Bill Text: TX HJR87 | 2025-2026 | 89th Legislature | Introduced

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Bill Title: Proposing a constitutional amendment to reserve to the people the powers of initiative and referendum.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)

Status: (Introduced) 2024-11-12 - Filed [HJR87 Detail]

Download: Texas-2025-HJR87-Introduced.html

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By: Zwiener H.J.R. No. 87

A JOINT RESOLUTION
proposing a constitutional amendment to reserve to the people the
powers of initiative and referendum.
BE IT RESOLVED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Article III, Texas Constitution, is amended by
amending Section 1 and adding Sections 1A and 1B to read as follows:
Sec. 1. Subject to Sections 1A and 1B of this article, the
[The] Legislative power of this State shall be vested in a Senate
and House of Representatives, which together shall be styled "The
Legislature of the State of Texas."
Sec. 1A. (a) The people reserve to themselves the power to
propose statutory and constitutional measures by petition for
submission to the electorate and to have those measures enacted as
provided by this section. This power is known as the initiative.
(b) A proposed statutory or constitutional measure and a
filing fee of $2,000, which is refundable if the proposed measure
is placed on the ballot, must be submitted to the secretary of
state. A proposed measure must be accompanied by the names and other
relevant information, as determined by the secretary of state, of
two voters who represent the petitioners. A proposed measure may
not contain more than one subject. After the secretary of state
validates the signatures on the petition in accordance with
Subsection (g), the secretary of state shall forward the petition
to the Texas Legislative Council. The Texas Legislative Council
shall advise the petitioner as to proper form and language and,
with the consent of the petitioner, may redraft the text of the
measure as necessary or desirable to achieve its purposes. If the
Texas Legislative Council determines that any provision of a
proposed statutory measure would be invalid under this
constitution, the Texas Legislative Council shall return the
measure to the petitioner accompanied by written reasons for the
determination of unconstitutionality. A measure determined to be
unconstitutional may not be forwarded to other state officers under
Subsection (c) of this section.
(c) If the Texas Legislative Council determines that the
proposed measure authorizes or requires the expenditure or
diversion of any state funds, the Texas Legislative Council shall
forward the measure to the Legislative Budget Board for the
preparation of a fiscal note. Otherwise, the Texas Legislative
Council shall forward the measure to the secretary of state.
(d) After receipt of a proposed measure from the Texas
Legislative Council, the Legislative Budget Board shall prepare and
sign the fiscal note, attach it to the measure, and forward the
measure to the secretary of state. In the fiscal note, the
Legislative Budget Board shall outline the fiscal implications and
probable cost of the measure each year for the first five years
after its effective date and a statement as to whether there will be
costs involved thereafter.
(e) After receipt of a proposed measure from the Texas
Legislative Council or Legislative Budget Board, the secretary of
state shall issue to the petitioner approved copies of an
initiative petition proposing the measure in the number requested
not later than the 15th day after receiving the proposed measure
from the Texas Legislative Council or Legislative Budget Board.
The secretary of state may charge for each copy a reasonable fee to
cover the cost of reproduction. The secretary of state shall
prescribe standards of form and design for a petition. Each part of
a petition must include the full text of the proposed measure.
(f) An initiative petition that proposes a statutory
measure must be signed by a number of registered voters equal to at
least five percent of the total number of votes received by all
candidates for governor in the most recent gubernatorial general
election in each Texas Senate district as well as statewide. An
initiative petition that proposes a constitutional measure must be
signed by a number of registered voters equal to at least six
percent of the total number of votes received by all candidates for
governor in the most recent gubernatorial general election in each
Texas Senate district as well as statewide. A signer may withdraw a
signature from a petition before the petition is filed following
the procedures provided by general law for the withdrawal of a
petition signature.
(g) To be certified as valid, a petition containing the
required number of signatures must be filed with the secretary of
state not later than the 365th day after the date the approved
copies are issued by the secretary of state. The secretary of state
shall review the petition to determine whether it is valid. The
secretary of state may use any reasonable statistical sampling
method as the basis for verification. The secretary of state shall
prescribe rules for the withdrawal of a petition, except that a
petition may not be withdrawn after the petition is filed with the
secretary of state. If the secretary of state determines that the
petition does not contain the required number of signatures, the
petitioners have 60 days after the date of that determination to
obtain additional signatures. The secretary of state shall
determine the validity of a petition not later than the 60th day
after the petition is filed. On determining that the petition
complies with this section, the secretary of state shall certify it
