Relating to address information contained on reports of political contributions and expenditures made available on the Internet by the Texas Ethics Commission.

Contracts

• Consulting Agreements: Update engagement letters for political consultants and independent contractors. Insert a clause requiring the payee to formally designate their billing address as "Residential" or "Commercial/Business."
• Confidentiality: Review confidentiality provisions; you can now assure contractors that their home addresses will be statutorily redacted from public view if properly designated.

Hiring/Training

• Accounts Payable/Treasury: Staff must be trained to stop "auto-filling" addresses. They must verify the nature of the address for every new vendor or reimbursement.
• Internal Protocols: Establish a default protocol for ambiguous cases (e.g., "If unsure, request clarification; do not guess").

Reporting & Record-Keeping

• Vendor Onboarding: Update internal W-9 or vendor setup forms to include a mandatory checkbox: *"Is this address a residence? (Yes/No)."*
• Reimbursement Logs: Employee reimbursement forms must indicate if the check is being mailed to a home address.
• Filing Software: If you use third-party compliance software (e.g., Aristotle, NGP), ensure your provider updates their API to interface with the new TEC field before the January deadline.

Fees & Costs

• State Fees: None.
• Operational Costs: Minimal. Limited to administrative time for database auditing and potential minor fees from third-party software vendors for system upgrades.