Transcript Highlights:

• The issue we are here to discuss extends far beyond the borders of the United States.
• Academic institutions such as Stanford and the University of Texas are given large grants not to defend
• The EU is now using the Digital Services Act outside its borders to require censorship, including of
• The prime example we offer is national security reporting.
• President Trump has sued CBS in Texas federal court based on that theory.

Keywords: censorship, First Amendment, social media, misinformation, free speech, government regulation, Big Tech, public discourse

Summary: The meeting primarily focused on the implications of government involvement in censorship, particularly regarding social media platforms and compliance with misinformation standards. senators and witnesses discussed growing concerns over the influence of large tech companies, like Facebook and Google, in shaping public discourse and suppressing dissenting views. A significant part of the meeting included testimonies from various experts emphasizing the dangers of the 'censorship industrial complex'—a term used to describe the collaborative efforts between government entities and private organizations to control information flow. This collaboration is viewed as a violation of First Amendment rights, with calls for urgent legislative action to restore free speech protections.

Transcript Highlights:

• of the state of Texas, call the Texas House of Representatives of the eighty-ninth legislature to order
• We have provided more money to help secure our border.
• This is our Texas.
• It looks like Texas, all of Texas.
• because Texas is different.

Transcript Highlights:

• , Jane Nelson, Secretary of State of the State of Texas, call the Texas House of Representatives of the
• We have provided more funds to help secure our border, and we have worked together to address these pressing
• This is our Texas.
• because Texas is different.
• In Texas because Texas is different. I don't agree with that.

Keywords: 1184, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• That includes Texas Tech, Texas A&M, the University of Texas, and Texas State, kind of dividing the state
• being in Texas.
• He said, "You're going to love West Texas." So I do. I do love West Texas.
• Texas but practicing outside of our state, nurses licensed outside of Texas but practicing in Texas under
• and working in Texas.

Keywords: 1184, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Our guidelines currently stop at 15,000 combined income, and when we compare that with some of our border
• Texas, as you see, I didn't put Texas up there as a border state because they don't use a combined gross
• I know Texas is one of them that does something similar.
• So those that make no money, that aren't on Social Security, SSI, So those that make no money that aren't
• on Social Security, SSI, Social Security, we can set them at zero.

Summary: The Senate Judiciary Committee met to conduct the statutorily required four-year review of Oklahoma’s child support guidelines, which DHS said had not been reviewed on schedule in recent years. Deputy Director Don Zellner of DHS Child Support Services presented data on the number of children served, child poverty, rising costs of raising a child, wage trends, and the volume of child support orders handled by DHS. He also explained how the current guidelines work, including income withholding, shared overnight deductions, daycare, medical, transportation, and self-employment adjustments, and noted that the guidelines are based on gross combined income and currently cap at $15,000 combined income. Committee members, especially Senator Boren, questioned whether the current model fairly reflects modern family economics, including the cost of housing, the impact of shared overnights, and whether visitation issues should be addressed alongside child support. DHS said the guidelines are over 25 years old, that other states generally use similar gross-income models with shared-overnight deductions, and that Oklahoma’s administrative courts have been more receptive than district courts to DHS’s lower-income deviation approach. Zellner said DHS has also updated its practices to better account for low-income obligors, including allowing zero orders in some cases and reducing imputed minimum-wage assumptions, which DHS said has improved collections. Members also asked about transparency and public access to the calculations. DHS said the formula and income chart are in statute, the calculator is available on the DHS website, and the Excel-based tool applies the statutory chart and deductions. A public commenter asked where parents could see how amounts are calculated, and DHS explained that the statutory chart and calculator are the main sources. The committee discussed possible future reforms, including higher income caps, possible changes to shared overnight rules, and whether extracurricular or special child-related expenses could be considered through judicial deviation. No vote was taken; the meeting ended with the chair noting it was the last Judiciary meeting of the 60th Legislature and adjourning the committee.

Transcript Highlights:

• Uh, yeah, so the border states.
• families to move to Texas. families to move to Texas.
• <00:37:47.200> and families that have moved to Texas and families that have moved to Texas
• <01:01:16.240> and people that just cross the border and people that just cross the border
• As [snorts] of Homeland Security.

Bills: HF3432, HF3411

Keywords: resident tuition, employment, higher education, Minnesota, tuition rates, state universities, immigration status, immigration, postsecondary education, privacy, data access, federal officers, 1183, house

Transcript Highlights:

• security, our leadership in the world. security, our leadership in the world.
• one security threat.
• border.
• . along the border.
• security numbers of American citizens. security numbers of American citizens.

