November 10, 2017 HAND DELIVERED Ms. Seana Willing NOV 10 2017 Executive Director Texas Ethics Commission ‘Texas Ethics Commission 201 East 14th Street, 10th Floor Austin, Texas 78701 Re: Request for Advisory Opinion Dear Ms. Willing: As a member of the Texas House of Representatives, | request the Commission's opinion under Section 571.091, Government Code, on the application ofthe legislative bribery provisions of Chapter 302, Government Code, to certain activity by the Republican Party of Texas (RPT). also ask whether a candidate for election to the House of Representatives in 2018 commits legislative bribery if they enter into an agreement with the RPT to cast a vote for speaker with the understanding that they will be supported by the RPT for that vote. RPT isa general-purpose political committee (GPAC) that has a campaign treasurer appointment on file with the Commission. According to reports on file with the Commission, the RPT disburses millions of dollars in political contributions. The RPT has posted on its website and (upon information and belief) circulated to individuals seeking nomination by the Republican primary as a candidate for the Texas House of Representatives, a document titled "Republican Caucus Speaker Selection Commitment Form.” ‘The form also notes that “the Republican Party of Texas Platform, adopted by the delegates to the 2016 Republican State Convention, calls ‘for the Republican members to caucus after each November general election to determine by secure secret ballot, their candidate for Speaker. We also call for the Republican members to vote as a unified body for their selected speaker candidate when the legislature convenes in regular session(.)” This form states that “the primary function of the Republican Party of Texas is to elect candidates that embrace the principles articulated by the Republican Party of Texas Platform," It asks the candidate to “indicate whether you commit to supporting the Republican speaker candidate who wins the majority of the votes in the Republican Caucus” and to return the completed “commitment form” to the RPT. The RPT’s website exhorts viewers (and presumably Republican primary voters) to “make sure the candidate you support has filed their commitment to the Republican Party of Texas!” ‘The Commission has decided that a GPAC commits legislative bribery under Section 302.032, Government Code, if the GPAC “places a candidate on notice that the committee will base is decision on whether or not to support the candidate on the candidate's response.” Ethics Comm. Op. No. 479 (2008). The Commission similarly decided that a candidate for the Texas House commits legislative bribery if the candidate were to commit to vote a particular way for speaker in exchange for an economic benefit or the withholding of an economic benefit by the GPAC.Ms. Seana Willing Texas Ethics Commission November 10, 2017 Here, the RPT claims on the face of the form that its principal purpose is electing Republican candidates who support the Republican platform, which in turn calls for the disenfranchisement in the selection of speaker of any candidate who is not a Republican. That appears on its face that the RPT is conditioning its support of candidates on their willingness to commit to support the speaker candidate nominated by the Republican caucus in the House next November, and to essentially require an elected member of the House to disregard the wishes of their constituents and their own personal convictions in casting a vote for one of the most powerful offices in Texas government. | would also note that the RPT has not posted or distributed similar forms for other Republican platform items. ‘The RPT does expressly disclaim that their “commitment form” “is not intended to aid or defeat a ‘speaker candidate’ as that term is defined in Government Code 302.011.” This disclaimer, however, seems directly at odds with the statements within the form. In any event, this disclaimer is ineffective as a matter of law. The definition of a “speaker candidate” under Section 302.011, Government Code, is “a member of or candidate for the house of representatives who has announced his candidacy for or who by his actions, words, or deeds seeks election to the office of speaker of the house of representatives.” However, the law regarding legislative bribery by a GPAC applies much more broadly, stating that “a person commits an offense if, with the intent to influence a member of or candidate for the house of representatives in casting a vote for speaker of the house of representatives, the person” attempts to have votes given or withheld for speaker. Govt. Code § 302.032 (emphasis added) ‘The choice of language indicates that legislative bribery under Chapter 302 was intended to apply to more than merely a particular commitment to vote for a declared speaker candidate as defined in Section 302,011. The statutory scheme indicates that Sections 302.032 and 302.033 are intended to cover more than merely declared speaker candidates. They seek to prohibit bribery in the process, including attempts by outside GPACs to meddle in the constitutional requirement that members of the House of Representatives select a speaker. Upon acknowledgement of this request, | wish to submit additional briefing for the Commission's Use in resolving this matter. Please do not hesitate to contact me if you require any further information. Sincerely,