84th legislative session - Page 2

The bill filed by Texas State Representative Sylvester Turner (D-Houston) relating to the expansion of notification requirements relating to the deaths of children who are under the supervision of the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services (DFPS) moved one step closer to a vote on the House floor this week. The bill, (HB 1309), was sent to the Local and Consent Calendar on April 1.

A heated debate erupted over a proposed bill that would decriminalize truancy for minors in Texas. The Senate Committee on Criminal Justice hearing room was standing room only as legislators prepared to hear public testimony on the matter. Senate Bill

The bill in the Texas House that would allow gun owners with concealed carry licenses to carry concealed (CHL) handguns on public colleges and universities is one step closer to passage and becoming law. The Campus Carry Bill (HB 937) was passed out of the House Homeland Security and Public Safety Committee.

DALLAS, Texas — The US Department of Justice (DOJ) announced on Tuesday, March 31, that they opened an investigation of Dallas County Truancy Court and Juvenile District Courts. The investigation is being conducted through its Special Litigation Section of the Civil Rights Division.

WESLACO, Texas — The White House has been failing America in securing the border forcing Texas to step up to the plate and do what the federal government won’t do. That is the message that Texas governor Greg Abbott relayed during his most recent visit to the border.

Pro-vaccination legislative fever is sweeping the nation faster than the recent measles and whooping cough outbreaks combined. Texas is no exception. A glut of proposed mandatory inoculation bills are moving through the 84th Legislative session. These are bills that would threaten existing vaccination exemptions.

WESLACO, Texas – The most wide open area along the Texas border may soon get a boost in law enforcement presence as well as technology, said Texas Governor Greg Abbott. The border city of Laredo and its surrounding areas has a long history of being used for drug and human smuggling by the Los Zetas cartel. A lack of a border fence and populated areas just yards from the Rio Grande have led to detentions of illegal immigrants and drug smugglers around city streets Breitbart Texas previously published.

The Texas Senate has passed a package of bills that include substantial reforms to the state’s franchise tax, a tax on a business’ gross margins. Conservatives are cheering the news, and turning a hopeful eye toward the House, where the fate of these reforms now rests.

By a vote of 7-2, the Texas House Committee on Homeland Security and Public Safety passed a bill which will allow Texans with concealed carry licenses to openly carry firearms. The bill, HB 910, authored by Chairman Larry Phillips (R-Sherman), will now move to the House Calendars Committee where it will be scheduled to go to the floor for a vote by the entire Texas House.

AUSTIN, Texas — Republican Party of Texas (RPT) Chairman Tom Mechler spoke to Breitbart Texas to express his support for SB 1968, a bill filed by Senator Joan Huffman (R-Houston) that would end the practice of automatic payroll deductions for labor union dues for the majority of public-sector unions. Mechler was elected the new RPT Chairman in an election earlier this month.

AUSTIN, Texas — State Senator Dr. Charles Schwertner (R-Georgetown) sent an open letter on Tuesday to a group of business associations, challenging their opposition to SB 8, the Small Business Tax Relief Act. The bill was filed by Schwertner filed in February. The letter acknowledges the contribution that big businesses make to the Texas economy, but accuses them of neglecting the state’s small businesses in favor of protecting the interests of powerful big businesses.

Following the deaths of three children under the supervision of Texas Department of Family and Protective Service (DFPS), Texas Governor Greg Abbott (R) has directed the DFPS to implement comprehensive reforms. The reforms are aimed at protecting future and current children under the agency’s care. Nine children died under DFPS’ watch during 2014.

On March 24 Texas state representative Drew Springer (R-Muenster) introduced legislation to abolish gun free zones throughout the state of Texas.

Few public policy issues are more boring than public employee pensions.

Really, who wants to sit around the dinner table and talk about pension amortization, funded ratios, or unfunded liabilities? By comparison, C-SPAN 2 looks like a summer blockbuster.

Texas House Representative James White (R-Woodville) has filed H.B. 547 relating to the creation and dissolution of a covenant marriage. The law would allow couples to select to enter into an agreement for a covenant marriage. The law applies to populations between 54,000 and 56,000 in which more than 250 divorces are granted each year, or to counties where the commissioners court in the county have adopted an order authorizing persons to enter into covenant marriages. Bills providing for covenant marriages in Texas have not been successful in the past.

One Texas legislator seems to be finding criticism over a bill he filed too much to take, lashing out at critics on Twitter, then deleting some of his most intemperate remarks, as well as deleting critical comments from his Facebook page before finally taking down the page altogether.

AUSTIN, Texas — State Representative Jason Villalba (R-Dallas) is pushing back against critics of a bill he filed that would make it a crime for bloggers and independent journalists to film or photograph police officers. After the bill, HB 2918, was filed, it was the target of criticism from both the right and the left. Villalba has conceded he will make some amendments, but has continued to aggressively defend the bill. This week, the bill was referred to a committee and set for public hearing on March 26.

Border Patrol agents rescued two illegal immigrants who had been stuffed inside a speaker box in an effort to get around an immigration checkpoint.

On Thursday evening, March 19, the Irving City Council passed a resolution that expressed support for Texas House Bill 562, a proposed piece of legislation that is scheduled for its first public hearing in Austin next week. It is a bill that has been nicknamed American Laws for American Courts.

