85R6387 ATP-F     By: Huffman S.B. No. 2147       A BILL TO BE ENTITLED   AN ACT   relating to the creation of the offense of engaging in organized   election fraud activity.          BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:          SECTION 1.  Chapter 276, Election Code, is amended by adding   Section 276.011 to read as follows:          Sec. 276.011.  ENGAGING IN ORGANIZED ELECTION FRAUD   ACTIVITY. (a) A person commits an offense if, with the intent to   establish, maintain, or participate in a vote harvesting   organization, the person commits or conspires to commit one or more   offenses under Titles 1 through 7.          (b)  An offense under this section is one category higher   than the most serious offense listed in Subsection (a) that is   committed, and if the most serious offense is a Class A misdemeanor,   the offense is a state jail felony.          (c)  At the punishment stage of a trial, the defendant may   raise the issue as to whether in voluntary and complete   renunciation of the offense the defendant withdrew from the vote   harvesting organization before commission of an offense listed in   Subsection (a) and made substantial effort to prevent the   commission of the offense. If the defendant proves the issue in the   affirmative by a preponderance of the evidence the offense is the   same category of offense as the most serious offense listed in   Subsection (a) that is committed.          (d)  In this section, "vote harvesting organization" means   three or more persons who collaborate in committing offenses under   Titles 1 through 7, although participants may not know each other's   identity, membership in the organization may change from time to   time, and participants may stand in a candidate-consultant,   donor-consultant, consultant-field operative, or other arm's   length relationship in the organization's operations.          (e)  For purposes of this section, "conspires to commit"   means that a person agrees with one or more persons that they or one   or more of them engage in conduct that would constitute the offense   and that person and one or more of them perform an overt act in   pursuance of the agreement. An agreement constituting conspiring   to commit may be inferred from the acts of the parties.          SECTION 2.  The change in law made by this Act applies only   to an offense committed on or after the effective date of this Act.   An offense committed before the effective date of this Act is   governed by the law in effect when the offense was committed, and   the former law is continued in effect for that purpose. For purposes   of this section, an offense was committed before the effective date   of this Act if any element of the offense occurred before that date.          SECTION 3.  This Act takes effect September 1, 2017.