Harrison Voting Bill Cuts Expired ID Grace From Four Years To One

The text as introduced · 1,183 words

By: Harrison
H.B. No. 835

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

AN ACT

relating to eligibility requirements for voting.

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

SECTION 1. Section 13.002(c), Election Code, is amended to

read as follows:

(c) A registration application must include:

(1) the applicant's first name, middle name, if any,

last name, and former name, if any;

(2) the month, day, and year of the applicant's birth;

(3) a statement that the applicant is a United States

citizen;

(4) a statement that the applicant is a resident of the

county;

(5) a statement that the applicant has not been

determined by a final judgment of a court exercising probate

jurisdiction to be:

(A) totally mentally incapacitated; or

(B) partially mentally incapacitated without the

right to vote;

(6) a statement that the applicant has not been

finally convicted of a felony or that the applicant is a felon

eligible for registration under Section 13.001;

(7) the applicant's residence address or, if the

residence has no address, the address at which the applicant

receives mail and a concise description of the location of the

applicant's residence;

(8) the following information:

(A) the applicant's Texas driver's license number

or the number of a personal identification card issued by the

Department of Public Safety;

(B) if the applicant has not been issued a number

described by Paragraph (A), the last four digits of the applicant's

social security number; or

(C) if the applicant has not been issued a number

described by Paragraph (A) or (B), a document listed under Section

63.0101(a) that confirms the applicant's citizenship status [ a

statement by the applicant that the applicant has not been issued a

number described by Paragraph (A) or (B) ];

(9) if the application is made by an agent, a statement

of the agent's relationship to the applicant; and

(10) the address, including the city and county, where

the applicant formerly resided.

SECTION 2. Section 13.122(a), Election Code, is amended to

read as follows:

(a) In addition to the other statements and spaces for

entering information that appear on an officially prescribed

registration application form, each official form must include:

(1) the statement: "I understand that giving false

information to procure a voter registration is perjury and a crime

under state and federal law.";

(2) a space for the applicant's registration number;

(3) a space for the applicant's Texas driver's license

number or number of a personal identification card issued by the

Department of Public Safety;

(4) a space for the applicant's telephone number;

(5) a space for the applicant's social security

number;

(6) a space for the applicant's sex;

(7) a statement indicating that the furnishing of the

applicant's telephone number and sex is optional;

(8) a space or box for indicating whether the

applicant or voter is submitting new registration information or a

change in current registration information;

(9) a statement instructing a voter who is using the

form to make a change in current registration information to enter

the voter's name and the changed information in the appropriate

spaces on the form;

(10) a statement that if the applicant declines to

register to vote, that fact will remain confidential and will be

used only for voter registration purposes;

(11) a statement that if the applicant does register

to vote, information regarding the agency or office to which the

application is submitted will remain confidential and will be used

only for voter registration purposes;

(12) a space or box for indicating whether the

applicant is interested in working as an election judge;

(13) a statement listing the documents confirming

citizenship status an applicant must include if the applicant does

not have a Texas driver's license number or personal identification

card number issued by the Department of Public Safety, or a social

security number;

(14) a statement warning that a conviction for making

a false statement may result in imprisonment for up to the maximum

amount of time provided by law, a fine of up to the maximum amount

provided by law, or both the imprisonment and the fine; and

(15) [ (14) ] any other voter registration information

required by federal law or considered appropriate and required by

the secretary of state.

SECTION 3. Section 63.0101(a), Election Code, is amended to

read as follows:

(a) The following documentation is an acceptable form of

photo identification under this chapter:

(1) one of the following forms of identification

issued to the person by the Department of Public Safety that has not

expired or that expired no earlier than one year before the date of

presentation:

(A) a driver's license, not including a driver's

license subject to Section 521.271(a-2), (a-3), or (a-4) or

521.2711(c), Transportation Code;

(B) an election identification certificate ; [ , ]

or

(C) a personal identification card [ issued to the

person by the Department of Public Safety that has not expired or

that expired no earlier than four years before the date of

presentation ];

(2) a United States military identification card that

contains the person's photograph that has not expired or that

expired no earlier than four years before the date of presentation;

(3) a United States citizenship certificate issued to

the person that contains the person's photograph;

(4) a United States passport book or card issued to the

person that has not expired or that expired no earlier than four

years before the date of presentation; or

(5) a license to carry a handgun issued to the person

by the Department of Public Safety that has not expired or that

expired no earlier than four years before the date of presentation.

SECTION 4. Section 114.004, Election Code, is amended by

adding Subsection (d) to read as follows:

(d) The federal postcard application must include:

(1) a photocopy of the applicant's unexpired, valid

United States passport or current, unexpired military

identification card;

(2) a photocopy of a lease, bank statement, utility

bill, or other document that shows the name and foreign address of

the applicant; and

(3) a signed affidavit that each of the statements in

the application are correct and true.

SECTION 5. Section 114.007, Election Code, is amended by

amending Subsections (a) and (c) and adding Subsection (a-1) to

read as follows:

(a) The balloting materials provided under this chapter

must:

(1) [ shall ] be airmailed to the voter free of United

States postage, as provided by the federal Uniformed and Overseas

Citizens Absentee Voting Act ( 52 [ 42 ] U.S.C. Section 20301 [ 1973ff ]

et seq.), in an envelope labeled "Official Election Balloting

Material--via Airmail[ . ]" ; or

(2) be provided via electronic transmission of an

image of the application under procedures prescribed by the

secretary of state.

(a-1) The secretary of state shall provide early voting

clerks with instructions on compliance with this section

[ subsection ].

(c) A ballot voted under this chapter may be returned to the

early voting clerk by mail, common or contract carrier, or courier

and must include the material required under Section 114.004(d) .

SECTION 6. This Act takes effect September 1, 2027.