the State is anticipated.

LBB estimate · fiscal note version I · source

Sources

Fiscal note · version I · May 1, 2025

No first-year general revenue figure available here.

LBB published estimates · flow over the stated periods.

Source snapshot 2026-10-19, Central time.

How this was graded

Analysis of text version I by claude-opus-5-5, Oct 20, 2026, against the published rubric.

Sources

Texas House · Filed Mar 14, 2025

05/12/2025 H Committee report sent to Calendars

Texas Legislature Online · Introduced · House Committee Report

Data snapshot Oct 26, 2026 at 6:51 AM CDT. Grades, charges, quotes and corrections follow the published record.

House committee · Intergovernmental Affairs · Committee vote 10 aye, 0 nay, 1 absent · Out of committee

Subjects

County Government--Employees/Officers

Ethics

Text

The text as introduced · 167 words

89R19266 MZM-F

By: Holt
H.B. No. 5645

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

AN ACT

relating to the term of the chair of a county ethics commission.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

SECTION 1. Section 161.0591(a), Local Government Code, is

amended to read as follows:

(a) The position of chair is selected from the commission

members by a majority vote of the commission members. The chair

serves a one-year term [ of six months ].

SECTION 2. Section 161.0591, Local Government Code, as

amended by this Act, applies only to the term of the chair of a

county ethics commission selected on or after the effective date of

this Act. The term of the chair of a county ethics commission

selected before the effective date of this Act is governed by the

law in effect on the date the selection was made, and the former law

is continued in effect for that purpose.

SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2025.