Olcott Bill Bans Taxpayer-Funded Lobbying, Except For Sheriffs’ Groups

The text as introduced · 921 words

90R2410 CJD-F

By: Olcott
H.B. No. 117

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

AN ACT

relating to the use by a political subdivision of public funds for

lobbying activities.

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

SECTION 1. Chapter 556, Government Code, is amended by

adding Section 556.0056 to read as follows:

Sec. 556.0056. RESTRICTION ON USE OF PUBLIC FUNDS BY

POLITICAL SUBDIVISIONS FOR LOBBYING ACTIVITIES. (a) A political

subdivision may not spend public funds:

(1) to hire or contract with an individual required to

register as a lobbyist under Chapter 305 for the purpose of lobbying

a member of the legislature; or

(2) to pay a nonprofit association or organization

that:

(A) primarily represents political subdivisions;

and

(B) hires or contracts with an individual

required to register as a lobbyist under Chapter 305.

(b) Subsection (a) does not apply to an association or

organization that solely represents elected sheriffs or individual

law enforcement officers.

(c) Subsection (a) does not prohibit:

(1) an officer or employee of a political subdivision

from providing information for a member of the legislature or

appearing before a legislative committee;

(2) an elected officer of a political subdivision from

advocating for or against or otherwise influencing or attempting to

influence the outcome of legislation pending before the legislature

while acting as an officer of the political subdivision;

(3) an employee of a political subdivision from

advocating for or against or otherwise influencing or attempting to

influence the outcome of legislation pending before the legislature

if those actions would not require a person to register as a

lobbyist under Chapter 305;

(4) a political subdivision from reimbursing an

officer or full-time employee of the political subdivision for

direct travel expenses incurred by the officer or employee for

engaging in an activity described by Subdivision (1), (2), or (3);

or

(5) a full-time employee of a nonprofit association or

organization that primarily represents political subdivisions

from:

(A) providing legislative services related to

bill tracking, bill analysis, and legislative alerts;

(B) communicating directly with a member of the

legislature to provide information if the communication would not

require a person to register as a lobbyist under Chapter 305; or

(C) testifying for or against legislation before

the legislature.

(d) If a political subdivision engages in an activity

prohibited by Subsection (a), a taxpayer or resident of the

political subdivision is entitled to appropriate injunctive relief

to prevent further activity prohibited by that subsection and

further payment of public funds related to that activity.

(e) A taxpayer or resident who prevails in an action under

Subsection (d) is entitled to recover from the political

subdivision the taxpayer's or resident's reasonable attorney's fees

and costs incurred in bringing the action.

SECTION 2. Section 89.002, Local Government Code, is

amended to read as follows:

Sec. 89.002. STATE ASSOCIATION OF COUNTIES. (a) Except as

provided by Section 556.0056, Government Code, the [ The ]

commissioners court may spend, in the name of the county, money from

the county's general fund for membership fees and dues of a

nonprofit state association of counties if:

(1) a majority of the court votes to approve

membership in the association;

(2) the association exists for the betterment of

county government and the benefit of all county officials;

(3) the association is not affiliated with a labor

organization; and

(4) [ neither the association nor an employee of the

association directly or indirectly influences or attempts to

influence the outcome of any legislation pending before the

legislature, except that this subdivision does not prevent a person

from providing information for a member of the legislature or

appearing before a legislative committee at the request of the

committee or the member of the legislature; and

[ (5) ] neither the association nor an employee of the

association directly or indirectly contributes any money,

services, or other valuable thing to a political campaign or

endorses a candidate or group of candidates for public office.

(b) If any association or organization supported wholly or

partly by payments of tax receipts from political subdivisions

engages in an activity described by Subsection (a)(4) [ or (5) ], a

taxpayer of a political subdivision that pays fees or dues to the

association or organization is entitled to appropriate injunctive

relief to prevent any further activity described by Subsection

(a)(4) [ or (5) ] or any further payments of fees or dues.

SECTION 3. Section 556.0056, Government Code, as added by

this Act, applies only to an expenditure or payment of public funds

by a political subdivision that is made on or after the effective

date of this Act, including an expenditure or payment of public

funds by a political subdivision that is made under a contract

entered into before, on, or after the effective date of this Act. A

contract term providing for an expenditure or payment prohibited by

Section 556.0056, Government Code, as added by this Act, is void on

the effective date of this Act.

SECTION 4. Section 89.002, Local Government Code, as

amended by this Act, applies only to the spending of money by a

county from the county's general fund that occurs on or after the

effective date of this Act. The spending of money by a county from

the county's general fund that occurs before the effective date of

this Act is governed by the law as it existed immediately before the

effective date of this Act, and that law is continued in effect for

that purpose.

SECTION 5. This Act takes effect September 1, 2027.