WEEK IN REVIEW
SENATE PASSES FLURRY OF MAJOR LEGISLATION
(AUSTIN) — In the first full week following the constitutional prohibition on considering legislation in the first 60-days of session, the Senate passed a number of bills at the top of Lt. Governor Dan Patrick’s priority list. As the body’s presiding officer, Patrick sets the agenda for the chamber and in the past has reserved the lowest bill numbers - 40 this session - for issues relating to his major goals for the session, in order to highlight those bills for legislators, the public, and the media. After Thursday, more than half of these bills have now been sent to the House.
Wednesday, the Senate approved what Patrick called one of the most important bills he’s supported in his statehouse career, a measure that would ban any product containing THC, the psychoactive chemical present in cannabis. A 2019 bill intended to create an industrial hemp fiber market in the state instead led to a massive, $8 billion industry selling products containing this chemical. SB 3, by Lubbock Senator Charles Perry, would close loopholes by banning the presence of any amount of THC in a consumable product sold in Texas.
The Senate also passed a plan to prepare the state for increased growth and the electrical demand that comes from it in the form of SB 6, by Weatherford Senator Phil King. With state regulators forecasting that electric demand in Texas will almost double by 2030, the bill intends to address needs by overhauling the way that the state predicts and permits new generation to ensure the state neither under- or over-builds capacity, regulating one-to-one “behind the meter” contracts between generators and consumers, and allowing for load shed to include future industrial and commercial projects, instead of just residential. Other bills passed this week addressing infrastructure and growth are SB 15, by Houston Senator Paul Bettencourt, which seeks to lower the cost of housing by limiting local authority to restrict new development in the state’s largest counties and SB 35, by Jacksonville Senator Robert Nichols, which would reduce the number of design-build contracts the Texas Department of Transportation can enter into from six to two, to encourage larger projects.
A number of bills passed this week would make important changes at public schools. SB 10, also by King, would require that all public classrooms display the Ten Commandments, and SB 11, by Galveston Senator Mayes Middleton, would allow for an optional period of prayer at public school campuses. SB 13, by McKinney Senator Angela Paxton, would give parents more say in what kinds of materials are allowed in school libraries, and SB 14, by Conroe Senator Brandon Creighton, would ban any DEI activities at public schools. All libraries that receive public funds would be prohibited from putting on “Drag Queen Story Hours” under SB 18, by Mineola Senator Bryan Hughes. SB 20, by Middleton, would ban materials featuring depictions of children deemed obscene from anything other than use by law enforcement. Middleton also saw the passage of SB 19, which would prohibit local entities from using public money to hire lobbyists in Austin.
More bills on the list are moving in committee, including Hughes’ SB 16, considered in the State Affairs Committee Thursday, which would require proof of citizenship to register to vote. The committee also voted out SB 8, by Georgetown Senator Charles Schwertner, which would mandate cooperation between local and federal immigration officials. Monday, the Water, Agriculture, and Rural Affairs Committee will take up the Senate’s marquee water bill, SB 7, authored by chair Senator Charles Perry. SB 1, the Senate version of the state budget, was passed out of the Finance Committee Wednesday, and could be presented before the full Senate by Finance chair and Houston Senator Joan Huffman as early as next week.
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