VETOED – HB 3736 (S. Davis/Huffman) relating to conflicts of interest by members of state agency governing boards was vetoed. The bill would have increased disclosure requirements and added further language regarding conflict of interest including requiring lawmakers to disclose contracts with the state that are more than $10,000 a year and tell the ethics commission when they serve as bond counsel.
- The bill was vetoed by the Governor on June 20, 2015. In his veto proclamation, the Governor noted “provisions in this bill would reduce Texans' trust in their elected officials, and I will not be a part of weakening our ethics laws. Serious ethics reform must be addressed next session – the right way. Texans deserve better.”
VETOED – HB 3511 (S. Davis/Huffman) relating to the contents of financial statements that are electronically filed by certain persons.
- The bill was vetoed by the Governor on June 20, 2015. In his veto proclamation, the Governor noted “Texans deserve accountability and transparency from their public officials. House Bill 3511 weakens the ethics laws governing officeholder financial disclosures. I cannot allow that.”
HB 408 (C. Turner/Menendez) prevents certain elected state officials from receiving state retirement payments until they leave office. The bill was signed by the Governor June 19, 2015 and becomes effective immediately.
HB 3680 (Geren/Zaffirini) relating to electronic reports in the Texas Ethics Commission’s storage location. The bill clarifies that information uploaded to TEC's electronic software during the preparation of a campaign financial report or a personal financial statement is confidential and not subject to the Public Information Act until finally submitted. Once the finalized campaign financial report or personal financial statement is submitted, it would become a public document, just like any filed report or statement is today. This bill also applies to persons using TEC's software to file a campaign financial report or personal financial statement with local filing authorities. The bill was signed by the Governor June 16, 2015 and becomes effective September 1, 2015.
HB 3683 (Geren/Zaffirini) requires statewide filers to file personal financial statements electronically, which would enhance TEC's ability to leverage existing technology to save resources. The bill was signed by the Governor June 17, 2015 and becomes effective September 1, 2015.
