Texas Legislature 2023

The original provision was part of the state’s major overhaul to election laws in 2021. Full Story 

House Bill 20 introduced by Rep. Matt Schaefer, R-Tyler, would create a unit whose officers can “arrest, apprehend, or detain persons crossing the Texas-Mexico border unlawfully,” and deter those attempting to cross the border. Full Story 

Under this new model, community colleges would receive state funds based on the number of graduates who earn certificates or degrees and the number of students who transfer to four-year universities. Full Story 

The bill seeks to ban discrimination based on certain hairstyles — like braids, dreadlocks and twists — in schools, workplaces and housing. Full Story 

Texas lawmakers want tougher criminal penalties for possession of delta-8 and fentanyl. But that would mean much more work for the crime labs handling most of the drug testing for the state’s 254 counties. Full Story 

Critics say Senate Bill 16 is overly vague and will create a chilling effect that will prevent important conversations about race and gender. But Republican supporters say the legislation is necessary to protect conservative students who are self-censoring in the classroom. Full Story 

The bipartisan legislation is an expansion on the state’s 2015 “Compassionate Use” law, which has allowed a growing number of patients to legally use cannabis to treat debilitating symptoms of conditions such as epilepsy, autism, cancer and PTSD. Full Story 

U.S. Rep. Michael McCaul has warned members of the Texas Legislature to keep their China-countering legislation focused on espionage and not to target Chinese immigrants. Full Story 

The bill was amended to make the benefits retroactive, supporting the family of a soldier whose name is on the legislation. Full Story 

The chamber voted 138-5 on Wednesday to approve a bill that seeks to end the practice of changing clocks twice a year. But that doesn’t mean the measure has an easy path to reality. Full Story 

Reps. Briscoe Cain and Steve Toth, who are usually ideologically aligned with Slaton, said the lawmaker needed to step down. Full Story 

Texas lawmakers are poised to create a new multibillion-dollar endowment to boost emerging research universities in national rankings. But faculty members say banning diversity offices and tenure would stymie those efforts. Full Story 

Sweltering heat has killed inmates, driven away prison workers and cost taxpayers millions in lawsuits. The House budget would provide air conditioning for 46 prisons, but it’s unclear if the Senate will sign on. Full Story 

The complaint came after an incident in which Slaton and the staffer allegedly met up at his Austin apartment last weekend. A separate staffer told The Texas Tribune that Slaton drank alcohol with an intern under 21 years old. Full Story 

The House voted 86-52 on Thursday to amend the budget to ban state funding for “school vouchers or other similar programs.” Abbott has spent the past two months touring the state to build support for the proposal, spending tremendous political capital on trying to break through the rural Republican opposition to it. Full Story 

Gov. Greg Abbott and other conservatives say families need options to escape “woke” education in public schools. East Texas parents and school leaders say the national talking points are off base. Full Story 

After a marathon debate, the bill will head to the Senate, where lawmakers have been crafting their own version of the spending plan. Full Story 

Hancock, a North Richland Hills Republican, was diagnosed at age 27 with a rare genetic kidney disease that occurs when the immunoglobulin A antibody builds up in the kidneys. Full Story 

House Bill 1 is being debated on the floor of the lower chamber, where representatives are hammering out details on the next two years of state spending. Full Story 

A Texas House vote earlier in the day suggests Senate Bill 8 might be short of the votes needed to pass in the lower chamber. Senators also passed a bill on Thursday that would give teachers a one-time bonus. Full Story