(C) Texas Tribune
This story was originally published by Texas Tribune and is unaltered.
. . . . . . . . . .
The Blast - April 14, 2025 [1]
['The Texas Tribune']
Date: 2025-04
32 days for the House to pass legislation that originated in the House 49 days until sine die
Spread the news! Beginning this week, The Blast will appear in your inbox five days a week, Monday through Friday, till the end of session.
“Let me be very clear: I want Speaker [ Dustin ] Burrows and the Texas House to be as successful as possible, because that means this legislative session will be the most productive and conservative session in history,” Patrick said in a statement this afternoon. “The next 7 weeks will tell the story.”
Meanwhile, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick is continuing to apply pressure on the House to pass his list of priority measures, some of which he noted have not yet been referred to a committee.
Democrats plan to lean on some of their Republican colleagues who have concerns about the current “school choice” plan. Democrats hope those Republicans will support them on amendments to the bill, but that will risk drawing the ire of the governor — and maybe his campaign coffers and veto pen.
Abbott recently had a meeting with members, but Wednesday morning will be the final opportunity before the ESA scrum on the floor, and the final pep talk to make sure his voters hold the line. Some estimates put the whip count in favor of SB 2 around 80 of 88 Republicans.
Abbott and the House have the votes to pass SB 2, the bill creating the education savings account program. However, the main push is to get that passed with zero amendments, a show of strength for Abbott and Republicans ahead of the potential bill conference on SB 2.
The governor is set to meet with the Texas House Republican Caucus on Wednesday morning, ahead of House Bill 2 ’s and Senate Bill 2 ’s considerations on the floor .
It’s voucher week in the House, and Gov. Greg Abbott is putting the screws to members to make sure the bill sails smoothly through the chamber.
TAXPAYER-FUNDED LOBBYING BILL SPRINGS ALIVE IN THE HOUSE
The House State Affairs Committee heard legislation today to keep an eye on taxpayer-funded lobbying, but it’s not quite the same as what the Senate wants. That’s despite predictions by some in and around the process that the House now has the votes for a Senate-style ban.
Senate Bill 19, filed by Sen. Mayes Middleton, R-Galveston, would ban political subdivisions from hiring or contracting with lobbyists or paying a nonprofit association to represent their interests. House Bill 755, filed by Rep. David Spiller, R-Jacksboro, would still let political subdivisions hire lobbyists or nonprofits but instead create a “transparency” framework for doing so.
HB 755 is a lot like what the State Affairs Committee took up in 2021 with its version of Senate Bill 10. That measure was postponed to death on the House floor.
Last month, the Senate approved SB 19 by a 20-11 vote, but not without Sen. Robert Nichols, R-Jacksonville, leading a 15-13 insurgency that deleted language banning the hiring of nonprofit representatives entirely.
“You saw the bill I wanted,” Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick told The Blast the week after the vote. “People have the right to amend bills, and we’ll see what the House does.”
It’s not yet clear if HB 755 will be “the” vehicle for addressing taxpayer-funded lobbying. However, it’s the approach that’s moving.
Rep. Jared Patterson, R-Frisco, and freshman Rep. Mike Olcott, R-Fort Worth, have versions that were identical to the original SB 19. Neither have been scheduled for a hearing.
HB 755 would require the governing boards of political subdivisions to take a majority vote in an open meeting to hire a lobbyist with public money and post online the name of the lobbyist, the contract amount and a copy of the contract, in addition to the amount of money spent for membership fees or dues to nonprofits.
“This bill — if this bill moves forward — needs to stick with the approach that’s contained in this bill, and doesn’t need to be draconian, and it doesn’t need to do things that this bill was not intended to do,” Spiller said in committee.
[END]
---
[1] Url:
https://thetexastribune.beehiiv.com/p/the-blast-april-14-2025-637e27305aef6f8d
Published and (C) by Texas Tribune
Content appears here under this condition or license: Used with Permission:
https://www.texastribune.org/republishing-guidelines/.
via Magical.Fish Gopher News Feeds:
gopher://magical.fish/1/feeds/news/texastribune/
