Bill Text: TX SB2494 | 2023-2024 | 88th Legislature | Introduced
Bill Title: Relating to establishing election marshals and enforcing violations of elections law.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)
Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2023-03-23 - Referred to State Affairs [SB2494 Detail]
Download: Texas-2023-SB2494-Introduced.html
| 88R9527 MPF-F | ||
| By: Middleton | S.B. No. 2494 | |
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| relating to establishing election marshals and enforcing | ||
| violations of elections law. | ||
| BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: | ||
| SECTION 1. Chapter 273, Election Code, is amended by adding | ||
| Subchapter F to read as follows: | ||
| SUBCHAPTER F. ELECTION MARSHALS AND VIOLATION REPORTING | ||
| Sec. 273.101. APPOINTMENT OF ELECTION MARSHALS. (a) The | ||
| Department of Public Safety shall appoint election marshals to be | ||
| located throughout the state for an election held in this state for | ||
| an office of the state or federal government. | ||
| (b) To be qualified as an election marshal, a person must: | ||
| (1) be a commissioned officer of the Texas Rangers, or | ||
| a Department of Public Safety officer if the Department of Public | ||
| Safety determines that additional election marshals are necessary; | ||
| and | ||
| (2) have received training in election law from the | ||
| secretary of state's office. | ||
| (c) An election marshal serves a term no shorter than 90 | ||
| days, ending on election day. | ||
| (d) Notwithstanding Subsection (c), an election marshal for | ||
| a runoff primary election serves a term beginning not earlier than | ||
| the date the election is ordered and ending on runoff primary | ||
| election day. | ||
| (e) Notwithstanding Subsection (c), if a special election | ||
| is ordered after the 90th day before election day, including an | ||
| emergency election to fill a vacancy under Section 203.004, an | ||
| election marshal serves a term beginning not earlier than the date | ||
| the election is ordered and ending on election day. | ||
| Sec. 273.102. ESTABLISHMENT OF SECRETARY OF STATE | ||
| CLEARINGHOUSE. (a) The secretary of state shall maintain a staff | ||
| to serve as a clearinghouse for election officials and the public to | ||
| report alleged violations of this code. | ||
| (b) On receipt of a report of an alleged violation of this | ||
| code, the secretary of state's clearinghouse staff shall: | ||
| (1) determine whether the alleged violation is | ||
| credible; and | ||
| (2) refer each credible alleged violation to an | ||
| appropriate election marshal for investigation. | ||
| Sec. 273.103. ELECTION MARSHAL DUTIES. (a) Election | ||
| marshals established under Section 273.101 shall perform their | ||
| election marshal duties in addition to their regular employment. | ||
| (b) An election marshal shall promptly investigate an | ||
| alleged violation of this code that is referred by the | ||
| clearinghouse under Section 273.102(b). | ||
| (c) If an election marshal investigates an alleged | ||
| violation of this code and finds probable cause exists that a | ||
| violation of this code is occurring or is likely to occur, the | ||
| marshal shall: | ||
| (1) complete a probable cause affidavit; | ||
| (2) file the affidavit with the attorney general and a | ||
| county or district attorney with jurisdiction over the violation; | ||
| and | ||
| (3) provide a copy to the elections division of the | ||
| secretary of state's office. | ||
| (d) Each election marshal may receive and act upon requests | ||
| directly from the secretary of state's office during early voting | ||
| by personal appearance and on election day, and shall respond to a | ||
| request not later than: | ||
| (1) three hours after receiving the request during | ||
| early voting by personal appearance; and | ||
| (2) one hour after receiving the request on election | ||
| day. | ||
| (e) In order to ensure compliance with this code, election | ||
| marshals may: | ||
| (1) exercise all lawful means to enforce the | ||
| provisions of this code; and | ||
| (2) make arrests necessary to prevent the violation | ||
| from occurring or continuing. | ||
| (f) Election marshals may request clarification of this | ||
| code from the secretary of state's office. | ||
| Sec. 273.104. INVESTIGATION AND PROSECUTION OF ALLEGATION. | ||
| (a) On receipt of a probable cause affidavit from an election | ||
| marshal: | ||
| (1) the county or district attorney having | ||
| jurisdiction shall investigate the violation; and | ||
| (2) the attorney general may investigate the | ||
| violation. | ||
| (b) If the investigation provides sufficient evidence to | ||
| prosecute, the county or district attorney shall be responsible for | ||
| prosecuting the case. | ||
| (c) The attorney general, if requested to do so by the | ||
| prosecuting attorney, may assist in the investigation or | ||
| prosecution of an offense under this section. | ||
| Sec. 273.105. REPORTING OF ALLEGED VIOLATIONS BY | ||
| CANDIDATES, POLITICAL PARTIES, OR ELECTION OFFICIALS. A candidate, | ||
| a political party, or an election official may bring an alleged | ||
| violation of this code to the clearinghouse, the attorney general, | ||
| or a local county or district attorney with jurisdiction. | ||
| Sec. 273.106. JUDICIAL REMEDIES. This subchapter may not | ||
| be construed to limit the ability of any interested party from | ||
| seeking judicial remedies for alleged violations of this code. | ||
| SECTION 2. This Act takes effect September 1, 2023. | ||
