Special Session #3 Updates
Bills Passed in Special Session #3
SB 4 - Signed by the Governor. Increases penalties for human smuggling and operating a stash house. It establishes a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years for violations. Will become effective on February 6, 2024.
Montgomery County Legislators
Coauthors: Senators Bettencourt, Creighton, and Kolkhorst
Cosponsor: Representative Metcalf
SB 7 - Signed by the Governor. Prohibits a private employer from adopting or enforcing certain COVID-19 vaccine mandates; authorizing an administrative penalty. Will become effective on February 6, 2024.
Montgomery County Legislators
Coauthors: Senators Bettencourt, Creighton, and Kolkhorst
Cosponsor: Representative Metcalf
Latest Updates
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It’s official. The third special session of the Texas Legislature has ended and the fourth begins, right on its heels.
The score is two bills from the Senate passed onto the governor’s desk, none from the House.
SB 7 by Senator Mayes Middleton will prohibit employers from requiring COVID vaccines for employees as a condition of employment.
SB 4 by Senator Pete Flores will increase penalties for human smuggling and operating a stash house, establishing a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years for violations.
Other bills regarding border security, Colony Ridge and Governor Greg Abbott’s priority, School Choice legislation, died in the House.
We didn’t keep track, but it would be interesting to see a record of the days and times that the legislature was actually in session during the past monSpecial Session Agendath that they had to handle the items on the governor’s call. It wasn’t much.
The fourth special session begins this evening, focused on education and border security.
Read Governor Abbott’s Fourth Special Session Agenda
A draft of a new School Choice bill, this time from the House, has already been placed on the table for consideration in the fourth special session.
The bill, HB 1 by Representative Brad Buckley would set up Education Savings Accounts, but would additionally include teacher pay raises and additional monies for school districts. As currently written, each qualified child would be allocated $10,500 for private school tuition and expenses and home schooled children would qualify for $1,000 a year toward expenses.
The business of testing students would be a beneficiary under this plan, as each student that receives an ESA would be required to take a state assessment or a nationally norm-reference test. Student testing is big business and all sorts of government-required learning can be wrapped up into them.
The lack of productive outcomes in Austin is essentially a reflection for the battle of control of the Texas Legislature. As the fourth session prepares to gavel in, it remains a mystery as to what might be different that might produce more or better results for the State of Texas that one regular and three called sessions could not.
Has Texas representative government fallen prey to the old adage about doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results? We shall see.
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The third special legislative session called by Governor Greg Abbott ends today. Lawmakers have only passed two bills that were on Governor Abbott’s Special Session call. The House is scheduled to meet at 10am and the Senate is scheduled to meet at 4pm.
The governor’s Special Session 3 agenda asked for legislation on border security, school choice, Colony Ridge, and COVID vaccine mandates.
View the Governor’s Special Session 3 proclamation.
Senate Bill 4 increases penalties for human smuggling and operating a stash house. It establishes a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years for violations. This bill has been sent to the governor to sign.
Senate Bill 7 prohibits a private employer from adopting or enforcing certain COVID-19 vaccine mandates; authorizing an administrative penalty. This bill has been sent to the governor to sign.
TAKE ACTION
1) Please contact Governor Abbott’s office and urge him to call another special session to prevent SECURE THE BORDER AND PROTECT TEXANS!
Phone: 512-463-2000
2) Please contact your Texas House Representative and Senator and demand action on protecting Texans! Enough is enough!
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Jordano Gotopo-Lopez could be the poster boy for the kind of neutered legislation that often emerges from political bodies, after being subjected to death by a thousand cuts of the opposition party.
HB 4 by Representative David Spiller would make it a criminal offense under Texas law to enter our state from a foreign nation, since our federal government has no interest in protecting us from the incursions we are experiencing. The bill allows law enforcement to detain persons illegally crossing the border and bring them back to the border, giving them a choice between crossing and prison time.
It seems like a modest proposal, lacking the array of enforcement options possessed by federal authorities and yet the outrage from the left has been loud and hysterical. We are heartless. These are all honest, hard-working people fleeing oppression and domestic violence. We will force law enforcement to make decisions they are not equipped to make. We will be profiling. We will be sued. And, of course, we are racists.
And yet, this modest proposal contains a fatal flaw. It does not require detained persons to be fingerprinted, photographed and have their backgrounds checked. Without knowing who is being detained and returned, dangerous criminals cross back into Mexico and return at another point to try again.
