Texas Legislature
Texas Has the Highest Uninsured Rate in the Country. Lawmakers Haven’t Addressed it This Session.
In the Texas Legislature’s Final Days, Republicans Find New Ways to Attack Voting Rights
After the death of a high-profile voter suppression bill, Senate Republicans passed two other restrictive measures this week.
A sweeping Senate bill that would have increased penalties for election-related crimes and made it harder for volunteers to help elderly and disabled voters eff...Read More
Ready, Set, File: Transparency Bills Passed by Legislature Could Open the Door to Once-Public Records
If enacted, the measures would sew up the so-called Boeing and dead suspect loopholes, which the government has used thousands of times to keep taxpayer-funded deals and in-custody deaths private.
After a hard fight spanning four years and two legislatures, it looks like Texans’ right to know what their government is up to has been restored in important...Read More
Despite GOP Support in House, Bill to Provide Contraception to Low-Income Teens Stalls in Senate
House Bill 800 would save the state millions, reduce confusion among providers and lower Texas’ high teen birth rate, supporters say.
Texas has one of the highest teen birth rates in the country, with almost 27,000 babies born to teen mothers in 2017, and the highest rate of repeat pregnancies...Read More
The GOP Failed to Ban Paid Sick Leave and the Business Lobby is Livid
Texas businesses are growing increasingly disgruntled that Dan Patrick appears unable to stop poisoning their political agenda with right-wing social warfare.
One of the the biggest priorities for Texas Republicans this session appears to be on the verge of legislative death. A series of bills that would broadly prohi...Read More
The $9 Billion School Finance Problem in Speaker Bonnen’s Backyard
While legislators focused on school finance and property taxes, a silent culprit continued to metastasize. If Chapter 313, a corporate welfare program, is left unaddressed, it could undermine any progress made this session, critics warn.
There’s a $9 billion (and growing) problem looming in the backyard of House Speaker Dennis Bonnen. That problem is formally known as Chapter 313. As Texas’ ...Read More
Texans ‘Will Die’: House Republicans Pass Anti-Planned Parenthood Bill After Emotional Debate
Senate Bill 22 is the latest in the Legislature’s years-long vendetta against Planned Parenthood. Despite the GOP sponsor refusing to debate the bill, it could soon land on the governor’s desk.
With her voice cracking, state Representative Ana-Maria Ramos described her experience of being a struggling teen mom on the Texas House floor on Friday. A moth...Read More
Texas Republicans Poised to Make Voting ‘Harder, Scarier and More Confusing’
SB 9’s passage out of committee Friday sets the stage for a heated debate over voting rights in the waning days of the session.
A bill raising criminal penalties for certain election-related offenses and imposing new voting restrictions cleared a major hurdle Friday, setting the stage fo...Read More
Yes, I am a Sorceress
Representative Jonathan Stickland has brought the dark truth at the heart of pediatric medicine to light.
Last week, Baylor pediatrician-scientist and vaccine advocate Dr. Peter Hotez pointed out on Twitter that vaccination rates in some Texas schools have fallen be...Read More
With a Bizarre Assist by Democrats, Police Groups Kill Bill to Limit Arrests for Fine-Only Offenses
A combination of incompetence and sabotage appears to have killed a police reform bill that had passed the House with an overwhelming bipartisan majority.
Law enforcement’s ability to arrest Texans for crimes punishable only by fine, including traffic violations, will likely remain unchecked after House Democrat...Read More