Bills List: Secure the Border (Includes Special Session Bills)
The Montgomery County Republican Party’s Legislative Committee monitors Legislative Priority bills and sends emails to keep you informed when action is needed. Subscribe today by clicking below!
Priority Bills Passed During Regular Session:
HB 6 - Signed into law, becomes effective Sept. 1. Makes it clear that any person who causes a death by unlawfully manufacturing or delivering fentanyl can be prosecuted for murder in the state of Texas. It enhances criminal penalties and requires proper acknowledgement on death certificates by requiring the death to be designated as caused by fentanyl poisoning or fentanyl toxicity. Montgomery County Legislators - Coauthor: Representative Bailes.
SB 1403 - Signed into law, becomes effective Sept. 1. Relating to an interstate compact for border security, including building a border wall and sharing state intelligence and resources. Montgomery County Legislators - Coauthor: Senator Creighton. Cosponsors: Representatives Bailes, Metcalf, and Toth.
SB 1484 - Signed into law, becomes effective Sept. 1. Relating to a border operations training program for peace officers employed by local law enforcement agencies. Montgomery County Legislators - Author: Senator Creighton.
SB 1900 - Signed into law, becomes effective Sept. 1. Relating to foreign terrorist organizations, including the compilation of information regarding, certain civil actions brought against, and the prosecution of certain organized crime offenses involving a foreign terrorist organization and of sedition. Montgomery County Legislators - Coauthor: Senator Creighton.
Bills Passed During Special Sessions:
HB 2 - Passed House & Senate. Relating to the punishment for certain criminal conduct involving the smuggling of persons or the operation of a stash house; increasing criminal penalties. Montgomery County Legislators - Coauthors: Representatives Bailes, Bell, Metcalf, and Toth. Cosponsors: Senators Bettencourt, Creighton, and Kolkhorst.
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Governor Abbott called a Special Legislative Session on May 29 to address property tax relief and border security, but the House adjourned after just one day, leaving these issues hanging in the balance with no opportunity for cooperation between the House and Senate. The Senate remains in session.
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Updates: Passed the House on 05/30. Referred to Senate Border Security Committee on 06/02. Scheduled for public hearing on 06/06, Senate committee reported favorably as substituted on 06/06. Senate passed as amended on 06/07.
June 8 Texas Scorecard article - Minor ‘Border Security’ Measure Passes, Citizens Need More
June 7 Statement from Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick on the Senate’s passage of Border Security bills.
HB 2 by Rep. Guillen (sponsored by Sen. Flores), relating to the punishment for certain criminal conduct involving the smuggling of persons or the operation of a stash house, increasing criminal penalties.
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Updates: Referred to Senate Border Security Committee on 06/02. Scheduled for public hearing on 06/06, passed Senate committee on 06/06. Passed the Senate on 06/07. House received from Senate on 06/07.
June 7 Statement from Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick on the Senate’s passage of Border Security bills.
SB 2 by Birdwell, creating a criminal offense for improper entry from a foreign nation.
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Updates: Referred to Senate Border Security Committee on 06/02. Scheduled for public hearing on 06/06, passed out of Senate committee on 06/07 without amendments.
SB 5 by Flores, relating to the punishment for certain criminal conduct involving the smuggling of persons or the operation of a stash house, increasing criminal penalties.
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Updates: Referred to Senate Border Security Committee on 06/02. Scheduled for public hearing on 06/06, Senate committee reported favorably without amendments on 06/06. Passed the Senate on 06/07. House received from Senate on 06/07.
June 7 Statement from Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick on the Senate’s passage of Border Security bills.
SB 8 by Birdwell, addressing public safety threats presented by transnational criminal activity, including by establishing a Texas Border Force and making funds available to certain governmental entities.
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Bills that passed both the House & Senate.
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Updates:
HB 6 - Passed the House, passed the Senate on 05/16, sent to Governor on 05/24.
Original Post:
On March 10, Speaker of the House Dade Phelan announced a legislative priorities package to enhance border security and crack down on the fentanyl crisis. As part of the package, HB 6 would increase the penalty for manufacturing or delivering less than one gram of fentanyl.
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SB 1403 - by Sen. Parker creates an interstate compact for border security, including building a border wall and sharing state intelligence and resources.
This is a Republican Party of Texas Priority Bill.
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Update: Passed the Senate & House. Sent to Governor on 05/12, signed by the Governor on 05/24.
SB 1484 - Relating to a border operations training program for peace officers employed by local law enforcement agencies.
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Update: Signed by the Governor, becomes effective Sept. 1.
SB 1900 by Sen. Birdwell designates the cartels as foreign terrorist organizations.
This is a Republican Party of Texas Priority Bill.
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Thank you for contacting elected officials and taking action on behalf of these bills. The Democrats are very organized, make many phone calls, and show up in large numbers in person. We must do the same to support our Republicans.
