SB12

2nd Special Session

Relating to the duty of the attorney general to prosecute criminal offenses prescribed by the election laws of this state.

ModeratePlan for compliance

Low Cost

Effective:2025-09-01

Enforcing Agencies

Office of the Attorney General (Primary Jurisdiction) • Local Law Enforcement Agencies (Reporting Duty) • Local Prosecuting Attorneys (Cooperation Duty)

Compliance Analysis

Key implementation requirements and action items for compliance with this legislation

Implementation Timeline

Effective Date: September 1, 2025
Compliance Deadline: September 1, 2025 (Strict liability for offenses committed on or after this date).
Agency Rulemaking: While no formal rulemaking period is mandated by the statute, the AG must establish intake protocols for law enforcement reports. Expect informal guidance or "Law Enforcement Advisories" regarding the reporting mechanism between September 2025 and January 2026.

Immediate Action Plan

1. Audit HR Policies: Immediately review and reissue company policy regarding time off to vote to ensure strict compliance with Section 276.004.
2. Review D&O Insurance: Contact your broker to confirm your Directors & Officers liability policy covers defense costs for criminal investigations initiated by the *state* Attorney General, specifically regarding political activities.
3. Sanitize PAC Operations: Conduct a pre-emptive audit of all corporate PAC contributions and reporting procedures before September 1.
4. Update Crisis Protocols: Revise your legal crisis management plan to designate the AG’s Criminal Prosecutions Division as the primary point of contact for election-related inquiries, bypassing local counsel relationships.

Operational Changes Required

Contracts

Election Services Vendors: If your company provides logistics, printing, or technology to county election boards, review indemnification clauses immediately. You must insulate your organization from liability regarding procedural errors that the AG may classify as criminal conduct.
Employment Agreements: Review standard employment contracts and handbooks. Ensure no language exists that could be interpreted as coercing political activity or restricting voting rights, as these are now subject to direct AG scrutiny.

Hiring/Training

HR & Management Training: Managers must be retrained on Texas Election Code § 276.004 (Time Off to Vote). The AG now has a mandate to prosecute employers who unlawfully refuse voting leave or penalize employees for voting.
Government Relations Staff: In-house lobbyists and PAC treasurers require refreshed training on strict compliance. Technical errors in campaign finance reporting previously handled administratively may now trigger criminal referrals to the AG.

Reporting & Record-Keeping

Defensive Documentation: Establish a "Compliance Log" for all political spending and HR voting-leave requests. Since law enforcement *must* report "probable cause" to the AG, your internal records must be impeccable to refute allegations before they escalate to a state investigation.
Preservation Holds: Update document retention policies to ensure communications regarding political activity are retained for at least 3 years to match the AG’s investigative scope.

Fees & Costs

Legal Defense Reserves: While there are no new statutory fees, the cost of defense will increase. Defending an investigation by the State AG is significantly more resource-intensive than addressing inquiries from a local DA or Ethics Commission.

Strategic Ambiguities & Considerations

The "Probable Cause" Trigger: The law requires local law enforcement to report to the AG upon determining "probable cause" of an offense. The statute does not define the evidentiary standard required for this determination. Businesses risk having minor complaints (e.g., from a disgruntled employee regarding voting time) escalated to the AG automatically.
Jurisdictional Scope: It remains unclear if the AG will interpret "offenses prescribed by election laws" to include ancillary business crimes (e.g., fraud or bribery) that merely *touch* the election process.

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Legislative Timeline

This bill's path through the Texas Legislature

TopicsCourts Courts--district Courts--prosecuting Attorneys Criminal Procedure Criminal Procedure--general Elections Elections--general Ethics Crimes Crimes--against Persons Crimes--against Persons--general Law Enforcement Attorney General

Official Analysis

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BILL ANALYSIS

Senate Research Center	S.B. 12
89S20032 JCG-D	By: Hughes et al.
	State Affairs
	8/15/2025
	As Filed

AUTHOR'S / SPONSOR'S STATEMENT OF INTENT

The Supreme Court of Texas (supreme court) found in the Stephens case that the "attorney general is not required by law to prosecute election law violations." The supreme court held that Article IV, Section 22 of the Texas Constitution states that the attorney general shall perform other duties "as may be required by law." But the Election Code does not require the attorney general to initiate prosecution for an Election Code violation. Therefore, the Stephens case held that while the attorney general can prosecute with the permission of the local prosecutor, he cannot initiate prosecution unilaterally.

S.B. 12 would change this "may" to a "shall" and would give the attorney general the power to prosecute election crimes.

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Under this bill, local law enforcement that would normally submit reports of probable cause of these crimes to a local prosecuting attorney must also submit these reports to the attorney general. In addition, upon request of the attorney general, the local prosecuting attorney or law enforcement must also turn over all information regarding their criminal investigations on these offenses.

As proposed, S.B. 12 amends current law relating to the duty of the attorney general to prosecute criminal offenses prescribed by the election laws of this state.

RULEMAKING AUTHORITY

This bill does not expressly grant any additional rulemaking authority to a state officer, institution, or agency.

SECTION BY SECTION ANALYSIS

SECTION 1. Amends Chapter 402, Government Code, by adding Subchapter E, as follows:

SUBCHAPTER E. PROSECUTION OF CRIMINAL OFFENSES PRESCRIBED BY STATE ELECTION LAWS

Sec. 402.151. APPLICABILITY. Provides that this subchapter applies to a criminal offense under the Election Code.

Sec. 402.152. PROVISION OF INFORMATION TO ATTORNEY GENERAL. (a) Requires a law enforcement agency to submit to the attorney general any report stating there is probable cause to believe an identified person has committed a criminal offense described by Section 402.151.

