Transcript Highlights:

• House Bill 897 for your consideration today.
• House Bill 897 will be sent to the floor with a due pass recommendation.
• Representative Bruce, will you be carrying that on the floor?
• Representative Bruce will carry that on the floor.
• Representative Bruce, will you be carrying that on the floor?

Committee: House Revenue and Taxation

Transcript Highlights:

• It is an amendment that went on the House floor.
• Take into consideration, it shouldn't be the determinative factor.
• Be watching the floor at the end of our work at the floor today.
• I apologize, everybody, but we have to get to the floor.
• I'll announce a time at the end of the floor.

Bills: SB39 , SB2129 , SB2141 , SB2246 , SB2323 , SB2439 , SB2722 , SB 39

Committee: Senate Transportation

Transcript Highlights:

• I'm going to ask this to the floor with a do pass recommendation.
• It will go to the floor.
• To be taken into consideration under this and shared.
• And Representative Wheeler will carry this on the floor.
• And Representative Wheeler will carry this on the floor.

Committee: House Judiciary, Rules and Administration

Transcript Highlights:

• And I ask for your favorable consideration and support. So far so good.
• Before it went to the floor, yes.
• Before it went to the floor, yes.
• A vote yes means to report the bill to the floor with amendments.
• Like, this procedure is not taking those things into consideration.

Committee: Senate Judiciary C

Transcript Highlights:

• We might not have, but we had pretty good support on the floor.
• That motion carries, and I believe Senator Lent will be taking it on the floor.
• Thank you for your time and your consideration.
• We appreciate your consideration of our testimony. Thank you.
• Senator Taves will carry that on the floor. And last bill on our agenda...

Committee: Senate Local Government and Taxation

Transcript Highlights:

• Before I have staff brief those bills, I wanted to remove HB 2267 from consideration today.
• My apologies, yes, we're removing that from consideration as well today.
• The next bill up for consideration... That's correct. Okay.
• The next bill up for consideration today is House Bill 2174, establishing accident risk zones.
• Move 1529 from consideration, so we need to work out a technical issue.

Summary: The committee met in executive session on a series of local government and building-related bills, with HB 2267 and HB 2388 removed from consideration and HB 1529 later pulled due to a technical issue. Staff briefed measures on scissor stairs in the building code (HB 2228), embodied carbon emissions in buildings (HB 2273), performance-based code pathways for low-rise residential buildings (HB 2381), permit review processes (HB 2418), county extreme heat response plans (HB 2183), fire protection districts (HB 2224), crash prevention zones (HB 2174), and city use of county road resources (HB 1529). The discussion focused on code modernization, housing production, permitting timelines, climate and emergency preparedness, fire district financing, and traffic safety. HB 2228 was advanced as Substitute HB 3079.2 after members supported creating a technical advisory group to recommend code changes allowing scissors stairs, with language clarifying fire-resistance separation; it passed 7-0. HB 2273, which would direct the State Building Code Council and Commerce to adopt embodied-carbon reduction rules and reporting, was reported out 4-3 after supporters emphasized emissions reductions and opponents said industry was not yet ready. HB 2381 advanced as amended Substitute HB 3125.1 after the committee adopted an amendment making the appendix optional and another clarifying performance-based compliance options; it passed 4-3. HB 2418 advanced as amended Substitute HB 3143.1 after the committee removed vesting provisions, clarified completeness standards, and allowed applicants to waive deadlines or refunds; it passed 7-0. HB 2183, requiring county extreme heat response plans, was amended to reference L&I rules, address grid reliability, remove some subsidy language, and shift plan adoption to county legislative authorities; it passed 4-3. HB 2224, concerning fire protection districts and levy adjustments, was advanced as amended Substitute HB 3142.1 after stakeholder-driven changes; it passed 6-1. HB 2174 was advanced as amended Substitute HB 3144.1, changing the concept from accident risk zones to crash prevention zones and setting a $73 penalty structure; it passed 6-1. The committee adjourned after reporting the bills out with due pass recommendations.

