| (a) Upon request of the Council, the Commissioner shall
conduct and prescribe the manner to conduct a referendum under Texas
Agriculture Code, §41.162.
(b) Notice of the referendum shall be published at
least once in one or more newspapers published and distributed within
the boundaries in which the Council operates. The notice shall be
published at least 60 days before the date of the referendum. In addition,
at least 60 days before the date of the referendum, the Department
will give direct written notice to each Extension office in the state.
(c) Notice provided in accordance with subsection (b)
of this section shall include:
(1) the date of the referendum;
(2) the manner in which the referendum is to be conducted
and the assessment collected;
(3) the purpose of the referendum;
(4) if an assessment referendum is being conducted,
the maximum assessment to be paid by producers;
(5) if held by physical balloting, the date, hours,
and polling places for voting in the referendum and election, and
the manner in which ballots will be distributed and deadline for submission
of ballots;
(6) whether a producer exemption is to be allowed,
or whether the assessment shall be collected on a refund-only basis;
and
(7) who to contact for more information.
(d) Ballots must bear the signature and the address
of the producer to be valid. A producer's signature on the ballot
certifies that the voter owned cattle in the last 12 months before
the date of the referendum.
(e) A canvassing committee appointed by the Commissioner
shall count the ballots and verify the referendum results to the Commissioner
for certification. Referendum results will be certified by the Commissioner.
(f) After the ballots are canvassed and the results
certified by the Commissioner, the ballots shall be locked in a container
and stored at the Headquarters for a period of 45 days. The container
containing referendum ballots cannot be opened for the 45-day period
without a court order or written request for recount. If no contests
arise out of the referendum within 45 days after certification of
such referendum, the Commissioner shall destroy the ballots by shredding.
(g) The referendum will be conducted in person and
ballots will be available for eligible producers to vote at all Extension
offices. Eligible producers may vote during normal office hours of
the Extension offices during the voting period.
(1) An eligible producer who is unable to access an
Extension office to vote may request a mail ballot by contacting Headquarters.
No eligible producer requesting a mail ballot shall be refused a ballot.
(2) Ballots will be mailed to Headquarters, by the
Extension offices via paid postage and by a deadline to be determined
by the Department;
(3) Ballots submitted to the Department by mail shall
be maintained at Headquarters.
(h) A watcher may be present at Headquarters for the
purpose of observing the processing of election results and until
members of the canvassing committee complete their duties. Written
notice of intent to be present during processing must be submitted
to the Department at least 3 days prior to canvassing.
(i) Request for Recount. A request for recount must:
(1) be in writing;
(2) state the grounds for the recount;
(3) be submitted to the Commissioner within 10 calendar
days of canvass results; and
(4) be signed by the person requesting the recount
or, if there is more than one person, any one or more of them and
state each requesting person's name and residence address. If the
request is made on behalf of an organization or association, the person
submitting the request must state that they are authorized to request
a recount on behalf of the organization or association.
(j) Conduct of Recount. A recount will be conducted
by the Department, under the supervision of a representative of the
Office of the Secretary of State.
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