As a part of multiple election integrity bills brought forth to the Senate by state Sen. Paul Bettencourt (R-Houston), Senate Bill 1113 withholds certain funds from administrators in certain scenarios.
SB 1113, which recently passed with the other bills, now allows for the Secretary of State's Office to withhold Chapter 19 funding from any voter registrar or elections administrators who fail to remove voters from their rolls or that register late, The Center Square reported.
"The Texas Administrative rules adopted by the Secretary of State provide that Chapter 19 funds may be used to defray the cost of any item or service designed to increase the number of registered voters, maintain and report an accurate list of the number of registered voters and/or increase the efficiency of the voter registration office," the SOS website said.
According to the SOS website, Chapter 19 funds are funds allocated by the state and issued to voter registrars to help "defray the county’s voter registration expenses," meaning if these funds are withheld by SB 1113 because of non-removal or late entry by a voter register as, counties must make up the difference out-of-pocket for the expenses.
SB 1113 states that failure of the registrar to meet with the new stipulations will result in the cancellation of the Chapter 19 funds.
"If a registrar fails to timely perform a duty imposed on the registrar under this subchapter requiring the cancellation of a voter's registration, the secretary of state may withhold funds administered and distributed by the secretary under Chapter 19 or Section 31.009 from the registrar," language of the bill stated.
“The November 2020 election demonstrated the lack of transparency and lack of integrity within the election process,” Bettencourt said in a statement, as reported by The Center Square. “The integrity of the voter roll is paramount to the entire electoral process and we must restore confidence in the voter roll for future elections for all Texans.”
However, election officials across the country and from within former President Donald Trump's administration have consistently referred to the 2020 elections as among the most secure in U.S. history.
A study conducted by the Public Interest Legal Foundation found 349,773 deceased voter registrants across 41 states. The Honest Elections Project also reports that as of December 2019, over 200 counties in the national had more registered voters than eligible citizens – often as a result of citizen relocations not being updated in current databases – which is in part why many believe election voting safeguards are needed now more than ever.
A poll done in 2018 showed that 77% of Americans support the maintenance of voter polls, according to the House Rules Committee.
Another poll from Honest Elections Project, 64% of voters, including black (51%) and Hispanic (66%) voters, as well as urban (59%) and independent (61%) voters, want to increase voting safeguards that mitigate fraud – not decrease them.
Gov. Greg Abbott signed the bill into law on June 8, but it will not take effect until Sept. 1 of this year.