Transcript Highlights:

• I YIELD THE FLOOR TO REPRESENTATIVE TRABULSY.
• WE SAID, GUYS, WHEN YOU FIRST APPLY, I WAS HERE ON THE HOUSE FLOOR.
• When we are unable to make a committee meeting or a floor session, we should offer up the same consideration
• I know we had conversation prior to this bill coming to the floor.
• THIS BILL DOES NOT TAKE THAT INTO CONSIDERATION.

Bills: SB 2 , HB 2 , HB 2000 , HB 2196 , HB 213 , HB 222 , HB 645 , HB 1458 , HB 1022 , HB 141 , HB 502 , HB 643 , HB 3093 , HB 1700 , HB 117 , SB 503 , SB 2 , HB 120 , HB 20 , HB 150 , HB 6 , HB 100 , HB 210 , HB 215 , HB 1393 , HB 1151 , HB 1268 , HB 142 , HB 451 , HB 124 , HB 2 , HB 2000 , HB 2196 , HB 213 , HB 222 , HB 645 , HB 1458 , HB 1022 , HB 141 , HB 502 , HB 643 , HB 3093 , HB 1700 , HB 117

Transcript Highlights:

• So I do have a floor amendment that I'd like to present, so I would move House floor amendment number
• Speaker, gentlemen, yes, it was a consideration.
• So, we will certainly be taking all of that into consideration, Mr.
• If it's a single, these units where people share a restroom on a floor or share a kitchen on the floor
• You have to have the floor, gentle lady from Santa Fe, Senator Zappanky, you yield the floor?

Transcript Highlights:

• Next unit. consideration appears on page 23, unit consideration appears on page 23, unit 102,<00:42:14.640
• </c> The next unit for your consideration The next unit for your consideration appears<01:55:01.599><
• The governor had consideration.
• :24:20.800><c> page</c><02:24:21.280><c> 27,</c> consideration appears on page 27, consideration appears
• </c> &gt;&gt; The next agency for your consideration &gt;&gt; The next agency for your consideration

Committee: Joint Appropriations

Transcript Highlights:

• We will recess, members, and head to the floor at 10:45.
• I'm happy to answer any questions and I ask for favorable consideration.
• We're taking consideration... All the geographical areas in the state of Texas.
• And that we have to take that into consideration and do the actual training.
• When we return from the floor, it is subject to the chair. Thank you. We're in recess.

Bills: SB27 , SB226 , SB326 , SB570 , SB605 , SB870 , SB991 , SB1871 , SB1872 , SB1873 , SB1874 , SB1924 , SB1925 , SB 27

Committees: Senate Education , Senate Education K-16

Keywords: residency, public schools, child safety placement, enrollment, education code, antisemitism, student conduct, education, disciplinary actions, Texas Education Code, truancy, attendance policy, chronic absenteeism, school attendance, student absence notifications, parent notification, home visit, attendance officer, truancy court, school district