Gotopo-Lopez is a convicted murderer who was arrested in Massachusetts just months after crossing into Texas at Eagle Pass. Even more frightening is the Senegalese terrorist recently captured by ICE after he was detained by agents at the Arizona border and released into the U.S.
The Senate has a version of the House bill that corrects that problem and it may take up when it convenes at 4 p.m. today. Or it may be left for yet another special session, since this one ends on Tuesday.
Will anything useful come out of the third special session of the 88th Texas Legislature? We are running out of time to find out.
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Just yesterday, Governor Abbott said he had reached an agreement with Texas House Speaker Dade Phelan on a compromise bill, but Rep. Brad Buckley, Public Education Committee Chair, said Wednesday evening that the House has run out of time to pass a bill for School Choice this session.
Read more in this Texas Scorecard article. Update in the works from the MCRP Legislative Committee.
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The Senate Border Security Committee is holding a hearing on HB 4, which would make it a Texas crime to enter the state from a foreign nation illegally.
It is very instructive to hear the questions and comments from the opposition. Solutions to problems frequently create other issues, but what are the costs of doing nothing? And while our legislature picks apart anything to address the problem, another massive caravan this way comes.
COMMITTEE: Border Security
TIME & DATE: 11:00 AM or upon adjournment Wednesday, November 1, 2023
PLACE: E1.016 (Hearing Room)
CHAIR: Senator Brian Birdwell
The Senate Committee on Border Security will hold a public hearing to consider the following:
HB 4 Spiller | et al. SP: Birdwell Relating to prohibitions on the illegal entry into or illegal presence in this state by a person who is an alien, the enforcement of those prohibitions, and authorizing under certain circumstances the removal of persons who violate certain of those prohibitions; creating criminal offenses.
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The goings-on in our state’s capitol today qualify as a little here, a little there, and now we have sausage. Here are a few highlights.
SB 6 and HB 4 - Border Security
The Senate Finance Committee passed SB 6, which would provide $1.5 billion toward building border barriers and providing law enforcement money to address Colony Ridge. A similar bill, HB 4, to build a wall passed the full House on Oct. 26. Differences would be worked out in a conference committee.
Colony Ridge
And in the Senate Committee on Local Government, testimony was heard on the issues surrounding Colony Ridge. Much of the discussion amounted to assurances that there are no real problems at Colony Ridge. It is all a brouhaha stemming from a tweet suggesting that Colony Ridge is a no-go zone and that there are no more problems with crime, environmental quality, or business practices than any other developments. No further mention was made of the cartels operating there that the FBI is purportedly watching or the drug businesses operating there that DEA is purportedly watching.
SB 7 - Prohibiting COVID Mandates
In the full Senate, SB 7 passed, preventing employers from adopting policies requiring the COVID-19 vaccine as a condition of employment.
House Unable to Meet Quorum for Second Day in a Row
Meanwhile, in the House of Representatives, nothing. For the second day in a row, the House was unable to get a quorum of 77 members in order to conduct business. The move is reminiscent of a tactic employed by Democrats in 2021 to avoid a vote on election restrictions. What could they be up to now?
Texas Scorecard is reporting that it all seems to have been a ploy to avoid action on the governor’s School Choice legislation. And it seems the ploy has worked as Governor Abbott just announced that the education savings accounts in his bill will now be tied to billions in new spending for public schools. The House now deigns to reconvene at 6 p.m. tomorrow, when the fun starts again.
“And so it goes,” as my husband might say. “First your money, then your clothes.”
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Dan Patrick, Texas Lieutenant Governor posted on X today:
The Texas Senate just passed SB 6 out of the Finance Committee, which provides $1.54 billion to build the wall and add law enforcement to Colony Ridge.
Today's court ruling sends a strong message to the Biden administration: If Biden won't secure the border, Texas will, and the courts will back us up. -
The Texas House has passed border security funding, increased criminal penalties for human smuggling, and criminal penalties for improper entry from a foreign nation.
Border Security Funding
House Bill 6 appropriates $1.5 billion in funding for constructing, operating, and maintaining border barrier infrastructure.
Funds in HB 6 will be used to prioritize the most at-risk areas of the border as determined by the Texas Department of Public Safety.
The bill was amended to ban the funds from being used for eminent domain of private land or to build a barrier along Texas’ borders with other U.S. states. The amendment passed by a vote of 134-4.
An amendment was proposed by Democrat State Rep. Jessica Gonzalez to ban the funding from being used for buoy barriers in the Rio Grande, but it failed.
