House Floor
HB 2 (Meyer) Relating to providing property tax relief through the public school finance system and property tax appraisal and administration & HJR 1 (Meyer) Proposing a constitutional amendment to authorize the legislature to limit the maximum appraised value of real property for ad valorem tax purposes and to except certain appropriations to pay for ad valorem tax relief from the constitutional limitation on the rate of growth of appropriations. HB 2 was finally passed on 4/14 (139-5) and HJR 1 was finally passed on 4/13 (140-9). Both bills will now move over to the Senate for further discussion. Six amendments were offered during deliberations, but none made it onto the bill.
HB 8 (VanDeaver) Relating to the administration, coordination, and support of public higher education, including the public junior college state finance program and a Financial Aid for Swift Transfer (FAST) program to enable certain students to enroll at no cost to the student in dual credit courses offered by certain public institutions of higher education. Finally passed in the House on 4/12 (145-1) and will now move to the Senate for further discussion.
HB 14 (Harris, Cody) Relating to third-party review of plats and property development plans, permits, and similar documents, and the inspection of an improvement related to such a document. HB 14 passed out of the House on 4/13 (145-1) and will now move to the Senate for further discussion.
HB 25 (Talarico) Relating to wholesale importation of prescription drugs in this state; authorizing a fee. Passed out of the House on 4/13 (144-1) and will now move to the Senate for further discussion.
HB 178 (Murr) Relating to testing possible controlled substance evidence for fentanyl. Passed out of the House on 4/12 (143-1) with one amendment that would include testing for derivatives of fentanyl. HB 178 will now move to the Senate for further discussion.
HB 249 (Rogers) Relating to a school security volunteer program in certain counties. HB 249 was passed by the House on 4/12 (118-22). Amendments were adopted on the House floor that would extend the program to all counties up to one million in population, require uniforms for security volunteers, and clarify that volunteers are not law enforcement officers. HB 249 will now move to the Senate for further discussion.
HB 1750 (Burns) Relating to the applicability of certain city requirements to agricultural operations. Passed out of the House on 4/11 (143-3) and will now move to the Senate for further discussion.
Senate Floor
SB 13 (Paxton) Relating to a school district’s library materials and catalog, the creation of local school library advisory councils, and parental rights regarding public school library catalogs and access by the parent’s child to library materials. Bill was voted out of the Senate (18-12) on 4/13 with one amendment which requires school books that are donated to the school must go through the school board process. The bill will now move to the House for further discussion.
SB 26 (Kolkhorst) Relating to local mental health authority and local behavioral health authority audits and mental and behavioral health reporting, services, and programs. Bill was voted out of the Senate (30-0) on 4/13 with no amendments. The bill will now move to the House for further discussion.
SB 2289 (Huffman) Relating to the exemption from ad valorem taxation of certain tangible personal property held by a manufacturer of medical or biomedical products as a finished good or used in manufacturing or processing. SJR 87 (Huffman) Proposing a constitutional amendment to authorize the legislature to exempt from ad valorem taxation certain tangible personal property held by a manufacturer of medical or biomedical products as a finished good or used in the manufacturing or processing of medical or biomedical products. The SJR and its enabling legislation were voted out of the Senate on 4/13 (28-2) with one amendment which clarifies ballot language. The bill will now move to the House for further discussion.
SB 786 (Birdwell) Relating to the regulation by the Railroad Commission of Texas of closed-loop geothermal injection wells. Bill was voted out of the Senate (30-0) on 4/13 with no amendments. The bill will now move to the House for further discussion.
SB 1002 (Schwertner) Relating to the operation of electric vehicle charging stations. Bill was voted out of the Senate (30-0) on 4/12 with one amendment which widens reasonable proximity from 2 miles to 10 miles. The bill will now move to the House for further discussion.
SB 767 (Parker) Relating to notice requirements for certain municipal fees and the process to adopt a municipal budget that includes the use of revenue from those fees. Bill was voted out of the Senate (30-0) on 4/12 with no amendments. The bill will now move to the House for further discussion.
SB 989 (Huffman) Relating to health benefit plan coverage for certain biomarker testing. Bill was voted out of the Senate (26-4) on 4/12 with one amendment which clarifies test must inform a patient’s outcome and a provider’s clinical decision to be covered and includes that tests for chronic illnesses are covered. The bill will now move to the House for further discussion.
SB 784 (Birdwell) Relating to the exclusive jurisdiction of the state to regulate greenhouse gas emissions in this state and the express preemption of local regulation of those emissions. Bill was voted out of the Senate (26-5) on 4/11 with no amendments. The bill will now move to the House for further discussion.
SB 938 (Blanco) Relating to the issuance by certain conservation and reclamation districts of bonds for the development and maintenance of recreational facilities. SJR 32 (Blanco) Proposing a constitutional amendment relating to the authority of the legislature to permit conservation and reclamation districts in El Paso County to issue bonds supported by ad valorem taxes. The SJR and its enabling legislation were voted out of the Senate (29-2) and (30-1) respectively on 4/11 with no amendments. The bill will now move to the House for further discussion.
In Committee
HB 5 (Hunter) Relating to agreements to create jobs and to generate state and local tax revenue for this state was heard in committee on 4/10 as substituted.
