SB914

Regular Session

Relating to authorizing certain cities and counties to change the date on which their general election for officers is held.

LowStandard timeline

Low Cost

Effective:2025-09-01

Enforcing Agencies

City Councils (of qualifying municipalities) • County Commissioners Courts (of qualifying counties) • Texas Secretary of State (Election Code oversight)

Compliance Analysis

Key implementation requirements and action items for compliance with this legislation

Implementation Timeline

Effective Date: September 1, 2025.
Compliance Deadline: Local governing bodies must execute this change via resolution no later than December 31, 2026. Once the resolution is passed, business compliance schedules must shift immediately to the November cycle.
Agency Rulemaking: No state-level rulemaking required. However, local City Councils or Commissioners Courts must pass resolutions to trigger the change.

Immediate Action Plan

1. Audit Geography: Confirm if your business operations or government contracts are located in the City of Alpine or Montgomery County.
2. Monitor Agendas: Direct government affairs staff to monitor City Council and Commissioners Court agendas starting September 2025 for "Election Date Adjustment" resolutions.
3. Adjust PAC Budgets: If the resolution passes, move allocated political contributions from Q2 (May cycle) to Q4 (November cycle) for the affected years.
4. Update HR Policy: Alert facility managers in affected areas that November election days will require increased staffing flexibility beginning in 2025 or 2026.

Operational Changes Required

Contracts

Government Vendors & Real Estate Developers:

Term Extensions: The law extends the terms of current officeholders to align with the new November date. If you have government contracts, zoning variances, or permits pending renewal in mid-2025 or mid-2026, do not anticipate a change in leadership in May. The current signatories will retain authority through November.
Lobbying Agreements: Review engagement letters with external lobbyists. Ensure contracts cover the extended election cycle, as the "lame duck" period will shift from Spring to Winter.

Hiring/Training

Human Resources (Voting Leave):

Staffing Buffers: November elections historically generate significantly higher voter turnout than May elections. If the jurisdiction moves its local election to November, expect longer wait times at polling places. You must adjust staffing schedules to accommodate extended absences for voting under Texas Election Code requirements.

Reporting & Record-Keeping

PACs and Corporate Political Activity:

Filing Calendar Reset: If the jurisdiction adopts the November date, the Texas Ethics Commission filing schedule for local candidates shifts. You must manually update compliance calendars:
Delete: 30-day and 8-day pre-election reports for May.
Add: 30-day and 8-day pre-election reports for November.
Blackout Periods: Ensure contribution blackout periods are adjusted to the fall cycle to avoid inadvertent violations.

Fees & Costs

No direct fee increases.
Indirect Costs: Potential increase in overtime costs to cover shifts during high-turnout November election days.

Strategic Ambiguities & Considerations

The "Will They/Won't They" Gap: The law *authorizes* the change but does not *mandate* it. The authority expires on January 1, 2027. This creates a 16-month window of uncertainty where local councils may or may not shift the date. Businesses cannot finalize 2026 political budgets until the local resolution is passed.
Jurisdictional Scope: While Alpine is explicit, the county definition (pop. 425,000+, adjacent to 3.3M+, containing San Jacinto River) is a "bracket" designed for Montgomery County. However, rapid population changes could theoretically pull other suburban counties into this bracket before the 2026 deadline.

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Legislative Timeline

This bill's path through the Texas Legislature

TopicsCity Government City Government--general Elections Elections--administration Elections--general Alpine, City of

Official Analysis

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BILL ANALYSIS

Senate Research Center	S.B. 914
89R4287 LRM-D	By: Blanco
	State Affairs
	3/5/2025
	As Filed

AUTHOR'S / SPONSOR'S STATEMENT OF INTENT

Currently, the City of Alpine holds elections for its officers on the May uniform election date. The City Council of Alpine believes moving to the November uniform election date will increase voter turnout and enhance convenience for residents. The statistics of voter participation in November elections have been over 1,000 voters as opposed to May elections where there have only been a few hundred voters participate.

This bill will authorize the City of Alpine to change its officer elections from May to the November uniform election date.

Key Provisions

S.B. 914 would:

Allow a city with a population of 9,000 or less, totaling an area of less than 6,200 square miles, to change the date on which it holds its general election to a November uniform election date.

