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A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
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AN ACT
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relating to eligibility requirements for public office for persons |
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finally convicted of a felony. |
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BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: |
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SECTION 1. Section 141.001(a), Election Code, is amended to |
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read as follows: |
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(a) To be eligible to be a candidate for, or elected or |
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appointed to, a public elective office in this state, a person must: |
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(1) be a United States citizen; |
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(2) be 18 years of age or older on the first day of the |
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term to be filled at the election or on the date of appointment, as |
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applicable; |
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(3) have not been determined by a final judgment of a |
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court exercising probate jurisdiction to be: |
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(A) totally mentally incapacitated; or |
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(B) partially mentally incapacitated without the |
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right to vote; |
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(4) have not been finally convicted of a felony from |
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which the person has not been pardoned or otherwise released from |
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the resulting disabilities by a court of competent jurisdiction; |
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(5) have resided continuously in the state for 12 |
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months and in the territory from which the office is elected for six |
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months immediately preceding the following date: |
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(A) for a candidate whose name is to appear on a |
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general primary election ballot, the date of the regular filing |
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deadline for a candidate's application for a place on the ballot; |
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(B) for an independent candidate, the date of the |
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regular filing deadline for a candidate's application for a place |
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on the ballot; |
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(C) for a write-in candidate, the date of the |
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election at which the candidate's name is written in; |
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(D) for a party nominee who is nominated by any |
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method other than by primary election, the date the nomination is |
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made; and |
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(E) for an appointee to an office, the date the |
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appointment is made; |
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(6) on the date described by Subdivision (5), be |
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registered to vote in the territory from which the office is |
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elected; and |
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(7) satisfy any other eligibility requirements |
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prescribed by law for the office. |
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SECTION 2. This Act takes effect September 1, 2023. |