(b) Requires a local prosecuting attorney or law enforcement agency to provide any information requested by the attorney general regarding investigations of criminal offenses described by Section 402.151 to assist the attorney general in performing duties required under this subchapter.

Sec. 402.153. PROSECUTION. Provides that the attorney general, notwithstanding any other law, has jurisdiction to prosecute and is required to represent the state in the prosecution of a criminal offense described by Section 402.151.

SECTION 2. Amends Sections 273.021(a) and (b), Election Code, as follows:

(a) Provides that the attorney general has jurisdiction to prosecute and is required to represent the state in the prosecution of a criminal offense prescribed by the election laws of this state as provided by Subchapter E, Chapter 402 (Attorney General), Government Code. Deletes existing text authorizing the attorney general to prosecute a criminal offense prescribed by the election laws of this state.

(b) Authorizes the attorney general to appear before a grand jury in connection with a criminal offense, rather than in connection with an offense, the attorney general is authorized to prosecute under Subsection (a).

SECTION 3. Amends Section 273.022, Election Code, to make a conforming change.

SECTION 4. Makes application of this Act prospective.

SECTION 5. Effective date: the 91st day after the last day of the legislative session.

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Bill Text(with markup)

S.B. No. 12

View bill text in multiple formats on Texas Legislature website

Fiscal NoteView Original

	AN ACT
	relating to the duty of the attorney general to prosecute criminal
	offenses prescribed by the election laws of this state.
	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
	SECTION 1. Chapter 402, Government Code, is amended by
	adding Subchapter E to read as follows:
	SUBCHAPTER E. PROSECUTION OF CRIMINAL OFFENSES PRESCRIBED BY STATE
	ELECTION LAWS
	Sec. 402.151. APPLICABILITY. This subchapter applies to a
	criminal offense under the Election Code.
	Sec. 402.152. PROVISION OF INFORMATION TO ATTORNEY GENERAL.
	(a) A law enforcement agency shall submit to the attorney general
	any report stating there is probable cause to believe an identified
	person has committed a criminal offense described by Section
	402.151.
	(b) A local prosecuting attorney or law enforcement agency
	shall provide any information requested by the attorney general
	regarding investigations of criminal offenses described by Section
	402.151 to assist the attorney general in performing duties
	required under this subchapter.
	Sec. 402.153. PROSECUTION. Notwithstanding any other law,
	the attorney general has jurisdiction to prosecute and shall
	represent the state in the prosecution of a criminal offense
	described by Section 402.151.
	SECTION 2. Sections 273.021(a) and (b), Election Code, are
	amended to read as follows:
	(a) The attorney general has jurisdiction to [~~may~~]
	prosecute and shall represent the state in the prosecution of a
	criminal offense prescribed by the election laws of this state as
	provided by Subchapter E, Chapter 402, Government Code.
	(b) The attorney general may appear before a grand jury in
	connection with a criminal [an] offense the attorney general is
	authorized to prosecute under Subsection (a).
	SECTION 3. Section 273.022, Election Code, is amended to
	read as follows:
	Sec. 273.022. COOPERATION WITH LOCAL PROSECUTOR. The
	attorney general may direct the county or district attorney serving
	the county in which the offense is to be prosecuted to prosecute a
	criminal [an] offense that the attorney general is authorized to
	prosecute under Section 273.021 or to assist the attorney general
	in the prosecution.
	SECTION 4. The changes in law made by this Act apply 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 on the date 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 5. This Act takes effect on the 91st day after the
	last day of the legislative session.

LEGISLATIVE BUDGET BOARD
Austin, Texas

FISCAL NOTE, 89TH LEGISLATURE 2nd CALLED SESSION 2025


August 15, 2025

TO:	Honorable Bryan Hughes, Chair, Senate Committee on State Affairs

FROM:	Jerry McGinty, Director, Legislative Budget Board

IN RE:	SB12 by Hughes (Relating to the duty of the attorney general to prosecute criminal offenses prescribed by the election laws of this state.), As Introduced

No significant fiscal implication to the State is anticipated.

It is assumed that any costs associated with the bill could be absorbed using existing resources.

Local Government Impact

No significant fiscal implication to units of local government is anticipated.

Source Agencies:

LBB Staff:

JMc, CMA

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Frequently Asked Questions

Common questions about SB12

What does Texas SB12 do?

SB12 mandates that the Office of the Attorney General (AG) assume primary jurisdiction and a mandatory duty to prosecute all criminal offenses under the Texas Election Code, removing prosecutorial discretion from local District Attorneys. This centralization significantly heightens the legal risk for corporate PACs, government vendors involved in election administration, and employers managing statutory voting leave, as enforcement will now be driven by state-level mandates rather than local priorities. Implementation Timeline Effective Date: September 1, 2025 Compliance Deadline: September 1, 2025 (Strict liability for offenses committed on or after this date).

Who authored SB12?

SB12 was authored by Texas Senator Bryan Hughes during the 2nd Special Session.

When was SB12 signed into law?

SB12 was signed into law by Governor Greg Abbott on September 19, 2025.

Which agencies enforce SB12?

SB12 is enforced by Office of the Attorney General (Primary Jurisdiction), Local Law Enforcement Agencies (Reporting Duty) and Local Prosecuting Attorneys (Cooperation Duty).

How urgent is compliance with SB12?

The compliance urgency for SB12 is rated as "moderate". Businesses and organizations should review the requirements and timeline to ensure timely compliance.

What is the cost impact of SB12?

The cost impact of SB12 is estimated as "low". This may vary based on industry and implementation requirements.

What topics does SB12 address?

SB12 addresses topics including courts, courts--district, courts--prosecuting attorneys, criminal procedure and criminal procedure--general.

Legislative data provided by LegiScanLast updated: November 25, 2025

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