The overview
The legislative branch is composed of the Texas Senate and Texas House of Representatives. A map of senate and house districts is available online. Five members of the Legislature, from both the House and the Senate, represent the Lake Travis-Westlake area.
A full list of bills proposed so far for the 89th session, including brief summaries, can be found online for both the House and the Senate. As of press time, 1,540 bills have been put forward by members of the House, and 546 have been filed by the Senate. Bill filing began Nov. 12 and will continue until March 14, according to the Texas Legislative Council.
The Senate
Senate districts encompassing the Lake Travis-Westlake area include Senate District 14 and Senate District 25, represented by Sarah Eckhardt and Donna Campbell, respectively.
Eckhardt has authored or co-authored 66 Senate bills, one Senate concurrent resolution and three Senate joint resolutions.
Senate concurrent resolutions, or SCRs, are used to request action from other entities, including Congress, or for memorials, congratulations or commendations, according to the Legislative Reference Library of Texas.
Senate joint resolutions, or SJRs, are used to propose amendments to the Texas Constitution or to ratify amendments to the U.S. Constitution.
Of Eckhardt’s 66 bills, nine deal specifically with increasing voting registration and protections, including Senate Bill 145, which increases access to voting by mail for qualified voters and repeals criminal offenses concerning the solicitation and distribution of applications to vote by mail. Six bills pertained to lobbying—one of these is SB 161, which sets expectations for how lobbyists report expenditures made on behalf of legislative members.
Increased regulation of firearms is mentioned in five bills. One of these, SB 353, requires national background checks for private firearm transfers.
Six bills refer to protecting reproductive rights and abortion. This includes SB 361, a bill preventing employer discrimination on the basis of reproductive decisions, and proposed a constitutional amendment establishing an individual's right to personal reproductive autonomy—SJR 20.
Eckhardt also filed SB 343 supporting abolishment of the death penalty.
Campbell has authored seven Senate bills and co-authored one SJR.
Two bills authored by Campbell, SB 372 and SB 465, address property rights. SB 372 expands the power of sale under the terms of a contract lien on real property to include corporations and organizations rather than just individuals, and SB 465 creates criminal offenses for unauthorized sale of real property based on monetary loss.
SB 371 relates to parental approval for student participation in sexual education classes taught at public schools, and SB 464 outlines county and municipal authority to prohibit electronic cigarettes being sold near primary or secondary schools.
Senate Joint Resolution 12, which Campbell co-authored, proposes a constitutional amendment to establish a parent’s right to direct their child’s education.
The House
House districts encompassing the area include House districts 19, 47, and 48. Representatives for those districts are Ellen Troxclair, Vikki Goodwin and Donna Howard, respectively.
Troxclair from District 19 has introduced eight bills to the Legislature as of press time.
Two of those bills, House Bill 515 and HB 596, relate to school district rules and regulations, including prohibiting students from using personal electronic devices, and specifying that school district employees may not use public resources to distribute communications that advocate for or against any political party or political candidate.
Troxclair also put forward a bill, HB 530, prohibiting political subdivisions—like counties, cities and townships—from establishing guaranteed income programs, and another bill, HB 1189, prohibiting political subdivisions from using public funds for lobbying.
Other bills introduced by Troxclair include HB 1345, which sets terms for the prosecution of sexual assault, and HB 229, which sets certain definitions for governmental information collection regarding biological sex.
Goodwin from District 47 has put forward 33 bills and five joint resolutions.
Of those 33 bills, seven relate to firearms. Goodwin supports improving gun safety laws, according to legislative priorities listed on her website. Bills put forward by Goodwin in this session place certain restrictions on gun sales and gun ownership, such as HB 384, which prohibits the transfer of certain semiautomatic rifles to certain recipients.
Seven bills relate to Texas public schools, including a bill that proposes establishing a bullying prevention pilot program for public schools, HB 687.
Five bills relate to increased water conservation efforts, including HB 1245, which prohibits the use of water on nonresidential property to irrigate nonfunctional turf areas during periods of drought.
HB 585 defines an individuals’ rights to assistive productive technology treatments and procedures, and HB 1423 expands eligibility for Medicaid.
Goodwin also proposed a constitutional amendment establishing “an individual's right to personal reproductive autonomy”—House Joint Resolution 33—and an amendment “requiring the state to expand eligibility for Medicaid to certain individuals under the federal Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act”—HJR 100.
Howard from District 48 has put forward 20 bills.
Eight of those bills relate to increasing access to health care and contraception. House bills 257 and 395 call for the repeal of certain laws prohibiting abortion.
Five bills relate to educational materials, programs, and protections for students in public schools, or for people applying to higher education programs. HB 1330 sets standards for when applicants to undergraduate programs are entitled to an academic fresh start, allowing for institutions to disregard grades earned by applicants more recently than 10 years before the student’s intended enrollment period.
Three bills, including HB 827, 837 and 1531, aim to prevent domestic and workplace violence.
What’s next?
The 89th Texas Legislature will convene Jan. 5. Bills will continue to be filed by members of the Legislature until March 14.