Include an expiration date to expire this subsection on January 1, 2027.

As proposed, S.B. 914 amends current law relating to authorizing certain cities to change the date on which their general election for officers is held.

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 Section 41.0052(f), Election Code, as follows:

(f) Authorizes the governing body of a city with a population of 9,000 or less, located predominantly in a county that has a total area of less than 6,200, rather than 4,800, square miles, that has adopted a council-manager form of government and that holds its general election for officers on a date other than the November uniform election date, not later than December 31, 2026, rather than December 31, 2024, to change the date on which it holds its general election for officers to the November uniform election date. Provides that this subsection expires January 1, 2027, rather than January 1, 2025.

SECTION 2. Effective date: upon passage or September 1, 2025.

Senate Authors

Sen. Cesar BlancoDemocrat · Primary Author

House Sponsor

Rep. Eddie MoralesDemocrat · Primary Sponsor

Bill Text(with markup)

S.B. No. 914

View bill text in multiple formats on Texas Legislature website

Fiscal NoteView Original

	AN ACT
	relating to authorizing certain cities and counties to change the
	date on which their general election for officers is held.
	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
	SECTION 1. Section 41.0052, Election Code, is amended by
	adding Subsections (f) and (g) to read as follows:
	(f) The governing body of a city with a population of 9,000
	or less, located predominantly in a county that has a total area of
	less than 6,200 square miles, that has adopted a council-manager
	form of government and that holds its general election for officers
	on a date other than the November uniform election date may, not
	later than December 31, 2026, change the date on which it holds its
	general election for officers to the November uniform election
	date. Subsections (b), (c), and (d) apply to the change of an
	election date under this subsection. This subsection expires
	January 1, 2027.
	(g) The governing body of a county with a population of
	425,000 or more, that is adjacent to a county with a population of
	3.3 million or more, that contains a portion of the San Jacinto
	River, and that holds its general election for officers on a date
	other than the November uniform election date may, not later than
	December 31, 2026, change the date on which it holds its general
	election for officers to the November uniform election date.
	Subsections (b), (c), and (d) apply to the change of an election
	date under this subsection. This subsection expires January 1,
	2027.
	SECTION 2. This Act takes effect immediately if it receives
	a vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as
	provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this
	Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this
	Act takes effect September 1, 2025.

LEGISLATIVE BUDGET BOARD
Austin, Texas

FISCAL NOTE, 89TH LEGISLATIVE REGULAR SESSION


March 5, 2025

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

FROM:	Jerry McGinty, Director, Legislative Budget Board

IN RE:	SB914 by Blanco (Relating to authorizing certain cities to change the date on which their general election for officers is held.), As Introduced

No fiscal implication to the State is anticipated.

Local Government Impact

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

Source Agencies:

LBB Staff:

JMc, WP, BC, CWi

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Frequently Asked Questions

Common questions about SB914

What does Texas SB914 do?

SB914 grants specific authority to the City of Alpine and qualifying counties (statutory description targets the Montgomery County area) to move general officer elections from the May uniform date to the November uniform date. For businesses in these jurisdictions, this legislation extends the terms of current incumbent officials and shifts the compliance calendar for political contributions, bond elections, and employee voting leave. Implementation Timeline Effective Date: September 1, 2025.

Who authored SB914?

SB914 was authored by Texas Senator Cesar Blanco during the Regular Session.

When was SB914 signed into law?

SB914 was signed into law by Governor Greg Abbott on May 19, 2025.

Which agencies enforce SB914?

SB914 is enforced by City Councils (of qualifying municipalities), County Commissioners Courts (of qualifying counties) and Texas Secretary of State (Election Code oversight).

How urgent is compliance with SB914?

The compliance urgency for SB914 is rated as "low". Businesses and organizations should review the requirements and timeline to ensure timely compliance.

What is the cost impact of SB914?

The cost impact of SB914 is estimated as "low". This may vary based on industry and implementation requirements.

What topics does SB914 address?

SB914 addresses topics including city government, city government--general, elections, elections--administration and elections--general.

Legislative data provided by LegiScanLast updated: November 25, 2025

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