Summary: The committee heard a series of school safety and discipline bills, beginning with SB 870, which would codify an attorney general opinion allowing local school boards to decide whether school marshals may openly carry, conceal carry, or store a firearm in a secure safe on campus. The bill was laid out with no public testimony and left pending. The chair then moved to a combined discussion of SB 1871, 1872, 1873, 1874, and 1924, all focused on school discipline, teacher authority, and student safety. Senators Perry and Creighton described the package as a response to rising classroom disruptions, assaults on teachers, and concerns that districts lack effective tools to maintain order. SB 1871 would expand teacher removal authority, require return-to-class plans before a student removed for certain conduct can return, make some serious offenses mandatory for placement in juvenile justice settings, and provide telehealth mental health services through a consortium. SB 1872 would require expulsion to a JJAEP for assaults on teachers or school volunteers and extend certain expulsion-eligible conduct to off-campus offenses. SB 1873 would restore the prior understanding that in-school suspension is not subject to a three-day limit. SB 1874 would grant teachers immunity from disciplinary action for reporting discipline violations or acting in compliance with Chapter 37. SB 1924 would restore authority for local police and school district police to issue Class C citations for school offenses and require criminal referrals for students posing an imminent threat or assaulting a teacher, with a substitute clarifying referral rules when a citation has already been issued. The committee adopted the substitutes for the bills and moved them forward. Invited witnesses from teacher and administrator groups largely supported the overall goal of stronger discipline and safer classrooms, while asking for refinements. The Texas Classroom Teachers Association testified that teachers need more autonomy to remove disruptive or violent students and that classroom removals should not mean removal from learning. Superintendents from San Angelo, Grandview, and Wiley ISDs supported the bills’ emphasis on safety, expanded ISS flexibility, mandatory placement for serious offenses, and telehealth mental health services, but asked for more local control, flexibility for Districts of Innovation, more than one campus behavior coordinator in large districts, clearer timelines for return-to-class plans, and more precise definitions for disruptive conduct. Several witnesses stressed that teacher retention and student learning are being harmed by current discipline problems, while some members raised concerns about vague standards and the risk of overuse or public humiliation through citations and removals.

Transcript Highlights:

• All those not without privilege of floor, please vacate the chamber.
• Those in the gallery and those on the floor, please rise as we are led in prayer today by the [The Senate
• "Those on the floor, please rise as we are led in prayer today by the senator from the 13th.
• We request unanimous consent that the bill be taken up for immediate consideration and read a second
• The bill be taken up for immediate consideration and read a second time. Is there objection?

Transcript Highlights:

• Pude Escalera, Local 1247 floor layers, with a little under 1,000 men and women floor installers.
• Pude Escalera, Local 1247 floor layers, with a little under 1,000 men and women floor installers.
• And it's taking that into consideration is my question.
• were recognized on the Assembly's floor.
• were recognized on the Assembly floor.

Committee: House Natural Resources

Summary: The committee heard a long agenda of natural resources and related bills, with several measures receiving broad support and due-pass recommendations. AB 80 on carpet recycling would require CalRecycle to implement prior reforms, expand collection sites, and improve reporting and backstamping; it drew support from the author, carpet industry representatives, labor, environmental groups, and no opposition. AB 452 would create a voluntary process for local governments to designate state surf reserves as part of 30 by 30 conservation goals; supporters included Save the Waves Coalition, tourism and environmental groups, and several members praised the bill, while the League of California Cities sought clarifying amendments. AB 823 would ban sale of certain personal care and cleaning products containing intentionally added plastic microbeads, but it generated significant debate over scope and ambiguity, with environmental groups supporting stronger restrictions and industry groups warning the bill could unintentionally affect sunscreens, cosmetics, fragrance encapsulation, and other products; the committee ultimately passed it 13-2 to Environmental Safety and Toxic Materials as amended. The committee also advanced AB 1046, which creates a narrow exemption from SB 1383 organic waste requirements for crop preparers and tree nut processors that do not send organic waste to landfills; agricultural groups and rural county representatives supported it, and it passed with no opposition. AB 252, the “Stop Laying Off Firefighters Act,” would require Cal Fire to maintain year-round staffing; the author and Cal Fire labor representatives argued wildfire conditions are now year-round and staffing gaps are unsafe, and the bill passed unanimously to Appropriations. AB 571 would provide a targeted CEQA exemption and urgency clause for the Southern California Veterans Cemetery at Gypsum Canyon; veterans, county officials, and supporters emphasized the long delay and need for a dignified burial site, and it passed unanimously to Military and Veterans Affairs. Later, the committee approved AB 1455, which would authorize the Board of Forestry to adopt emergency regulations and streamline future rulemaking for ember-resistant standards after recent Los Angeles County fires; it passed without opposition. AB 687, which would allow public agencies to use forest practice rules and timber harvest plans for certain fuel reduction projects, drew concerns from environmental groups about CEQA confusion and agency review, and while the author said it was not a CEQA exemption, the bill moved forward with some opposition and ongoing discussion. AB 652 would allow alternate members on the San Diego County Air Pollution Control District board to avoid quorum problems and passed with support from the City of San Diego. AB 317, the California First-Time Home Owner Dream Act, would exempt certain small, lower-cost homes from CEQA and defer property taxes to encourage affordable housing; it passed with support but also prompted concerns about guardrails against misuse in larger subdivisions. The committee also heard AB 900, which would require the Natural Resources Agency to develop a stewardship plan for current and future 30 by 30 lands; supporters from land trusts and conservation groups said stewardship funding and management are essential to make conservation durable, and the bill passed to Appropriations. Finally, AB 738 would let certain wildfire-disaster survivors rebuild under the solar standards in place when their homes were originally built, rather than newer requirements; the author and county representatives framed it as limited relief for underinsured homeowners, and the committee began discussion with questions about what other rebuilding requirements might be affected.

