The final version of a controversial bill filed to prevent so-called ballot harvesting was approved by the House, but not before a key provision was diluted in the Senate. House Bill 148, by state Rep. Cindy Burkett, R-Sunnyvale, was signed by the House on Friday. It makes it a crime to offer a person compensation based on the number of mail-in ballots he or she collects during an election. Proponents of the bill say the practice leads to voter fraud and possible voter intimidation.
Under the measure, a person also commits an offense if he or she knowingly accepts compensation — including money, goods or other services — for collecting and mailing the ballots. The crime would be a Class A misdemeanor, punishable by up to a $4,000 fine and up to a year in jail. Repeat offenders could be charged with a state jail felony, which carries a maximum fine of $10,000 and a prison sentence of up to two years. The bill does not apply to people who gathered ballots while doing campaign work such as block walking, provided their payment is not tied to whether or not they collect mail-in ballots.
The bill initially made it a crime for a person to collect more than 10 mail-in ballots, regardless of whether compensation was offered. House Democrats said that provision could make even Good Samaritans criminals if they, with only good intentions, collected ballots from neighborhoods or senior living centers and mailed them.
Full Article: House Approves Changes to Ballot Harvesting Bill | The Texas Tribune.
The Voting News
A News Service of the Verified Voting Foundation