The bill passed in a vote of 84-61 and will move to the Texas Senate.
Human Smuggling
Senate Bill 4 will increase penalties for human smuggling and operating a stash house. It establishes a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years for violations of SB 4.
Although several amendments were proposed by Democrats, all failed to pass.
The final vote was 92-54. SB 4 will now be sent to the governor’s desk.
Illegal Entry
To create a criminal penalty for improper entry into Texas from a foreign nation, the Senate and House have each passed their own bills: Senate Bill 11 and House Bill 4.
HB 4 passed the Texas House by a vote of 84-60. It now goes to the Senate for consideration.
The third special session expires on November 7.
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Senate Bill 7 - “Prohibiting a private employer from adopting or enforcing certain COVID-19 vaccine mandates; authorizing an administrative penalty.
The legislation was placed on the agenda of the third special session by Governor Greg Abbott earlier this month and quickly passed by the Senate.
According to Texas Scorecard:
“An amendment by State Rep. Brian Harrison (R–Midlothian) to broaden the bill to include any person, rather than just employers, was struck down by Speaker Dade Phelan on a point of order on the grounds that it was not germane to the governor’s call—which solely mentioned employers. Another amendment by Harrison to explicitly expand the protection to medical school students in light of Baylor College of Medicine’s mandate was also struck down by Phelan on the same grounds.
“State Rep. Briscoe Cain (R–Deer Park) then successfully added an amendment that expanded the definition of “contractor” to include anyone “who undertakes specific work for an employer in exchange for a benefit without submitting to the control of the employer over the manner, methods, or details of the work.” Cain said this provision could work as a creative means to protect medical school students within the governor’s call.
“One of the biggest moments in the debate, however, happened when State Rep. Steve Toth (R–The Woodlands) brought forth an amendment to increase the fine to $50,000. Leach called the amendment “reckless and silly” and stated that Sen. Middleton and the Senate would oppose raising the fine, putting the legislation in jeopardy.
“Harrison, however, said he had spoken with Middleton about the exact amendment and that he had expressed support for it.
“The House then adopted the amendment 87-57.
“State Rep. Tony Tinderholt (R–Arlington) also attempted to amend the legislation, to require employers to rehire or compensate employees that are fired because of their refusal to get the vaccine. That amendment was killed by Phelan on a point of order.
“House lawmakers approved the legislation in a vote of 90-57.
“The bill must now receive another vote before being sent back to the Senate. They can approve the changes made in the House or send it to a conference committee to hammer out a compromise.”
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As we speak, Texas Representative Victoria Neave is holding a press conference in anticipation of a vote in the full House on HB 4 and HB 6 on border security.
HB 4 by Representative David Spiller of District 68, would give Texas a vehicle for removing illegal aliens from our state.
HB 6 by Representative Jacey Jetton would appropriate money to build a border wall for Texas.
Opposition to these bills has been virulent. Is our support as impassioned?
The opposition testimony claims that the bills are extreme anti-immigrant legislation, will lead to human rights abuses, and is rooted in racism and hate.
Please call your representative and demand they vote to secure the border.
TAKE ACTION
Contact your House Representative and urge support for HB 4 and HB 6 to secure the border.
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Additional bills coming up for a floor vote in the Texas House today are SB 7, which seeks to ban companies from requiring COVID vaccine mandates and SB 4 which provides criminal penalties for human smuggling and the operation of stash houses in Texas.
Click here for the agenda and details.
TAKE ACTION
Now is the time to make your wishes known to your state representatives.
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A bill to appropriate $1.5 billion for Texas to build a wall across its southern border with Mexico was the topic of testimony that was sometimes impassioned. HB 4 by Representative Jacey Jettson was the only business taken up in the House today and the only business of any consequence in both chambers.
A panel of border county sheriff’s was the most compelling part of the day, as the witnesses tried to convey the seriousness of our open border, while Democratic representatives attempted to shoot holes in the information they offered.
Terrell County Sheriff Thaddeus Cleveland commented, “We don’t have a crime problem. We have a national security problem.”
At one point, MoCo HD 15 Representative Steve Toth asked if any of the border county sheriffs are opposed to the wall and the response was, “Not to our knowledge.”
Things we learned from the Texas border sheriffs are:
-The cartels own every inch of our border with Mexico and nothing and no one comes across except through them.
-The current federal administration has completely dismantled the obstructions that we had across the border.
