The bill is HB 816.
From the DMN:
Davis expressed surprise that her “little bill” generated so much interest. Somebody send her that one memo about fighting with people who buy ink by the barrel… They pay attention.
As a comical aside, one witness was initially left off the witness list and nearly skipped. Before Davis closed on her bill arguments, the witness stood up and said she’d used the online witness registration kiosk outside the committee room door to register as a witness – but apparently that didn’t take.
The woman laughed and said, “I’m not on the Internet Superhighway.”
Then she revealed herself to be an executive board member of the AARP and testified against the bill.
And from the Chron:
Our voter turnout levels are already dismally low. Not knowing the location of a polling place, especially in the numerous special elections in which voting locations often are changed or consolidated, shouldn't cut those turnout numbers further. We fear that will be the unintended consequence of a bill by state Rep. Sarah Davis, R-Houston. Davis' HB 816 provides that: "If notice of a general or special election is given by publishing the notice in a newspaper, the notice may provide the address of an Internet web site that lists the location of each polling place instead of stating the location of each polling place."
We share Rep. Davis' view that notice should be on the Internet, but in certain circumstances, and for certain populations, making publishing of the polling location optional in paid public notices would present clear problems.
Many elderly and economically disadvantaged Texans still do not have ready access to the Internet in their home or via smart-phones. They rely on published notices. We do not want this "digital divide" to end up confusing or discouraging a single registered voter. We should be expanding access to important information such as this rather than limiting it.
