The Texas Senate has also passed bills that are headed to the Texas House for consideration, many of which are from Dallas-Fort Worth area lawmakers.
These legislative proposals could become law if passed by both chambers and signed by Gov. Greg Abbott.
1. Bills aim to moderate DART’s sales tax revenue
A pair of bills filed in the Texas Senate and House of Representatives aim to moderate sales tax collections by Dallas Area Rapid Transit.
Senate Bill 1557 was filed Feb. 21 and was authored by Senators Angela Paxton, R-McKinney, Brent Hagenbuch, R-Denton and Tan Parker, R-Flower Mound. The bill was referred to the Senate’s Transportation committee March 6.
An identical bill, House Bill 3187, was filed by Rep. Matt Shaheen, R-Plano, on Feb. 21 in the house.
If approved and signed into law, the bills would mandate that 25% of DART’s sales tax revenue is made available to its member cities for general mobility improvements including:
- Constructing and maintaining sidewalks, hike and bike trails, highways and streets
- Installing and maintaining streetlights and traffic signals
Each member city would be required to provide DART officials with a list of projects for which the funding would be used. Additionally, the bills would cut DART’s sales and tax collection rate by a quarter-cent and enable member cities to call an election for withdrawal every three years instead of six.
DART serves 13 member cities including Dallas, Plano and Richardson. The transit agency collects a 1-cent local sales tax from each city, a rate that was established by an election held in 1983.
The transit agency’s largest source of revenue comes from sales tax contributions from its member cities. Member cities contributed about $834.4 million in sales tax revenue to DART in fiscal year 2023-24.
Plano is among six member cities that have called for reductions in its sales and use tax contribution to DART by a quarter-cent. One of those cities, Rowlett, has since rescinded its resolution in support of reduced funding and currently supports fully funding DART.
2. Amended library advisory council bill passes the Texas Senate
Senate Bill 13 was sent to the Texas House of Representatives after senators approved an amended version March 19.
The bill would mandate the formation of a local school library advisory council to assist school district officials in managing the school library's material catalogue. The council would be made up of local community members appointed by the school district’s board of trustees.
Senators voted to amend the bill on the floor before the final vote. The bill was amended to specify the advisory council shall meet at least twice a year and any other times as necessary complete its duties.
The bill states the advisory council could only make recommendations that were in accordance with existing library standards under the state Education Code. Instructional material would not be affected.
Eight senators voted against the bill and 23 senators voted in favor. It was authored by multiple senators including Sen. Angela Paxton, R-McKinney.
Paxton said the bill aims to protect minors from harmful material such as books with sexually explicit material.
“The purpose of this bill, clear and simple, is to protect our children from sexually explicit material,” Paxton said.
3. Frisco lawmaker’s social media bill still in committee
A bill to keep children under the age of 18 from using social media has been left pending in committee.
House Rep. Jared Patterson, R-Frisco, filed House Bill 186 on Nov. 12. The bill, co-authored by Patterson and four other representatives, would require age verification for all social media platforms and prevent anyone under the age of 18 from creating an account. Parents of children with social media accounts would also be able to request the social media company delete their child’s data and information, according to the bill.
The bill was left pending in committee March 19 but could be picked up again and discussed at a future date.
4. Filed bill would require grief instruction at public schools
Two North Texas lawmakers filed a pair of bills that would require some public school students to participate in grief classes.
State Sen. Kelly Hancock, R-North Richland Hills, filed Senate Bill 2691 on March 13 a day before the 89th Texas Legislature’s bill filing deadline. Rep. John McQueeney, R-Fort Worth, also filed an identical House Bill 4871 on the same day.
If passed into the law, school districts would require students between grades 8-12 to complete instruction related to recognizing and coping with grief.
5. Bill requiring the Ten Commandments in Texas classrooms passes in the Senate
Senate Bill 10, which would require public schools to display the Ten Commandments, is headed for the Texas House of Representatives after receiving Senate approval on March 19.
The bill would require all public elementary and secondary schools to display the Ten Commandments in each classroom. It also mandates the display must be a poster or framed copy that is at least 20 inches tall and 16 inches wide in a size "legible to a person with average vision from anywhere in the classroom,” according to the bill.
SB 10 was filed Feb. 10 and co-authored by Sen. Phil King, R-Weathorford, and multiple North Texas senators.
“SB 10 will remind students all across Texas of the importance of a fundamental foundation of American and Texas law—the Ten Commandments,” King wrote in an accompanying bill analysis.
SB 10 was received by the House of Representatives on March 20. If signed into law, it would go into effect for the 2025-26 school year.
