With early voting in Texas' 2026 midterm elections less than three months away, state lawmakers spent this week examining whether election officials are prepared for the fast-approaching cycle, pressing state and local officials over persistent problems with the statewide voter registration system, the process for identifying potential noncitizen voters, and the cost of implementing sweeping election reforms passed last year.

The Texas House Elections Committee heard two days of testimony beginning Monday from election administrators across the state, with much of the discussion centered on the Texas Election Administration Management (TEAM) system, the statewide voter registration database used by all 254 counties.

"This has been a challenging year with respect to [TEAM] because we did roll out a new system," Texas Secretary of State Elections Division Director Christina Adkins told lawmakers.

While every county relies on TEAM, 24 of the state's largest counties access the database through third-party vendors rather than using the system directly. That arrangement became a challenge last year after vendor Votec warned it was facing financial difficulties, forcing former Secretary of State Jane Nelson to oversee an emergency transition of 11 counties to the state's system at a cost of about $660,000.

Adkins acknowledged that counties have continued reporting problems with the updated database but said the state's vendor, Civix, successfully transitioned those counties ahead of the 2025 constitutional amendment election. She also noted that TEAM required additional updates to accommodate Texas' mid-decade redistricting, delaying precinct and map changes in some counties, including Harris County.

The system's performance drew questions from Rep. Valoree Swanson (R-Spring), who said county officials have repeatedly told her office they still depend on outside vendors because TEAM lacks needed functionality.

Adkins said the Secretary of State's office has hired outside consultants to evaluate the system and recommend improvements.

Lawmakers also revisited the state's ongoing effort to identify registered voters who may not be U.S. citizens.

Last year, the Secretary of State's office identified more than 2,700 registered voters whose records suggested they could be noncitizens. Counties were instructed to notify those voters and request proof of citizenship, canceling registrations only if they failed to respond within 30 days.

"My understanding is that the big counties are not reporting that to you: the ones that are not on TEAM," Swanson said. "So, have you asked those counties to send in the information of who they're sending these letters out to, asking if they're a citizen, and if so, how many have cooperated?"

Adkins said her office has not specifically requested that information from counties, though it can determine whether a voter registration has ultimately been canceled.

"We can make that request for information to our counties, but I don't know that they have a legal obligation to tell us what details and what steps they took along the way to get to that [cancellation]," she said.

Rep. John Bucy (D-Cedar Park) questioned whether the state's verification process could mistakenly affect eligible voters, noting that some people initially flagged as potential noncitizens were later confirmed to be U.S. citizens. Bucy raised concerns about the state's use of the federal Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements (SAVE) database while Adkins said the Secretary of State is also comparing those records with information maintained by the Texas Department of Public Safety.

Bucy argued that "we're canceling citizens' access to the ballot box … right before an election."

Committee Chairman Matt Shaheen (R-Plano) pushed back, emphasizing that voters identified through the process are not automatically removed from the voter rolls.

"There's still other pieces of the process as far as they're notified, given the opportunity to address this inconsistency," Shaheen said.

Beyond the voter database, county election officials warned lawmakers that implementing Senate Bill 2753 is creating significant operational and financial challenges.

The law, passed in 2025, expands early voting through Election Day and requires polling locations to remain open for nine hours on the Sunday before Election Day. Election administrators testified those changes have complicated staffing, increased costs and could limit the use of churches as polling places because of scheduling conflicts.

Harris County Clerk Teneshia Hudspeth said the expanded voting opportunities come with substantial new expenses.

"Using data from previous elections, Harris County estimates that SB 2753 could increase the cost of administering a large countywide election, such as a presidential election, by nearly 30 percent, while smaller elections can increase by approximately 9 percent," Hudspeth said.

Hudspeth also cautioned that voters should expect slower election-night reporting under the new law because early in-person votes and mail ballots will no longer be released shortly after 7 p.m. on Election Day.

"We will definitely need funding and support to educate Texas as a whole and our constituents on just how major this change is, because of course they're going to not be so happy with the election officials that don't have results out, and you know the conspiracy theories begin," she said.

Bucy said he believes the additional weekend voting opportunities are worth the tradeoff if it means more Texans have access to the polls, even if unofficial election results take longer to report.

Although counties have until August 2027 to fully implement SB 2753, Swanson said lawmakers should revisit parts of the law during the next legislative session.

The committee also discussed improving training for local election officials, expanding the Secretary of State's oversight authority and the challenges of using hand-marked paper ballots in large counties. Earlier this year, the Secretary of State placed Val Verde County's elections division under state oversight following ongoing concerns with the county's election administration.

Shaheen closed one exchange by challenging complaints that the election law amounts to an unfunded mandate for counties.

"Counties are an extension of the state, so your whole existence is an unfunded mandate. It's you're an extension of the state, and the state tells you what you need to manage, and you have been given the authority to tax, and so I'm a little conflicted on the whole 'because of this change counties need more money,'" Shaheen said.