Clear Lake Area Chamber Of Commerce: 2021 Local Voter Guide

Press release from the Clear Lake Area Chamber Of Commerce:

October 20, 2021

Early Voting has started in Texas for the November 2nd election which includes several statewide amendments along with local city and ISD races.

Below you will find a comprehensive list from Community Impact Newspaper that lists the items for the November 2nd election for the Bay Area.

State Proposition 1

Ballot Language:

The constitutional amendment authorizing the professional sports team charitable foundations of organizations sanctioned by the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association or the Women’s Professional Rodeo Association to conduct charitable raffles at rodeo venues.

What it means:

This proposition allows voters to decide whether charities for teams sanctioned by the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association or Women’s Professional Rodeo Association can hold charitable raffles. These raffles need to be approved through a constitutional amendment to avoid falling foul of Texas’ gambling laws.

State Proposition 2

Ballot Language:

The constitutional amendment authorizing a county to finance the development or redevelopment of transportation or infrastructure in unproductive, underdeveloped, or blighted areas in the county.

What it means:

Proposition 2 will determine whether counties can authorize bonds or notes to finance development in blighted or underserved areas. The amendment is a shortcut for county funding and could help urban counties going through a population boom.

State Proposition 3

Ballot Language:

The constitutional amendment to prohibit this state or a political subdivision of this state from prohibiting or limiting religious services of religious organizations.

What it means:

This proposition will decide if state or local governments can limit religious services. This measure likely stems from COVID-19 mitigation efforts in 2020, when in-person religious services were limited in parts of Texas, such as Harris and Fort Bend counties.

State Proposition 4

Ballot Language:

The constitutional amendment changing the eligibility requirements for a justice of the supreme court, a judge of the court of criminal appeals, a justice of a court of appeals, and a district judge.

What it means:

This proposition would update requirements to serve on the Texas Supreme Court, the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals, the Texas Appeals Court or as a district judge. It would require 10 years of service as a practicing lawyer or a combined 10 years of service in legal practice and as a judge of a state or county court.

State Proposition 5

Ballot Language:

The constitutional amendment providing additional powers to the State Commission on Judicial Conduct with respect to candidates for judicial office.

What it means:

Voters can decide whether the Texas Commission on Judicial Conduct, which is responsible for disciplining sitting judges, can extend its powers to candidates for the office of a judge in Texas, allowing the commission to conduct investigations, accept complaints and disqualify candidates not in office.

State Proposition 6

Ballot Language:

The constitutional amendment establishing a right for residents of certain facilities to designate an essential caregiver for in-person visitation.

What it means:

Proposition 6 asks voters to decide whether residents of facilities such as nursing homes have the right to determine an essential caregiver who can visit without restrictions. This proposition likely stemmed from COVID-19 mitigation measures affecting some care facilities.

State Proposition 7

Ballot Language:

The constitutional amendment to allow the surviving spouse of a person who is disabled to receive a limitation on the school district ad valorem taxes on the spouse’s residence homestead if the spouse is 55 years of age or older at the time of the person’s death.

What it means:

This will determine whether surviving spouses of disabled people can receive limitations on the amount of property taxes they pay on their homesteads, provided they were age 55 or older when their partner died.

State Proposition 8

Ballot Language:

The constitutional amendment authorizing the legislature to provide for an exemption from ad valorem taxation of all or part of the market value of the residence homestead of the surviving spouse of a member of the armed services of the United States who is killed or fatally injured in the line of duty.

What it means:

Proposition 8 allows voters to decide whether surviving spouses of armed service members will be exempted from all or part of property taxes on homesteads.

Dates to know:

Last day for registration:

Oct. 4

First day of early voting:

Oct. 18

Last day of early voting:

Oct. 29

Election day:

Nov. 2

What to take with you to the polls:

The following is a list of photo ID options voters can use at the polls in Texas:

• Texas driver’s license;
• Texas Election Identification Certificate;
• Texas personal identification card;
• Texas handgun license issued by DPS;
• United States military identification card containing the person’s photograph;
• United States citizenship certificate containing the person’s photograph; or
• United States passport (book or card).

This information is provided to you by Community Impact Newspaper

This press release was produced by the Clear Lake Area Chamber Of Commerce. The views expressed here are the author’s own.