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Good morning, 

A city has de-annexed property slated for a Muslim development ... Schools could lose their immunity in abuse cases ... And the House kills an anti-ESG push.

This is the Texas Minute for Thursday, May 15, 2025.

– Michael Quinn Sullivan 

Texas Lawmakers in D.C. Join Push to Cement Trump’s Agenda in Law

• Brandon Waltens reports that a group of Republican U.S. House members—including several from Texas—are publicly pressuring the speaker of the House to act swiftly to codify President Donald Trump’s executive actions into permanent law.
     
• In a letter sent this week, the lawmakers warned that without congressional action, “many of these victories are at risk” if a Democrat returns to the White House. Among the Texans signing the letter were Keith Self of McKinney, Brandon Gill of Flower Mound, Randy Weber of Friendswood, and Michael Cloud of Victoria.
     
• The signers specifically call on House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) to maintain the same sense of urgency that House Republicans applied earlier this year to the passage of a significant budget package. 

Legislation Would Abolish Public Schools’ Immunity in Sex Abuse Cases

• With school sex abuse cases on the rise, members of the Texas House passed legislation to help Texas families hold school districts accountable by removing public schools’ immunity from civil liability when students are sexually abused. Erin Anderson has the details.
   
• Legislation by State Rep. Mitch Little (R–Lewisville) would remove sovereign immunity from school districts for acts and omissions by their professional employees that constitute crimes of sexual misconduct or failure to report suspected abuse. The measure must be approved by the Senate and sent to the governor before June 2 if it is to take effect.
      
• An analysis by the parent advocacy group Texas Education 911, titled "State-Sponsored Child Abuse," found thousands of cases of educator sexual misconduct were reported to the Texas Education Agency over a three-year period. Yet, as Little told his colleagues on the House floor, "enforcement actions remain either inconsistent or nonexistent."
       
• Numerous states have enacted similar laws during the past several years, including Pennsylvania, North Carolina, California, Michigan, Maryland, and New York.
      
• While public schools currently enjoy this immunity, private schools in Texas can be sued for their actions and omissions in such cases. As Little noted, "I’ve sued some of them."

House Committee Kills Anti-ESG Effort in Late Vote

• A measure aimed at further cracking down on the use of "environmental, social, and governance" standards in corporate decision-making was defeated in the Texas House Judiciary and Civil Jurisprudence Committee, effectively ending the bill’s chances this session.
     
• Legislation authored by State Rep. Brian Harrison (R-Midlothian) would have shifted the legal burden of proof in certain shareholder lawsuits, requiring corporations accused of improperly considering ESG factors to prove their actions were in the company’s best interest.
   
• ESG is a leftwing framework increasingly used by activist investors to evaluate companies based on non-financial factors. Environmental criteria assess how a company manages its environmental impact. Social criteria examine how a company treats employees, customers, and the communities in which it operates. Governance refers to a company’s internal practices and policies, including board diversity, executive compensation, and shareholder rights.
      

• Critics argue that ESG policies often prioritize progressive political goals over fiduciary responsibilities to shareholders. 

      
• "Texas voted for Trump, but House leadership has been advancing the Biden agenda all session by supporting DEI, transgender indoctrination, corporate welfare, and high taxes. So it’s unsurprising they are also protecting liberal ESG by killing my bill to help stop it in Texas." – Brian Harrison

OTHER HOUSE NEWS

• Luca Cacciatore reports that the proposed amendment would specifically establish that parents, not the state, have an inherent right to the care, custody, and control of their children. Voters must now approve the amendment in November.
      
• Jeremy Newman, director of public policy for the Texas Home School Coalition, said that if voters agree, Texas will be the first state to enshrine parental rights in its constitution.

City Deannexes Muslim-owned Properties

• With three newly elected members in place, the Blue Ridge City Council voted to undo its annexation of two Muslim-owned properties slated for development, addressing months of citizen complaints about the proposed Islamic communities.
   
• The developments, known as Baladeyah and Qariyah of Princeton, have been in the works for five years but dominated the city’s last two council meetings as final approvals became imminent. In March, residents of Blue Ridge and surrounding areas asked council members to delay a scheduled vote to approve development agreements for the projects.
      
• Residents raised concerns about the strain on city infrastructure and services, whether the developments could become religiously “segregated” communities, and the impact of a large Muslim population on city voting. They also noted technical issues involving the city’s annexation agreements with the property owners.
      
• A spokesman for the Muslim developers told Texas Scorecard he wasn’t sure what the next steps will be for the projects.

Transactional Gold Legislation Moves Forward in Senate

• Legislation to allow Texans to use precious metals in financial transactions is moving forward in the Texas Senate, but, as Adam Cahn reports, the measure faces pushback from the financial industry.
   
• House Bill 1056 by State Rep. Mark Dorazio (R–San Antonio) invokes a frequently overlooked provision in the U.S. Constitution to permit the state comptroller to authorize the use of gold and silver as currency. An amended version of Dorazio's legislation passed out of the House in early May.
   
• During a hearing this week, a spokesman for the Independent Bankers Association of Texas told the Senate Finance Committee that gold was a “predatory” industry.
       
• In 2024, 76 percent of Republican Primary voters supported a non-binding ballot proposition calling for the use of gold and silver as legal tender in the state.  

Quote-Unquote

"There is danger from all men. The only maxim of a free government ought to be to trust no man living with power to endanger the public liberty."

– John Adams​

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