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Texas Agriculture Code - Section 74.114. Conduct Of Board Elections And Referenda; Balloting

Legal Research Home > Texas Lawyer > Agriculture Code > Texas Agriculture Code - Section 74.114. Conduct Of Board Elections And Referenda; Balloting

§ 74.114. CONDUCT OF BOARD ELECTIONS AND REFERENDA;  
BALLOTING.  (a) The commissioner shall conduct a referendum or 
board election authorized under this subchapter. At the end of each 
four-year period in which an eradication program has been 
operational in a zone, the commissioner shall hold a referendum in 
the zone on the continuation of the eradication program.  The 
referendum shall be held at the same time as the election of a board 
member from the zone.  Approval of the referendum on continuation is 
by a majority of those voting in the referendum.
	(a-1)  Notwithstanding Subsection (a), the commissioner may 
conduct only one referendum on continuation in each zone on or after 
September 1, 2005.  The commissioner shall include on the ballot 
adequate notice of:
		(1)  the fact that a referendum on continuation is the 
final referendum on continuation for the zone in which it is held;  
and
		(2)  the existence of the petition provision in Section 
74.112(f).          
	(b)  The foundation shall bear all expenses incurred in 
conducting a referendum or board election.
	(c)  The commissioner shall adopt rules for voting in board 
elections and referenda to establish or continue eradication zones. 
Rules adopted under this subsection must include provisions for 
determining:
		(1)  who is a cotton grower eligible to vote in an 
election or referendum;  
		(2)  whether a board member is elected by a plurality or 
a majority of the votes cast;  and
		(3)  the area from which each board member is elected.                        
	(d)  A cotton grower having cotton production in a proposed 
or established eradication zone is entitled to:
		(1)  vote in a referendum concerning the eradication 
zone;  and             
		(2)  elect board members to represent the eradication 
zone.                 
	(e)  An eligible cotton grower may vote only once in a 
referendum or board election.
	(f)  Ballots in a referendum or board election shall be 
mailed directly to a central location, to be determined by the 
commissioner. A cotton grower eligible to vote in a referendum or 
board election who has not received a ballot from the commissioner, 
foundation, or another source shall be offered the option of 
requesting a ballot by mail or obtaining a ballot at the office of 
the county agent of the Texas Agricultural Extension Service or a 
government office distributing ballots in a county in the proposed 
or established zone in which the referendum or board election is 
conducted.
	(g)  A referendum is approved if:                                              
		(1)  at least two-thirds of those voting vote in favor 
of the referendum;  or
		(2)  those voting in favor of the referendum farm more 
than 50 percent, as determined by the commissioner, of the cotton 
acreage in the relevant eradication zone.
	(h)  If a referendum under this subchapter is not approved, 
the commissioner may conduct another referendum.  A referendum 
under this subsection may not be held before one year after the date 
on which the last referendum on the same issue was held.
	(i)  A public hearing regarding the proposed eradication 
program, including information regarding regulations to be 
promulgated by the commissioner, may be held by the commissioner in 
each of several locations within each boll weevil or pink bollworm 
eradication zone.  The area posted for each hearing shall include no 
more than six contiguous counties that have cotton production at 
the time of the hearing.
	(j)  Individual voter information, including an individual's 
vote in a referendum or board election conducted under this 
section, is confidential and is not subject to disclosure under the 
open records law, Chapter 552, Government Code.

Added by Acts 1993, 73rd Leg., ch. 8, § 1, eff. 1, 1993.  Amended 
by Acts 1995, 74th Leg., ch. 227, § 10, eff. Sept. 1, 1995;  Acts 
1997, 75th Leg., ch. 463, § 1.16, 2.06, eff. May 30, 1997;  Acts 
2005, 79th Leg., ch. 119, § 2, eff. Sept. 1, 2005.

Last modified: August 10, 2007