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Update: Placed on Senate Intent Calendar for 05/08/23 & 05/21.
SB 1621 - Senator Lois Kolkhorst (SD 18) filed SB 1621 that would require employers to use E-Verify to confirm the eligibility of their employees to work within the United States, helping protect Texans’ jobs and cut down on illegal immigration.
A companion bill, HB 3846, was filed in the House by Montgomery County Representative Steve Toth (HD 15).
“Currently the Texas Legislature and Governor Abbott are spending billions of dollars per biennium to secure our border,” said Senator Kolkhorst. “These bills are intended to enhance that effort with new tools.”
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Update: Passed the Senate, sitting in House State Affairs Committee since 04/17/23, considered in formal meeting on 05/19, reported favorably as amended on 05/19, placed on House Major State Calendar for 05/23, postponed on 05/23.
SB 2424 - Senator Brian Birdwell (HD 22) filed SB 2424 on March 10.
This bill establishes a Texas criminal offense for illegally crossing the border with punishment of up to one year in jail for a first-time offender, two years in state jail for a second-time offender, and up to life in prison for convicted felons who illegally cross the border.
“Senator Birdwell’s bill creates a new state crime for entering Texas illegally, authorizing Texas law enforcement to arrest and prosecute all people who cross the border illegally anywhere in Texas," said Lt. Governor Dan Patrick.
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Update: Adopted by the Senate, sitting in House State Affairs Committee since 04/28/23.
SCR 23 - A concurrent resolution that would take steps to declare an invasion at the Texas border.
SCR 23 was filed by Montgomery County’s own Senator Lois Kolkhorst (SD 18).
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Updates:
SCR 29 - Placed on Senate Intent Calendar for 05/11, no vote yet.
SB 1481 - Placed on Senate Intent Calendar for May 12, no vote yet.
A wall, technology, and boots on the ground; that’s what we need to secure our Texas southern border, according to Steven McCraw, Director of Texas’ Department of Public Safety. In the absence of any interest to do so by our current federal government, it seems our only option.
To achieve that, Senator Brandon Creighton of District 4 has offered SCR 29, a resolution that would declare an invasion by cartel narco-terrorists, opening the door to the accelerated construction of a wall and demanding that Congress deploy the military to our southern border.
The bill was passed through the Senate and now joins a plethora of legislation awaiting movement in the House.
Another bill by Creighton, SB 1481 would invoke eminent domain to facilitate building of the wall. That bill has been heard in the Senate Border Security Committee and awaits a vote there. This bill is understandably more controversial, but would allow the state to act with more speed on the issue.
Will we move to protect ourselves from an invasion? Let your legislators know what you think.
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HB 7 - Passed the House, Senate scheduled for public hearing in Senate Border Security Committee on 05/18, committee reported favorably as substituted on 05/19, placed on Senate Intent Calendar for 05/22, passed to 3rd reading as amended on 05/24, passed as amended on 05/24, Senate requested a conference on 05/27 but no agreement on bill reached before the deadline, bill appears to have died in session. Click here to read an assessment by Texas Scorecard.
Why would any of our Texas Legislators be opposed to securing our borders from the flood of illegals that include cartel members, narco-terrorists carrying masses of fentanyl and human traffickers? We, Texans, bear the country’s brunt for this open border policy. What on earth are they thinking?
The Senate must amend HB 7 to:
- Add the authorization ‘to repel’ to the Border Force created by the legislation, and
- Give the governor backing for the legislature to take independent action to protect Texans from cartels.
Updates:
HB 6 - Passed the House, passed the Senate on 05/16.
HB 20 - House placed on Major State Calendar for May 9, point of order sustained, returned to committee. Bill dead.
HB 1600 - Committee sent to Calendars on 05/03.
Original Post:
On March 10, Speaker of the House Dade Phelan announced a legislative priorities package to enhance border security and crack down on the fentanyl crisis. As part of the package, HB 6 would increase the penalty for manufacturing or delivering less than one gram of fentanyl to a third-degree felony punishable by up to 10 years in prison.
Additionally, HB 20 would establish a Border Protection Unit and HB 800 would crack down on human smuggling by increasing the mandatory minimum sentence for such convictions to 10 years in prison. Other bills in the package include HB 7 and HB 1600.
"Addressing our state’s border and humanitarian crisis is a must-pass issue for the Texas House this year," said Speaker Phelan.
Governor Greg Abbott and Lt. Governor Dan Patrick both agreed and made border security one of their priorities for the session.
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Update: Placed on Major State Calendar for 05/09/23. Point of order sustained, returned to House State Affairs Committee on 05/09.