A bill filed by Texas State Senator Joan Huffman (R-Houston) could prove to be the financial death penalty for many public sector labor unions across the state. The bill, SB 1968, was filed at the very end of the bill filing period for this Legislative Session last Friday, and would end the practice of automatic payroll deductions for labor union dues for the majority of public sector unions.

AUSTIN, Texas – The Texas Senate, along a party-line vote, gave preliminary approval to the “Campus Carry Bill” which would allow people with a concealed handgun license (CHL) to carry a concealed handgun on public campuses of colleges and universities. The bill withstood a five hour floor debate and then more than two-dozen amendments. The preliminary vote came with a 20-11 vote.

Legislation to allow open carry by people licensed to carry concealed handguns and the authorization to carry concealed handguns on college campuses moved closer to passage after testimony was heard in a Texas House committee. Homeland Security and Public Safety Chairman Larry Phillips (R-Sherman) held two sessions for public testimony on Tuesday.

A bill aimed at cracking down on companies that intentionally misclassify workers as independent contractors rather than employees could help reduce the numbers of unlawful workers in Texas. Companies use worker misclassification as a tool to cheat the system and create an unfair competitive advantage over companies that properly classify their workers as employees. The misclassification also allows companies to cheat workers out of overtime pay and benefits. Additionally companies frequently use worker misclassification as a tool to work people not legally eligible to work in the United States.

On Monday, the Texas House passed on second reading HB 10, an omnibus anti-human trafficking bill, with a unanimous, bipartisan vote. The bill still needs a third reading but is expected to easily pass Tuesday morning and will be the first bill passed by the House this Session.

The Texas Senate passed the “open carry” bill, SB 17, on second reading Monday evening after about three and a half hours of debate. The vote was on partisan lines, with the 20 Republican Senators voting in favor of the bill, and the 11 Democrats voting against it. The bill still needs to go to third reading before it will be deemed officially passed by the Senate.

Texas State Senator Brandon Creighton (R-Conroe) told Breitbart Texas he expects franchise tax relief bills to pass in the Senate. Multiple bills proposing changes to Texas’ franchise tax have been filed in both chambers of the Texas Legislature, and multiple elected officials have told Breitbart Texas that they are hopeful that the 84th Legislative Session will see substantive changes to the tax, ultimately resulting in it being abolished. Creighton spoke to Breitbart Texas about a package of four bills that he had filed.

The Texas Senate is expected to a bring pro-gun open carry bill to the floor for a vote as early as Monday. The move comes after the 60-day bill filing period ended on Friday. The Texas Legislature may now vote on and pass any bills. Before the first sixty days has passed, the Legislature may only approve bills on issues designated as “emergency items” by the Governor.

Texas State Representative Jason Villalba (R-Texas) has found himself at the center of controversy after filing a bill that would make it a crime for bloggers and independent journalists — as well as regular citizens — to film police officers. Despite the backlash from free speech advocates, Villalba is insisting that his bill “does not infringe on constitutional rights” or “limit liberty in any way.”

The House Committee for Juvenile Justice & Family Issues heard testimony at the state Capitol in Austin on bills that either eased or ended truancy as a juvenile crime in the state of Texas. More than 200 people signed up to speak before the committee to air their opinions on the hotly contested topic on Wednesday, March 11.

What started as a protest by pro-life Texas legislators on abortion provider Planned Parenthood’s Day at the Capitol revealed some tensions between Republican legislators as the 84th Legislative Session hits its stride.

It was standing room only in a marathon meeting on the Texas House floor. Six proposed early childhood education bills were presented and debated before the House Committee on Public Education on Tuesday, March 10. The biggest issue of the day was half-day versus full-day of pre-Kindergarten (pre-K), although a frontrunner emerged in House Bill 4 (HB 4) authored by Rep. Dan Huberty (R-Houston).

A bill that would have Texas opt out of Daylight Savings Time (DST) will have a hearing in the Government Transparency and Operation Committee on Wednesday. If the bill is enacted into law, it will take effect on September 1, 2015 unless it receives a two-thirds majority. If this happens the law would take effect immediately upon being signed by Governor Greg Abbott.

AUSTIN, Texas – Shortly after being elected as chairman of the Republican Party of Texas, Tom Mechler paused for a moment to talk with Breitbart Texas about his vision for Texas politics and the daunting task of filling the Texas sized shoes of outgoing chairman Steve Munisteri. Mechler discussed building on the successes of the party in minority engagement, party unity, fundraising, and the importance of youth in the Republican Party. He also discussed the party’s new rules for selecting presidential delegates at the 2016 Republican Party State Convention.

Today, Texas is only one of two states that still criminalizes truancy. Texas prosecutes children for truancy at more than double the rate of all forty-nine other states combined. Schoolchildren are prosecuted, punished and fined for cutting classes and missing school. Their futures are often jeopardized by criminal records over their unlawful absenteeism.

Texas Governor Greg Abbott (R) announced an expedited schedule on Wednesday evening for the special election to fill the recently vacated seat for Texas House District 124. The election will be on March 31, 2015. The district primarily represents western portions of San Antonio and Bexar County.

AUSTIN, Texas – Texas Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick spoke with Breitbart Texas in an exclusive interview following a press conference on education. The Lt. Governor spoke about border security, tax relief for homeowners and businesses, and education reform. Patrick said