Summary: Willow Park Civics is providing a blog of articles on specific legislative topics, during the 88th Texas Legislative Session. We will update and repost this blog as new information develops about GENERAL LEGISLATIVE issues and activities. Texas legislature general information, tutorials, and historical background are also included.
Latest Updates: Wednesday, 20 January, 2023
Select #Tags for additional articles: #PropertyTax, #StateLegislation
General Legislative Info on the 88th TX Legislative Session
Basic tutorials in Red.
Added Week of Friday, 20 January 2023.
• Broadband, Education, and Gun Control: Big City Mayors Announce Legislative Priorities, The Texan, 16 January 2023
• As lawmakers begin a new session, Texas mayors want to maintain control of local issues, The Texas Tribune, 13 January 2023, Excerpts. Preserving local control will be a central issue this legislative session, San Antonio Mayor Ron Nirenberg said at a conference Friday along with eight other members of the Texas’ Big City Mayors coalition. “As mayors with the responsibility of managing services and operations that largely impact the daily lives of our residents, we believe we are best positioned to determine local policies,” he said. / The bipartisan coalition is made up of 18 mayors [including Fort Worth Mayor] who, combined, represent nearly one-third of the state’s population.
Fort Worth Mayor Mattie Parker said expanding broadband infrastructure is one of the biggest priorities for her city. / Parker said 60,000 Fort Worth residents do not have internet access in their homes — an issue the city tried to start mending itself with a free community Wi-Fi program in five neighborhoods.
[According] to the U.S. Census Bureau, of the 2.8 million Texas residents without broadband access, those in rural areas are disproportionately affected. / Texas Comptroller Glenn Hegar released an updated version Thursday of the state’s broadband development map to show areas lacking reliable, high-speed internet access. This map will be used to allocate $42 billion in federal funding to establish high-speed internet in underserved areas.
• Another Casualty in House Rules Debate: Transparency, Texans for Fiscal Responsibility, 12 January 2023
Editorial Note: Willow Park Civics has contacted the Willow Park, TX House Representative (D60) Glenn Rogers asking about his position on these transparency amendments.
Excerpts. On Wednesday, Day 2 of the 88th Legislative Session, the Texas House of Representatives considered House Resolution 4, or the proposed rules that will guide their efforts over the remainder of the legislative session and interim period.
Lawmakers made several attempts to apply additional transparency to the steps of the legislative process, which have proven to be problematic to both lawmakers and the general public alike in assigning accountability for specific actions. Nearly all of the efforts failed.
Record Votes on Legislation Stuck in Committees. One amendment sought to ensure that legislation that had received a public hearing in committee could be brought to a record vote of the committee members at the request of the author of the legislation. In current practice, legislation could receive a hearing but then linger in the committee itself without ever actually being considered, ending its legislative prospects, often with no explanation to the legislation’s author... This allows lawmakers to diffuse any accountability for the legislation’s prospects being ended, because it never is officially voted on. In these situations, the public never get to see which lawmakers may have been opposed to such legislation.
The Unofficial Practice of “Tagging.” So, what is “tagging”? It is an informal system that allows a lawmaker to “tag” or make note of a particular piece of legislation that they are opposed to for whatever reason and delay or prevent it from being placed on a calendar for the House of Representatives to consider without having to take a record vote on it, thereby avoiding accountability. It is one of the reasons the calendars committees in the House are ranked as the most powerful, for their gatekeeping capabilities and ability to obfuscate the legislative process.
• Legislature Votes to Raise Office Budgets at Taxpayers’ Expense, Texans for Fiscal Responsibility, 11 January 2023, Excerpts. Only two days into the 88th Legislative Session, both legislative chambers made a mad dash to give their offices as much money as they could squeeze out of Texas taxpayers. As expected, they used the usual excuses: to keep up with inflation and to “help hire quality staff.” The problem with this narrative is that the percentage by which they raised office allocations was 26% (Texas House of Representatives) and 46% (Texas Senate), respectively. This is far higher than the near 9% inflation Texans have dealt with over the last year.
Added Week of Friday, 13 January 2023.
• Back to the basics, Texas Scorecard, 10 January 2023, Learn the ins-and-outs of the Texas legislative process as the 88th session begins -- in a five minute video.
• Ahead of legislative session, most viewed bills filed relate to parental rights, child abuse, The Center Square, 09 January 2023. According to the data, the most viewed bills filed for the 88th legislative session relate to parental rights and child abuse. They include bills filed defining a sexually oriented business, several to define child abuse, and some related to prosecuting offenders who abandon or endanger a child.
• What Are the House Deadlines During the 88th Legislature? Texas Scorecard, 09 January, 2023. With the 88th Legislative Session beginning on January 10, citizens must know the important deadlines they’ll need to confront in order to ensure bills they support have a shot to pass the Texas House and Senate and to be signed by the Governor.
• Texas Legislature 101: Understanding the state government and how it passes laws, The Texas Tribune, 10 January 2023. Here’s a rundown of how a bill becomes a law, how the Texas Legislature works and the power players who keep things moving under the Pink Dome.
