Texas HB 2253: When a Disaster Can Change a Bond Election

Texas House Bill 2253 was passed during the 89th Legislative Session and addresses a specific situation: cancellation of certain bond elections when a disaster affects the local authority holding the election.

This bill is narrower than many other election bills.

It does not change ordinary election administration.

It creates an emergency path for canceling a measure that authorizes the issuance of bonds under specific conditions.

What Actually Changed?

HB 2253 amends Section 2.081 of the Texas Election Code.

Under the bill, the authority that ordered an election on a measure to authorize the issuance of bonds may cancel the election on that measure if certain conditions are met.

The bill requires that, not earlier than the 90th day before the election, the Governor issue a disaster declaration under Chapter 418 of the Government Code regarding a natural disaster or other disaster threatening the health, safety, or general welfare of the authority’s residents.

The governing body must then hold an open meeting and determine by majority vote that canceling the election is necessary because of:

damage to the authority’s election system
the need to avoid harm to election workers
the need to avoid harm to voters within the authority’s jurisdiction

The Secretary of State’s 2025 legislative summary states that the governing body must provide reasonable public notice of the meeting and allow members of the public and press to observe the meeting, to the extent practicable under the circumstances.

The bill took effect immediately.

Why This Matters

Bond elections often involve local governments, school districts, and other political subdivisions asking voters to authorize public debt.

HB 2253 recognizes that a disaster close to Election Day can affect whether it is safe or practical to proceed with that election.

The bill is not a general cancellation tool.

It applies to a measure authorizing the issuance of bonds and only when the specific disaster-related conditions in the statute are met.

What This Means for Election Offices

For election officials, HB 2253 may affect planning when a local authority has a bond measure on the ballot and a disaster declaration is issued close to the election.

If a bond measure is canceled, the authority holding the election must post notice of the cancellation during early voting by personal appearance and on Election Day at each polling place that would have been used for the election on the measure.

The bill also allows a county election officer to use a single combined notice of cancellation for all authorities for which the officer provides election services under contract and that cancel an election on a measure or remove a measure from the ballot.

That means county election offices providing contracted election services may need to coordinate closely with local authorities if cancellation becomes an issue.

Operational Questions to Consider

Some questions worth reviewing before a disaster occurs:

Which local authorities have bond measures on the ballot?
Who would make the decision to cancel the measure?
What public notice process would be used?
How would the county election officer be notified?
How would polling place notices be prepared and posted?
How would ballots, public notices, websites, and voter communications be updated?
What documentation would be retained after the decision?

These are not questions an office wants to answer for the first time during an active emergency.

Continuing the Conversation

HB 2253 gives local authorities a specific emergency path to cancel certain bond elections when a qualifying disaster threatens voters, workers, or the election system.

For election offices, the key issue is coordination.

If a disaster affects a scheduled bond election, the legal decision, public meeting, notice requirements, ballot impacts, and polling place communication all need to move quickly and clearly.

How is your office thinking about disaster planning for local measures and contracted elections?