Candidates, officers, and political committees in the state of Texas may be required to file with either their local authority such as county clerk or city office OR the Texas Ethics Commission depending upon what type of office they are running for, what office is currently held, or what measures/candidates/officers are supported.
Who must file with a Local Authority: Local filers who run for and/or hold an office that may include county offices (county commissioner, tax assessor/collector, constable, justice of the peace, sheriff, etc.), city offices (mayor, council member, secretary, etc.), or political subdivision offices (school board, community college trustee, municipal utility district, water district, etc.), and all Specific-Purpose PACs that support or oppose any of these candidate/officeholders or that support or oppose a measure in a local election.
Who must file with the TEC: Filers who run for and/or hold statewide offices and multi-county offices that may include Governor, Lieutenant Governor, Attorney General, Comptroller, Railroad Commissioner, Land Commissioner, Agriculture Commissioner, State Chair of political party, Texas Senate, Texas House of Representatives, Multi-county District Attorney, State Board of Education, Supreme Court Justice, Court of Appeals Justice, Court of Criminal Appeals Judge, district judges, all Specific-Purpose PACs that support or oppose any of these candidate/officeholders or that support or oppose a measure submitted to the voters of the entire state and Specific-Purpose PACs created to support or oppose a measure on the issuance of bonds by a school district, all General-Purpose PACs, all political party County Executive Committees, all Legislative Caucuses, all candidates for Speaker of the Texas House of Representatives, all political parties that accept and/or maintain corporate contributions, and all persons filing Direct Campaign Expenditure reports, state officers and the state chair of each political party who file Personal Financial Statements, and state lobbyists.
Who must file Form 1295 Certificate of Interested Parties: Business entities and governmental entities and state agencies that plan to enter into certain contracts that require disclosure of interested parties per section 2252.908 of the Government Code.