Read May 10 update from Tom Glass
Why would any of our Texas Legislators be opposed to securing our borders from the flood of illegals that include cartel members, narco-terrorists carrying masses of fentanyl and human traffickers? We, Texans, bear the country’s brunt for this open border policy. What on earth are they thinking?
SB 20 gives Texas the framework to secure the safety and welfare of the southern border region of the state.
The Border Protection Unit Act, or SB 20, is intended to protect Texas citizens from the ongoing criminal activity that plagues our border and with accompanying public health threats. It is authored by Representative Matt Schaefer of District 6 and includes 47 co-sponsors, all of them Republicans and more than half of the Republicans currently seated in the House. It is also on Speaker Dade Phelan’s list of priority legislation for this session.
The bill would create a law enforcement unit called the Border Protection Unit, which would have the authority to arrest, detain and deter people from crossing the Texas-Mexico border illegally. -
HB 65 - Sent to Calendars on 05/03.
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Update: Placed on General State Calendar for May 9, laid on the table subject to call 05/09.
HB 82 - Bill establishing an Interstate Compact for Border Security.
The bill is authored by Representative David Spiller of District 68.
The fly in the ointment may be that the bill specifies that the state will seek approval of Congress in order to implement. In our current US House, that may fly, but not so much in the US Senate. Perhaps after 2024, that will change. -
Update: Passed the House as amended, placed on Senate Intent Calendar for May 22, passed the Senate as amended on 05/24, House & Senate failed to reach agreement on bill language before the 05/27 deadline. A similar bill, HB 2, was passed in the House during the new special session on 05/30. HB 2 is scheduled for a public hearing in the Senate Border Security Committee on 06/06.
Notice of Public Hearing for HB 2 in special session
HB 800 is offered by Rep. Ryan Guillen of District 31 in the Rio Grande Valley to address these issues.
The bill establishes punishment for criminal conduct involving the smuggling of persons, the operation of a stash house, or evading an arrest or detention; increasing criminal penalties.
The chaos along our border is cruel for all who must endure it, including the largely Hispanic population in some of these regions and those who are compelled to make the dangerous journey. -
Updates:
HB 1076 - Committee report sent to Calendars on 05/04.
HB 1152 - Passed the House. Senate received from House on 05/08.
Both bills would give non-citizens, and many former illegal aliens, the ability to become peace officers in the state of Texas, modeling legislation that has already passed in blue states like Colorado and California.
A peace officer is defined in the Texas Code of Criminal Procedure to have 31 different definitions spanning from a position as common as a “constable, sheriff, or police officer” to “investigators” employed by the Texas Racing Commission or Texas Medical Board.
Texans for Strong Borders commented, “No American job should go to a non-citizen. This legislation needs to die right where it is - in committee.”
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Update: Sitting in House State Affairs Committee since 03/16/23.
Another notable bill addressing border security is HB 3612 by Representative Toth to end birthright citizenship in Texas. Texans for Strong Borders President Chris Russo made the following statement:
“The only birthright citizenship enshrined in the Constitution is for the children of US citizens. HB 3612 acknowledges this reality. Earning citizenship to one country or another is a privilege, not a right, and should be based on one’s heritage, merit, ability to contribute to our national interests, culture, propensity to assimilate, and nationality, among other requisites.”
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Texans for Strong Borders released the following list of priority bills on March 17:
Repel The Invasion: HB 20, HB 4368, HCR 78, HCR 79, SCR 23, and SCR 29
Mandate E-Verify: HB 3846 and SB 1621
End In-State Tuition for Illegal Aliens: HB 859 and HB 3280
Finish President Trump’s Border Wall: HB 209 and SB 1481
End Birthright Citizenship: HB 3612
Tax Remittances to Foreign Nations: HB 4743
Protect Texas Public Schools: HB 4668 and SB 923
Notable Supplementary Legislation: HB 1491, HB 1600, and HB 5000
Click here to view bills filed by your state legislators during the 88th Texas Legislative Session, and to look up how your legislators voted on issues important to you.
Senator Brandon Creighton (SD 4)
(512) 463-0104 (Austin Office)
(281) 292-4128 (District Office)
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Senator Paul Bettencourt (SD 7)
(512) 463-0107 (Austin Office)
(713) 464-0282 (District Office)
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Senator Lois Kolkhorst (SD 18)
(512) 463-0118 (Austin Office)
(979) 251-7888 (District Office)
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Rep. Cecil Bell (HD 3)
(512) 463-0650 (Austin office)
(281) 259-3700 (District office)
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Rep. Steve Toth (HD 15)
(512) 463-0797 (Austin office)
(346) 220-0300 (District office)
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Rep. Will Metcalf (HD 16)
(512) 463-0726 (Austin office)
(936) 539-0068 (District office)
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Rep. Ernest Bailes (HD 18)
(512) 463-0570 (Austin office)
(936) 628-6687 (District office)
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