as valid and submit the proposed measure to the Texas Legislative
Council.
(h) If a certified petition proposes a statutory measure,
the secretary of state shall submit the question of approval or
disapproval of the measure to the voters of the state at an election
to be held on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November
that occurs on or after the 180th day after the date the petition is
submitted to the secretary of state for certification. If the
measure is approved by a majority of those voting on the question,
the statutory change proposed by the measure takes effect
according to its terms.
(i) If a statutory measure proposed by petition becomes law,
it may be amended or repealed within five years after it takes
effect only on the record vote of two-thirds of the members elected
to each house.
(j) If a certified petition proposes a constitutional
measure, the secretary of state shall submit the question of
approval or disapproval of the measure to the voters at an election
to be held on the first Tuesday after the first Monday in November
that occurs on or after the 180th day after the date the petition is
submitted to the secretary of state for certification. If the
measure is approved by a 60 percent majority of those voting on the
question, the amendment proposed by the measure becomes a part of
the constitution.
(k) The secretary of state shall prepare the ballot
proposition for a measure proposed by initiative. The proposition
must be descriptive but not argumentative or prejudicial. The
provisions of this constitution and of law that apply to
publication of constitutional amendments proposed under Section 1,
Article XVII, of this constitution apply to the publication of
measures proposed under this section.
(l) A reference in this section to the Texas Legislative
Council or Legislative Budget Board includes the entity's successor
in function.
(m) This section is self-executing, but laws may be enacted
to facilitate its operation. However, no law may be enacted to
hamper, restrict, or impair the exercise of the power of
initiative.
Sec. 1B. (a) The people reserve to themselves the power by
petition and election to repeal statutes enacted by the legislature
as provided by this section. This power is known as the referendum.
(b) The referendum power extends, as provided by this
section, to any bill enacted during a regular or special session of
the legislature, including a bill relating to the composition of
districts for the election of members of a governmental body. It
extends to each bill in its entirety and not to a part of the bill.
(c) A written request for a petition proposing the repeal of
a bill enacted by the legislature must be submitted to the secretary
of state in a form prescribed by the secretary of state with a
filing fee of $2,000, which is refundable if the referendum is
placed on the ballot. The request must be filed not later than the
180th day after the date of final adjournment of the session in
which the bill is enacted.
(d) The secretary of state shall prepare and issue, in the
number requested, approved copies of a petition proposing repeal of
the bill. The secretary of state may charge for each copy a
reasonable fee to cover the cost of reproduction. The petition must
include a citation of the bill, citations of any laws amended or
repealed by the bill, and a statement, not argumentative or
prejudicial, briefly describing the effect of the bill.
(e) To be certified as valid, a referendum petition must be
filed with the secretary of state not later than the 180th day after
the date of its issuance and must be signed by a number of
registered voters equal to at least five percent of the total
number of votes received by all candidates for governor in the most
recent gubernatorial general election in each Texas Senate district
as well as statewide.
(f) The secretary of state shall review the petition to
determine whether it is valid. The secretary of state may use any
reasonable statistical sampling method as the basis for
verification. On determining that the petition complies with this
section, the secretary of state shall certify it as valid and shall
submit the proposal to the voters at an election to be held on the
first Tuesday after the first Monday in November that occurs on or
after the 45th day after the date the petition is submitted. The
ballot shall be printed to permit voting for or against the
proposition: "Repeal of __.B. No.____, which (brief statement of
effect of bill)."
(g) The provisions of this constitution and of law that
apply to publication of constitutional amendments proposed under
Section 1, Article XVII, of this constitution apply to the
publication of a referendum proposal.
(h) If a referendum proposal is approved by a majority of
those voting on the question, the repeal is effective immediately
on official declaration of the result of the election, whether or
not the bill repealed took effect before the date of the election.
(i) This section is self-executing, but laws may be enacted
to facilitate its operation. However, no law may be enacted to
hamper, restrict, or impair the exercise of the power of
referendum.
SECTION 2. Article XVII, Texas Constitution, is amended by
adding Section 1A to read as follows:
Sec. 1A. In addition to the mode of amendment provided by
Section 1 of this article, the constitution may be amended by the
initiative procedure authorized by Section 1A, Article III, of this
constitution.
SECTION 3. This proposed constitutional amendment shall be
submitted to the voters at an election to be held November 4, 2025.
The ballot shall be printed to permit voting for or against the
proposition: "The constitutional amendment reserving to the people
the powers of initiative and referendum."