(a) A determination to accept or refuse a political contribution that is received by a candidate, officeholder, or political committee shall be made not later than the end of the reporting period during which the contribution is received.
(b) If the determination to accept or refuse a political contribution is not made before the time required by Subsection (a), for purposes of this chapter, the contribution is considered to have been accepted on the last day of that reporting period.

Attorney's Note

Under the Texas Codes, punishments for crimes depend on the classification. In the case of this section:
ClassPrisonFine
Class A misdemeanorup to 1 yearup to $4,000
For details, see Texas Penal Code § 12.21

Terms Used In Texas Election Code 254.034

  • Person: includes corporation, organization, government or governmental subdivision or agency, business trust, estate, trust, partnership, association, and any other legal entity. See Texas Government Code 311.005

(c) A political contribution that is received but not accepted shall be returned to the contributor not later than the 30th day after the deadline for filing a report for the reporting period during which the contribution is received. A contribution not returned within that time is considered to be accepted.
(d) A candidate, officeholder, or political committee commits an offense if the person knowingly fails to return a political contribution as required by Subsection (c).
(e) An offense under this section is a Class A misdemeanor.