Good morning,

Here is today's Texas Minute.

– Brandon Waltens

Monday, May 17, 2021

Modify your email preferences [[link removed]].

There are only two weeks left in the regular legislative session in Austin. Last Thursday marked an important deadline, as it was the last day the House could pass House bills, according to its self-imposed rule.

As the clock struck midnight, hundreds of bills died. Here are where the Texas GOP priorities stand right now.

Election Integrity

Election integrity is a hot topic in the Texas Legislature this session—yet, as of May 15, not one priority election reform bill has been sent to the governor’s desk.

The Senate passed five of its six RPT-priority election integrity bills in April. The House passed one of its 16 RPT-priority bills in April and two more this month; one more is still active, and the rest are dead.

Erin Anderson [[link removed]] explains where grassroots’ top-priority election integrity bills stand.

Religious Freedom

A broad subject, numerous bills were filed this session designed to protect religious freedom.

Most notably, Senate Joint Resolution 27 [[link removed]]—which has now passed both chambers—proposes a constitutional amendment to prohibit this state or a political subdivision of this state from prohibiting or limiting religious services of religious organizations.

Like all constitutional amendments, it must also receive approval from Texas voters in the November election.

Children and Gender Modification

While the Senate took action early to pass legislation to protect minors from chemical and surgical castration, the Texas House has so far refused [[link removed]] to do so.

The last chance for such legislation to pass is either Senate Bill 1646 [[link removed]] or Senate Bill 1311 [[link removed]]. The Senate is set to vote on SB 1311 tSo far, State Rep. Stephanie Klick has declined to set a hearing for the bill in the Public Health Committee.

Abolition of Abortion

Neither chamber has taken action to completely abolish abortion. Legislation to prohibit abortions once a heartbeat [[link removed]] has been detected, however, has passed the House and the Senate and was sent to the governor.

Constitutional Carry

House Bill 1927 [[link removed]], which would eliminate the requirement of citizens to obtain a permit from the state to carry handguns, has now passed both the House and the Senate.

The bill has not reached the governor yet, however. Because the House refused to concur with amendments made in the Senate, a conference committee consisting of representatives from both chambers will now attempt to reconcile the two versions of the bill before receiving final approval.

Monument Protection

Comprehensive legislation to protect historical monuments in Texas has received no traction in either chamber this session.

School Choice

While the Senate could approve Senate Bill 1968 [[link removed]] in the coming days, which would create Educational Savings Accounts for low-income students, the legislation is a non-starter in the House. Last month while debating the budget, the House voted overwhelmingly [[link removed]] to prevent state funds from being used on school choice programs.

Ban Taxpayer-Funded Lobbying

Bills to completely ban taxpayer-funded lobbying across the board have failed to receive votes in either chamber of the legislature this session.

Senate Bill 10 [[link removed]], which bans taxpayer-funded lobbying by cities and counties, passed the Senate last month and passed the House State Affairs committee on Friday. It has not yet been scheduled for debate on the House floor.

Executive Overreach

The Senate has passed numerous bills to curb the governor's use of unilateral emergency authority. The House has passed its own version, in House bill 3, which has been criticized as codifying many of the actions taken over the last year and half. There will be a lot of discussion in the coming days between the two chambers over which version will ultimately be sent to the governor's desk.

Upcoming Deadlines

May 22: Last day for House to vote Senate bills out of committee.May 25: Last day for House to consider Senate bills on second reading.May 29: Last day House and Senate can distribute conference committee reports.May 30: Last day House or Senate can adopt conference committee reports and finally pass bills.May 31: Last day of 87th Legislative Session. 🔒 Donate to Texas Scorecard 🔒 [[link removed]] Today in History

On May 17, 1954, the U.S. Supreme Court unanimously ruled for school integration in Brown vs. Board of Education of Topeka.

Quote-Unquote

"Nothing ever comes to one, that is worth having, except as a result of hard work."

– Booker T. Washington​

Your Federal & State Lawmakers

U.S. Senator

John Cornyn - R

(202) 224-2934

U.S. Senator

Ted Cruz - R

(202) 224-5922

Governor of Texas

Greg Abbott - R

(512) 463-2000

Lt. Governor

Dan Patrick - R

(512) 463-0001

U.S. House, District

Update your address so we can display your congressman [[link removed]] -



Texas Senate, District

Update your address so we can display your state senator [[link removed]] -



Texas House, District

Update your address so we can display your state rep [[link removed]] -



Something not right?

Make sure we have your address right [[link removed]]!

Manage / Update Your Subscription [[link removed]]

John xxxxxx



[email protected]

Request A Speaker [[link removed]] A product of Texas Scorecard

www.TexasScorecard.com

(888) 410-1836

PO Box 248, Leander, TX 78646 Produced by Michael Quinn Sullivan and Brandon Waltens, the Texas Minute is a quick look at the news and info of the day we find interesting, and hope you do as well. It is delivered weekday mornings (though we'll take the occasional break for holidays and whatnot).

This message was originally sent to:

John xxxxxx |

If you ever stop receiving our emails, it might be because someone unintentionally removed you from the list. No worries; it is easy enough to reactivate your subscription immediately on our website.

[link removed]

Before you click the link below... If someone forwarded this email to you, clicking the link will end the subscription of [email protected]. Unsubscribe [link removed]