Transcript Highlights:

• The committee will now have consideration of House Bill 793.
• Do you want to testify with a motion to send to the floor? Mr.
• I move that we introduce or send to the floor. Certainly.
• Do you want to testify with a motion to send to send to the floor? Mr. Piska.
• Committee will now consideration. RS 33447. Representative Tanner. Thank you, Mr.

Committee: House State Affairs

Transcript Highlights:

• </c> have it for consideration have it for consideration uh<00:01:51.759><c> bills</c><00:01:52.159><
• Um the cuts just consideration of cuts.
• But we've operated on consideration.
• </c> funds. those funds grow considerably funds. those funds grow considerably over<00:30:44.960><c>
• ><c> of</c><00:44:09.920><c> courthouse</c> stacking of consideration of courthouse stacking of consideration

Committee: House Appropriations & Revenue

Transcript Highlights:

• </c> for future considerations for future considerations uh<00:12:42.480><c> for</c><00:12:43.440><c>
• ><c> that</c><00:14:19.360><c> I</c> So, these are considerations that I So, these are considerations
• And I hope that, as we did on the House floor a couple years ago, we can make a resounding green board
• I stood on the House floor with a unanimous vote for an amendment to add this to the tax bill.
• I stood on the House floor with a unanimous vote for an amendment to add this to the tax bill.

Transcript Highlights:

• Thank you for your patience with us, and the floor is yours. Thank you. The floor is yours.
• The floor is yours. Okay, thank you for the opportunity. and "Go ahead. The floor is yours."
• If you can, you have the floor.
• The floor is yours. Thank you.
• The floor is yours. Welcome. Oh, hello.

Committee: Joint Joint Committee on Labor and Workforce Development

Summary: The Joint Committee on Labor and Workforce Development held a lengthy hearing on June 18 focused on workers’ compensation, independent contractor and classification issues, workplace safety, warehouse worker protections, extreme temperature protections, retaliation against injured workers, and workplace bullying. Committee chairs outlined procedures for the hybrid hearing and noted that members would be leaving intermittently for floor votes. Testimony also touched on a bill to expand workers’ compensation disfigurement benefits by removing the current $15,000 cap and extending coverage beyond scars on the hands, neck, and face. A major theme was workplace safety in warehouses and in extreme heat or cold. Teamsters, warehouse workers, and labor advocates described high injury rates, strict quotas, lack of water, inadequate ventilation, frozen or missing safety equipment, and pressure to work through heat waves and snowstorms. Supporters urged favorable reports on bills protecting warehouse workers and requiring employers to adopt heat- and cold-safety plans, while the NFIB opposed the temperature bill as overly prescriptive and burdensome for small businesses. Sen. Edwards, Sen. Roche, Rep. O’Day, and others argued that the measures are needed to prevent heat illness, provide shade, water, rest breaks, training, and emergency plans, and to cover all workers regardless of immigration status. Another major subject was the “Act to Protect Injured Workers,” backed by labor groups, immigrant worker centers, legal services organizations, and individual workers. Witnesses said employers often retaliate after injuries by threatening deportation, lying about how injuries occurred, delaying care, or firing workers, and they supported stronger anti-retaliation enforcement, multilingual notices, and a rebuttable presumption of retaliation within 90 days of protected activity. The Mass AFL-CIO and immigrant advocacy groups supported the bill and opposed measures they said would weaken employee classification standards. Testimony also supported a funeral-benefits bill to raise workers’ compensation death-benefit reimbursement for burial and funeral costs, based on a family’s experience after a workplace fatality. The committee heard additional testimony on workplace bullying bills, with some witnesses urging a new legal duty for employers to prevent and respond to bullying, while others described the harms of toxic workplaces and the lack of effective remedies.