• Live video from the Texas House and Senate,The Texas Tribune is streaming the 2023 legislative session live from the Texas House and Senate chambers.
• Texas Senate Gavels In. Will this session be conservative or “productive?”Texas Scorecard, 10 January, 2023, Excerpts. Historically considered the more conservative chamber of the Texas Legislature, the Senate moved even further to the right during the 2022 election cycle with a 19-12 Republican majority. / With the House expected to debate the merits of awarding valuable committee chairmanships to Democrats later this week, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, who serves as president of the Senate and determines committee appointments, has said that only one Democrat will chair a committee in the Senate this cycle. / Patrick will also designate several bills in the Senate as priority legislation. He previewed his priorities last fall, focusing on property taxes, Texas’ electric grid, and election security.
• New Members, New Dynamics for Texas Senate in 88th Regular Legislative Session, The Texan, 10 January 2023
A large group of freshmen senators is changing up the political landscape in the upper chamber of the Texas Legislature,
• Members of the 88th Texas Legislative Session Listed, The Texan, 18 November 2022
• 2023 Texas Legislative Session Themes to Watch, The Texan, 02 January, 2023, Excerpts. Here’s a list of top themes to watch for as the 181-member body convenes for its biennial 140-day sprint toward sine die: Abbott’s Emergency Items, Antechamber Relationships, Lingering Border Crisis, Budget and How to Spend the Surplus, School Choice, Controversial Content in Public Schools, Child Gender Modification, Property Tax Tweak or Overhaul?, Second Try on Bail Reform, Power Grid Redux, Chapter 313 Revival.
• Infrastructure, Energy, Education Mark Legislative Priority Issues for West Texas as Session Nears, The Texan, 03 January 2023
• Overshadowed by Property Taxes, Business Tax Reform is Something to Watch in 2023 Session, The Texan, 30 November 2022, Excerpts If Gov. Greg Abbott has his way, when the Texas Legislature reconvenes next year, one of the many items on its plate will be tweaks made to certain business tax policies. / Texas has one of the most attractive business climates, topping the list of Chief Executive’s 2022 best states for business list — as it has for 18 years in a row. The CEOs in the survey said that “[Texas’] combination of a fast-growth population and a low-tax, low-regulation business climate is proven catnip for companies.”
• Texas 88th Legislation Session, First Filings, Willow Park Civics Blog, 23 November 2022
• What Are the House Deadlines During the 88th Legislature? Texas Scorecard, 09 January, 2023. With the 88th Legislative Session beginning on January 10, citizens must know the important deadlines they’ll need to confront in order to ensure bills they support have a shot to pass the Texas House and Senate and to be signed by the Governor.
• Amending the Texas Constitution, Quorum Reduction, Term Limits, Convention of States Among Constitutional Amendments Filed by State Rep. Vasut, The Texan, 23 November 2022
State Rep. Cody Vasut (R-Angleton) wants to amend the Texas Constitution — so much so that he’s already filed nine different proposals to accomplish that in a variety of different ways. Pre-filing for the 88th Legislative Session began on November 14, and Vasut has been busy; he’s filed 30 bills in total, nearly one-third of which are related to amending the constitution.
The Texas Constitution is unlike the U.S. Constitution — it’s been amended over 500 times. Its significance for legislators rests in the higher difficulty for repealing an amendment. For example, in 2019, the Legislature and then voters approved an amendment prohibiting the issuance of a state income tax. Functionally, the amendment raised the legislative number necessary to establish an income tax from a simple majority to a two-thirds majority.
It raises the bar of difficulty to pass whatever policy it addresses; Texas Legislators made clear they not only wanted to prevent an income tax, but to make it that much harder for future legislatures to implement one.
Behind most constitutional amendment proposals is that intention: to cement a certain policy as permanently as possible under the constitutional order.
Additional Resources
Texas Council of Community Centers > 88th Legislative Session
Texas State political party platforms
Republican Legislative Priorities, Texas Scorecard, 14 November 2022
Dates of Interest for the 88th Regular Session, Legislative Reference Library of Texas, 12 October 2022
Legislative Dates and Deadlines:
Tuesday, November 8, 2022: General election for federal, state, and county officers. [Texas Election Code, Section 41.001]
Monday, November 14, 2022: Bill prefiling begins. [House Rule 8, Section 7 and Senate Rule 7.04]
Tuesday, January 10, 2023: 88th Legislature convenes at noon. [Texas Constitution, Article III, Section 5; Texas Government Code, Section 301.001]
Friday, March 10, 2023: 60-day bill filing deadline. [Texas Constitution, Article III, Section 5]
Monday, May 29, 2023: Adjournment sine die. [Texas Constitution, Article III, Section 24]
Sunday, June 18, 2023: Post-session 20-day deadline for Governor to sign or veto. [Texas Constitution, Article IV, Section 14]
Effective Dates: Time of Taking Effect of Laws. [Texas Constitution, Article III, Section 39]