Texas Legislature 2021

Though people of color drove nearly all of Texas’ population gains in the last decade, the proposed map gives white voters control of both of the two new congressional districts the state earned. Full Story 

If the bill becomes law, Texas will join at least five other states that have passed such legislation. Full Story 

The redistricting plans for the House, Senate and State Board of Education were approved Friday. Full Story 

Republican lawmakers have faced pressure to provide some form of property tax relief this year. Critics of a new proposal say it’s politically timed. Full Story 

Lawmakers haven’t passed a tuition revenue bond bill since 2015. Full Story 

Under House Bill 25, K-12 student athletes would be prohibited from competing on school sports teams aligned with their gender identity. The bill will now head to the Senate, where it is expected to pass. Full Story 

Senate Bill 51 would make any entity, including hospitals, vulnerable to discrimination lawsuits if they mandate vaccinations for all employees. Full Story 

The Texas Legislature has not approved bonds to fund capital projects on public university campuses since 2015, and many school leaders say they need help to build new buildings and maintain current structures. Full Story 

In this week’s TribCast, Matthew speaks with Alexa and Reese about the ongoing court fights over Texas’ new abortion law and the redistricting process in Texas. Full Story 

Allocating those dollars, which the state received under the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021, was among the items on Gov. Greg Abbott’s special session agenda for the Legislature’s third overtime round of the year. Full Story 

When lawmakers find something in the law that they don’t like — or that their voters don’t like — they can always say they didn’t know what they were voting on. It happens more than you’d think. Full Story 

After high-profile clashes with Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, a fellow Republican, Seliger suspects members of his own party are trying to oust him. Full Story 

A House committee approved the bill despite emotional testimony from parents of transgender Texas children. This is the fourth legislative session this year in which lawmakers targeted LGBTQ kids. Full Story 

The bills reflect GOP efforts to further tighten voting laws, and pressure from former President Donald Trump on Texas Republicans to help advance his baseless election fraud claims. They are not expected to go far in the House. Full Story 

The new proposal, like its predecessor, would amend the health and safety code to make the unlawful restraint of a dog a criminal offense — and more clearly outline proper treatment. Full Story 

The punishment for the crime was scheduled to go down in December, due to the passage of a sweeping bill that restricted the state’s voting process and narrowed local control of elections. Full Story 

The initial drafts of both maps have so far attempted to strengthen Republican majorities by protecting incumbents and creating more GOP-friendly districts. Full Story 

The Texas Senate has passed a bill restricting transgender youth from playing on sports teams consistent with their gender identity four separate times in 2021. Full Story 

It’s fashionable to gripe about polls, but they can expose voter sentiment and reveal, sometimes, why elected officials act the way they do. Full Story 

The new law narrows the window in which physicians are allowed to give abortion-inducing medication to patients from 10 weeks to seven weeks into pregnancy, bucking FDA guidelines. Full Story