Gov. Greg Abbott lays out items for a special session at a press conference on June 6, 2017.
Naming property taxes as his top priority for the upcoming special legislative session during a Monday appearance at an Austin-based conservative think tank, Gov. Greg Abbott said that he would publicly call out lawmakers who didn’t support his 20-item legislative agenda.

“We are hearing stories about people who are being taxed out of their homes because of rising property taxes. You don’t really own your home, it seems like, it’s the appraisers. That must stop,” Abbott said in remarks at the Texas Public Policy Foundation.

The special session begins Tuesday and is set to run for 30 days.

The governor was forced to call the session after lawmakers jeopardized a handful of state agencies, including the Texas Medical Board, when legislation reauthorizing them fell victim to a standoff between the House and Senate over a bill that would regulate bathroom use in public buildings for transgender people.

In addition to the "bathroom bill," Abbott added 19 additional topics for their attention, including teacher pay, limits on property tax increases not approved by voters, private school vouchers for special needs students, and limits on municipal annexations.

Abbott said that while all were important, he considered addressing property taxes the “number one issue” of the special session. He also said he would aggressively hold lawmakers accountable for their positions on his legislative agenda and encouraged others to do the same.

“I’m going to be establishing a list,” he said. “We all need to establish lists that we publish on a daily basis to call people out — who is for this, who is against this, who has not taken a position yet. No one gets to hide.”

via The Texas Tribune