Keywords: U.S. House of Representatives Floor Proceedings on Wednesday, March 18, 2026, 1012, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• HB 3485 by Vikki Goodwin relates to border municipalities, for the Subcommittee on Federal, State, and
• HB 3487 by John Hunter relates to the owners of restaurants that purchased Texas farm-raised oysters,
• HB 3496 by Tom Oliverson relating to the authority of the Texas Department of Insurance to publish a
• HB 3522 by Angela Holt relating to the labeling and sale of Texas honey, referred to the Committee on
• HCR 117 by Todd Hunter designates Port Aransas as the Official Fishing Capital of Texas for a 10-year

Keywords: 1184, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• , federal level for for safety, security, federal level for for safety, security, and<00:09:30.080
• We wanted less government spending, more secure borders, and we wanted to see the 2017 tax cuts made
• Our bill makes historic investments in our border security by ensuring we can finish the border wall,
• friend from Texas for yielding the time. friend from Texas for yielding the time.
• Gentleman from Texas reserves. reserve. Gentleman from Texas reserves.

Keywords: U.S. House of Representatives Floor Proceedings on Wednesday, May 21, 2025, 1012, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• And what that means for our economies, but also for our national security.
• How do we position ourselves to ensure that it's not going to Arizona, Colorado, Texas, or Michigan?
• We ship our calves into Texas, and then we ship the corn to feed them there.
• There's a large cannabis industry because it's right on the New Mexico-Texas border.
• When we did the Water Security Act and the Resiliency Act, I went out to my community.

Transcript Highlights:

• of Texas system.
• I'm grateful for this opportunity to share Texas State's vision for a brighter Texas.
• Almost 50,000 high school seniors in Texas have applied to go to Texas State University.
• That's huge in Texas.
• It's Texas-Louisiana.

Transcript Highlights:

• Uh, great to be with all of you and welcome here to the Texas Capitol and uh the, the Senate, uh, media
• Nearly two centuries ago, securing international recognition for Texas and paving the way for permanent
• families, Texas communities, Texas businesses, and the great state of Texas as a whole.
• UK subsidiaries also employ about 120,000 people here in the great state of Texas.
• And our European partners beyond the UK with Texas will be in great standing going forward.

Transcript Highlights:

• I am all for a secure border, but what we're seeing today is not the America that I know.
• I am all for<02:19:19.120> a<02:19:19.280> secure<02:19:19.599> border,<02:19:19.920
• > but<02:19:20.080> what<02:19:20.319> we're for a secure border, but what we're
• for a secure border, but what we're seeing<02:19:20.800> today<02:19:21.519> is<02:19:
• It's not like Texas. not like Florida. It's not like Texas.

Keywords: U.S. House of Representatives Floor Proceedings on Thursday, May 8, 2025, 1012, house, all

Transcript Highlights:

• Customs and Border Protection National Targeting Center, and U.S.
• He has, he's already patrolling the borders of the state of Florida.
• They're across the border. They're the gotaways.
• criminal that comes across our borders that kills one of us.
• , the Biden border crisis.

Summary: The Senate opened with a quorum, prayer, and the Pledge of Allegiance, then read an amended joint proclamation expanding the special session call to include financial penalties for government officials, criminal penalties for offenses committed by illegal aliens, and programs and appropriations to support law enforcement cooperation with federal immigration enforcement. No committee reports, governor’s messages, or House messages were on the desk before the chamber moved to the special order calendar. The main item was Committee Substitute for Senate Bill 2B, the immigration bill, along with a late-filed strike-all amendment by Senator Gruters. Gruters said the amendment aligned terminology with federal law, increased penalties for crimes by unauthorized aliens, added transnational crime organizations to gang definitions, required stronger participation in the federal 287(g) program, created financial penalties for noncompliance, offered a $1,000 bonus for officers assisting ICE in large operations, directed more information-sharing with federal agencies, and barred DHSMV from issuing licenses or IDs to unauthorized aliens. He framed the bill as supporting President Trump’s immigration agenda and focusing on criminal illegal aliens rather than street-level enforcement. A long question-and-answer period followed, with Senators Polsky, Pizzo, Smith, Jones, Roscoe, Berman, and others pressing the sponsor on scope, legality, costs, and implementation. Questions focused on whether the bill would require participation beyond jails and detention centers, whether schools or churches could be affected, liability and immunity for local agencies, the size and purpose of the proposed appropriations, and the impact on undocumented students receiving in-state tuition waivers. Gruters and Senator Fine said the 287(g) provisions were intended to apply to jails and detention facilities, that green-card holders and lawful residents would not be affected, and that the tuition waiver repeal would end discounted tuition for students in the country illegally while not affecting their ability to attend. Fine also defended the mandatory death penalty provision for certain capital offenses committed by illegal immigrants, acknowledging it would likely be challenged in court but arguing the bill was designed to test and advance the policy. No final vote or other action on the bill is reflected in the excerpt.

Transcript Highlights:

• My aunt was arrested by ICE and was sent to immigration detention in Texas.
• Since 2021, New Mexico has secured approximately $6.5 billion in federal funds.
• But if we aren't, then Texas is, Florida is, Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi.
• So I then wonder, because we talk about other states, like Texas, we could send them to Texas, but Fort
• Only 10% of it is in the state of Texas.

Keywords: 996, all

Transcript Highlights:

• They are not consistently granted in-state tuition rates across all Texas institutions.
• We do have Brian Stevens here with the Texas Military Department as a resource witness.
• This is a priority bill for the Texas Military Department.
• We ask a lot of our Texas Military Department members; thousands of them have deployed to the border
• We do have the Texas Military Department here as a resource witness.

