Texas poised to ask voters to approve $3 billion to study dementia

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Texas voters will likely get a chance to decide whether to spend $3 billion in state funds on dementia research after the House preliminarily approved Senate Joint Resolution 3 on Monday.

Both chambers voted earlier this session to create the Dementia Prevention and Research Institute of Texas, to study dementia, Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease and other brain conditions. Modeled after Texas’ cancer institute, the new initiative was a priority for Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick and received bipartisan support from the majority of lawmakers.

But it’s not up to them whether taxpayer dollars can be used to fund this project. That decision will lie with the voters, who, after SJR 3 is finally approved by the House, will be asked at the next election whether they want to allocate $3 billion of general revenue to this work.

“I don't know [any one] in this House who doesn't have a family member or a friend or a neighbor … impacted by dementia or Alzheimer's,” said Rep. Senfronia Thompson, a Houston Democrat. “This Constitutional Amendment gives us the funding to do the research so that we can give those persons who are impacted with these dreadful diseases a better quality of life.”

SJR 3 passed 123-21. Despite the popularity of the bill, the funding measure’s fate was briefly in question, as Democrats attempted to hold constitutional amendments hostage over the creation of a school voucher program.

Both chambers have signed off on a $1 billion private school voucher program, finally breaking through years of resistance from Democrats and rural Republicans. In a last ditch effort, Democrats asked that the proposal be put to voters and vowed to vote against all constitutional amendments until their request was granted. Since constitutional amendments need a two-thirds majority to pass, it’s one of the few times Republicans need Democrats allied to their cause.

The dementia funding measure was one of the constitutional amendments up for a vote during this so-called blockade, which forced several pieces of legislation to be postponed. The bill was punted a few days, but after a clash Friday in which Republicans aligned to kill uncontroversial Democrat bills, some Democrats seemed to back off the blockade enough to approve this and other constitutional amendments.

After lengthy back and forth over the enabling legislation last week, the funding vote Monday was quick and to the point. Thompson and Rep. Tom Craddick, a Midland Republican, who both have pushed for a bill like this for several years, implored their colleagues to vote for the measure.

“We're one of the leading states with Alzheimer's in the country,” Craddick said. “This could be the way we can solve it … This isn't a party vote. This is a vote for the people in the state of Texas.”

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