State lawmakers have filed bills to reduce property taxes, ban taxpayer-funded lobbying and crack down on access to abortion medications, among other things.
AUSTIN, Texas — We’re less than a week from the start of a special session at the Texas State Capitol, and lawmakers are beginning to pre-file bills.
During a special session, the Texas Constitution only allows lawmakers to pass bills on issues selected by the governor. In total, Gov. Greg Abbott is asking lawmakers to take up 18 items during the 30-day special session.
Of the 87 bills filed so far, none of them touch on two of the biggest issues on the agenda: the deadly flooding in Central Texas over the Fourth of July weekend and redrawing Texas’ congressional maps.
Abbott call the special session last month after vetoing several bills, including Senate Bill 3, a proposed ban on the sale of consumable hemp products containing THC.
When it comes to the flooding, Abbott has included flood warning systems, flood relief funding and natural disaster preparation and recovery on his special session call. The governor spoke about the need to improve warning systems and communications during a fireside chat at the Sheriff’s Association of Texas Annual Training in Fort Worth on Tuesday.
“Communication interoperability is an issue that many of you have been talking about for years, an issue that’s a big challenge in so many communities,” Abbott said. “We have to get that done and get it done right.”
A look at some of the bills lawmakers have filed
Several similar bills – House Bills 40, 50, 67, 68 and 96 – would increase the necessary threshold for voters to approve a tax increase or bond election and also add new measures to make it clearer to voters how much the bond or tax increase will cost taxpayers.
In the regular session, lawmakers passed a pair of bills to increase to homestead exemption, but Abbott has called on legislators to take further steps to “reduce the property tax burden on Texans” and “impose spending limits on entities authorized to impose property taxes.”
Lawmakers have already filed several property tax bills ahead of the special session, including House Joint Resolution 8, a proposed constitutional amendment by State Rep. Brian Harrison (R-Midlothian), to abolish property taxes.
Other bills Harrison has filed would change the way property taxes are calculated and mandate that municipalities use any surplus funds in their budget to either lower property taxes or pay off debts.
Several bills – including HB 34, 39, 62, and 71 – would lower property taxes on the school district and utilize funds from the state budget surplus to cover the gap. Two other bills, House Bills 41 and 60, would repeal or limit property taxes on schools and replace them with a value-added tax.
Other legislation would modify the calculation of school enrollment for funding purposes and exclude the homestead exemption from the tax rate calculation for state funding.
Several other bills have been filed to limit the spending and growth of local city and county governments.
Texas has some of the strictest abortion restrictions in the nation. Currently, doctors can only perform abortions if a pregnant patient’s life is in danger or they are at risk of losing a major bodily function. Lawmakers have filed a number of bills related to abortion, including several related to abortion pill access.
HB 37 and 65 are both similar to Senate Bill 2880, which would have allowed people to sue someone in civil court if they mail abortion-inducing drugs in Texas, but it didn’t pass during the regular legislative session. Mailing abortion drugs is already illegal in Texas.
HB 66 and 95 would allow citizens to sue organizations that manufacture and distribute abortion pills in Texas. It would require internet providers to block websites that promote access to the pills or carry out abortion services.
HB 69 would require patients to be present in Texas and examined by a doctor before they can get access to abortion bills.
HB 70 would make it a criminal offense and civil fine of up to $100,000 for anyone who helps transport or funds a minor who leaves Texas to get an abortion.
Six different House lawmakers have filed bills to ban taxpayer-funded lobbying, a longtime Republican party priority. Essentially, the legislation would prohibit government entities that receive taxpayer funds from hiring lobbyists to come and lobby state lawmakers on their behalf at the Capitol. Other legislation has been filed to put the same restrictions on school districts.
HB 85 would allow the Texas Attorney General’s Office to prosecute state election crimes – something the AG does not have the authority to do unless invited by a local district attorney. Lawmakers have pre-filed HRJs 6, 7 and 15 – two proposed constitutional amendments that would require approval from two-thirds of the members in both chambers to pass.
HB 92 would reduce the number of state-required tests and eliminate assessments not required by federal law. The special session agenda includes eliminating the STAAR test and reducing property taxes. In the recent legislative session, lawmakers considered legislation to replace the STAAR test in the next school year, but it died in the closing days of the regular session.
HB 32 by State Rep. Valoree Swanson (R-Spring) would require people to use restrooms and locker rooms according to their biological sex as is stated on their birth certificates. Transgender Texans would not be able to use the private spaces that align with their gender identity, even if they have transitioned.
Several other bills have been filed but are not currently on the special session call, like HB 81 by State Rep. John Bucy, which would repeal a ban on state investments in high-speed rail. It would direct the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) to partner with a private entity to build a high-speed rail connecting Dallas, Austin and San Antonio.
Lawmakers can only vote on bills related to topics on the agenda. However, the governor can add things to the list at any time.
State lawmakers will continue to file bills throughout this week and even after the special session starts. The 30-day-long special session starts on Monday.