Transcript Highlights:

• Austin, the floor is yours if you would like it. Thank you, Mr.
• going to be bills on the floor, and Friday morning there's going to be bills on the floor.
• There is one technical item we'd like your consideration of addressing.
• There is one technical item we'd like your consideration of addressing.
• So I would encourage my colleagues to see if we could address that in a floor amendment.

Summary: The joint House and Senate Appropriations committees met to hear the FY 2027 budget package, beginning with the General Appropriations Act (HB 4154/SB 1847). Staff outlined the overall budget, including one-time fund transfers, lump-sum reductions, funding for state employee health insurance, school facilities, corrections, flood and wildfire relief, education and child care, and other ongoing and supplemental items. Members briefly discussed the absence of a requested $1.5 million for the oversight office, but the chair said no amendments would be taken in committee and that only limited technical changes were likely later in the process. Public testimony on the feed bill was largely supportive but focused on specific funding concerns. Testimony highlighted school safety funding, Alzheimer’s services, small business tax expensing provisions, disability oversight for group homes, county use of opioid settlement dollars, adult education/community college funding, victim notification funding, and ESA oversight. Several speakers praised the budget for funding DDD and other services, while others opposed or sought changes to items such as the COMIT group home monitoring program, Maricopa Community Colleges’ lack of operating aid, and a possible cut to the victim notification program. The chair repeatedly emphasized that changes to the negotiated budget would be difficult and should be routed through leadership. The committee then moved quickly through the remaining budget reconciliation bills. Staff summarized bills covering amusement and wagering, capital outlay, commerce, criminal justice, environment, health care, higher education, human services, and K-12 education. Notable provisions included continued wagering assessments, highway and building renewal funding, defense innovation and economic development changes, corrections and wrongful conviction provisions, groundwater and water banking measures, health insurance oversight and opioid settlement provisions, higher education funding and ABOR operating caps, SNAP and housing trust fund changes, and a 2% inflation increase for K-12 formula components. The K-12 bill also included a biometric school safety pilot and a child sexual abuse prevention pilot. No votes were taken in the portion provided, and the chair indicated the committee would continue through the remaining bills.

Transcript Highlights:

• </c><00:04:49.840><c> shall</c> the cause now under consideration shall the cause now under consideration
• He was on the floor next to my bed. He He was on the floor next to my bed.
• </c> floor or how does that process work? floor or how does that process work?
• </c> would bring that to the the uh floor. would bring that to the the uh floor.
• </c> the floor. the floor. So,<01:45:35.040><c> Mr.

Committee: Senate Rules and Administration - Subcommittee on Ethical Conduct

Transcript Highlights:

• Let's bring it to the Senate floor.
• Let's bring it to the Senate floor.
• for immediate consideration.
• for immediate consideration.
• for immediate consideration.

Transcript Highlights:

• The floor is yours, sir. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
• And again, ask for your favorable consideration to print. Thank you, Chairman.
• Settles, and if you would, for the record, please introduce yourself, and the floor is yours, sir.
• send the gubernatorial reappointment of John Weber to the State Insurance Fund Board to the Senate floor
• the gubernatorial reappointment of Robert Cuyo to the Idaho Health Insurance Exchange Board to the floor

Committee: Senate Commerce and Human Resources