Bills: HB101, HB290

Keywords: voter approval, local tax, disaster declaration, tax rate increases, community funding, PFAS, agriculture, criminal offense, pollution, Johnson County, environmental regulation, 1185, senate, all

Transcript Highlights:

• And then additionally, we did a lot of research and found Texas statutes and what their admin fees are
• statutes and what their admin fees or whatnot so in Texas what happens is they charge no more than $48
• It’s a border crossing. It’s a border crossing with tolls. Exactly. Over a canal. Exactly. Exactly.
• Border crossing with tolls. Exactly. Over a canal. Exactly. Not a river.
• Something as simple as a properly secure connection, a pin, or a secondary attachment could have saved

Bills: HB345, HB503, HB511, HB590, HB655, HB685, HB692, HB707, HB715, HB748, HB776, HB856, HB860, HB868, HB887, HB888, HB896, HB999, HB1000, HB1086, HB1233

Keywords: rail infrastructure, ports, Class II railroads, Class III railroads, transportation, HB 503, Act 554, Golden Meadow, utility terrain vehicle, UTV, recreational off-highway vehicle, ROV, golf cart, low-speed vehicle, road shoulder travel, local ordinance, municipal traffic regulation, vehicle registration decal, municipal general fund, insurance requirement

Summary: The Senate Committee on Transportation and Public Works met with five members present and approved the April 29, 2026 minutes. The committee then heard and favorably reported several bills, including HB 1233, which lowers the contract threshold for hospital service districts to use the Seymours program for certain hospital construction projects, and HB 715, which requires aerial applicators operating from public airports to have a transponder and radio; an amendment removing language about airport use of ADS-B data for fees was adopted after sponsors said the issue would be handled in another bill. HB 999 was reported favorably to allow impoundment of out-of-state vehicles operated in Louisiana without liability insurance, and HB 692 was amended to let parishes and municipalities use group purchasing organizations, with a narrowing amendment limiting one-source procurements and assurances that local bidders would not be disadvantaged. The committee also advanced HB 511, creating a grant program for pursuit intervention technology in response to officer safety concerns, and HB 590, which would let OMV issue specialized envelopes or notices for drivers with autism or other disabilities so officers are alerted during traffic stops. HB 503 was reported favorably after a local cleanup change to a golf cart bill for Golden Meadow, and HB 655 was approved to let DOTD use cost-plus contracts for operation and maintenance of state-owned ferries. HB 748 clarified that school board-owned or leased vehicles are exempt from tolls, and HB 860 would allow fillable electronic bids for local government procurement. Later, the committee approved HB 896, a major tolling-related cleanup bill for Plaquemines Parish that addresses customer service center access, administrative fees, and exemptions, with members and local officials criticizing the toll structure and its impact on the parish. HB 1000 was reported favorably as a cleanup measure tied to highway priority program reporting and local district contract limits. HB 887 established a more consistent scoring and ranking process for Seymour projects, with an amendment to avoid conflict with changing FAA grant rules. HB 888, a cleanup bill on temporary tags, was amended with added security features and then reported favorably. HB 1086, a broad electronic title and registration modernization bill, received a lengthy amendment set but was voluntarily held over for a week so members could review the new language. The committee also advanced HB 776 to expand the Port Priority Program to larger projects, with amendments clarifying flexibility and removing private projects from the bill. HB 707 was reported favorably to let the Department of Agriculture and Forestry handle promotional activities for the liquefied petroleum gas commission through a cooperative endeavor agreement. HB 868, a farm safety bill requiring safety chains or other manufacturer-specified equipment on trailers, was reported favorably after testimony about a fatal accident and assurances it would not change engineering standards beyond existing manufacturer requirements. Finally, HB 856 was amended to authorize indefinite delivery/indefinite quantity contracting for DOTD maintenance and construction work, then reported favorably, and the committee later corrected the record on HB 856 by reconsidering and withdrawing one technical amendment set so further floor cleanup could be made. The meeting adjourned without objection.

Transcript Highlights:

• My district goes up to the Texas state line and to the border with Mexico, and it also includes the Santa
• I've been wanting to go to the Columbus border crossing.
• Hidalgo County is the area that we share the border.
• The border with Arizona over there.
• It is a two-lane border corridor.

Transcript Highlights:

• We border Colorado, Oklahoma, and Texas. 22,000 square miles.
• Connect Texas; they want to connect Texas to I-25. We're still at a real early preliminary stage.
• on the Texas side, northwest into New Mexico around Clayton and up out of Raton.
• Going up like Texas and New Mexico, how does that play or not play into it? Any comment on that?
• There's no real incentive for any city to go outside its borders to connect somewhere else.

Transcript Highlights:

• Texas families should be allowed to stay together, right?
• Gibson, and welcome to Texas, by the way. Are there any questions of the witness?
• Senate side, so this was a bill that the Texas Association of Builders and Texas Municipal League worked
• Texas Public Policy Foundation testifying for the bill, is that correct? Please proceed, sir.
• Um, I'm a local developer, land broker here in Austin, Texas.