-From 2020 to 2021 there has been a 809% uptick in apprehensions.
-There are stash houses throughout the Texas border area.
-There were a minimum of 16 stash houses in Goliath County, until they were cleaned out with great difficulty.
-There are definitely foreign terrorists being apprehended and the officers are very concerned about the ones getting away.
-The incidents of theft, drug and human smuggling is astronomical.
-Landowners are being forced from their land in fear of the cartels.
-We underestimate the cartels and their ability to maneuver around, change positions and mindsets, and continue to operate anywhere they choose.
-While walls are not a complete solution, they create a chock point that makes it more difficult for the cartels to operate.
-There are only two police officers for every 859 miles of area.
-The sheriffs believe with 100% certainty that a wall will significantly curtail criminal activity.
- Sheriff’s deputies routinely get calls from Texans with property near the border to come and check their homes, after being away and before they will go back to them.
In responding to testimony, one representative commented that he had visited the border recently and that in 15 minutes, he watched six groups cross.
Comments in opposition included concerns about how the money would be spent, with one legislator asking that some of it be used to address related issues in the court systems.
Another asked about whether Texas would coordinate with the federal government on the wall, and another expressed concerns that Texas might use the money to build a wall between our state and New Mexico.
Several used their time to complain and try to get assurances that children would not be separated from their families, as was charged under the Trump administration.
One witness pointed out that the charge regarding separation of families was not the whole truth, in light of the pervasive human trafficking that we know is part of the problem. He asked, “If Joe is driving down the road drunk with kids, do you separate Joe from the kids?”
And yet another argument was that the wall may be a danger to wildlife in the area. But the witness testified that there is much greater risk to wildlife from the plastics and other trash left behind from illegal immigrants.
The border wall bill was part of Governor Greg Abbott’s special session call. We shall see how it fares in a House that is controlled by the Democrats/RINO coalition. -
Would you like to tell your state representative how you feel about Texas building a wall along its border with Mexico? This is your chance.
Today, the House Appropriations Committee is hearing testimony on HB 6 by Representative Jacey Jetton of District 26 to appropriate money for the construction, operation, and maintenance of border barrier infrastructure.
Texas residents who wish to electronically submit comments related to agenda items on this notice without testifying in person can do so until the hearing is adjourned by visiting:
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HB 4 by Representative David Spiller of District 68 would give Texas authorities the ability to detain illegal immigrants, escort them to the border, and order them to return to their country. HB 4 passed in the House State Affairs Committee today on an 8-3 vote. Illegal immigrants who decline face charges that could result in 2-20 years in prison, depending on the track record of the detained.
“Texans must be able to protect Texans, especially when the federal government will not,” said Spiller in explaining his bill. He further submitted that the bill is not unconstitutional and not in conflict with federal law.
Representative Janie Lopez, who lives in Cameron County near the border said that illegals are crossing the border at the rate of 300,00 a month, but did not think the plan was much different from what they are currently doing.
Representative Richard Raymond Peña objected to the word ‘may’ where it should be ‘shall’ in authorizing law enforcement. He commented that although we are not a sanctuary state, we arrest illegals, feed and house them and send them back out. In truth, their lives incarcerated in Texas are more comfortable than before coming here, according to the legislator.
Spiller contended that the bill is not designed to incarcerate a lot of people. It’s designed to get around the state’s inability to deport illegal immigrants. Enforcement under this legislation would primarily take place within 100 miles of the border to tamp down the flood of new arrivals.
After a back and forth to clarify the legislation, the committee heard several hours of testimony from witnesses opposed to the bill.
Objections to the bill included the following:
We are asking police officers to make complex determinations about the immigration status of individuals.
We will inevitably be profiling people.
Many immigrants, legal or not, don’t speak English, don’t drive well, and don’t carry identification, so they may be subjected to harassment and over-policing.
Children will end up being separated from their parents.
Most illegal immigrants are very honest and will admit to coming into the country illegally.
We will overwhelm our jails and courts.
We will be sued from here to Kingdom come.
It will cause a dramatic rise in property taxes.
It will be a civil and human rights disaster
We are criminalizing migrants.
And, of course, racism, racism, racism.
Listening to this gives you an idea of how some of our legislation is picked apart, de-fanged, and left all but lifeless on the capitol floor.
You can’t say law enforcement ‘shall’ detain illegal immigrants. Say they ‘may’ detain them. You can’t stop and question people about their status. You might frighten them and you may be discriminating against them.
The bill doesn’t deal with the root of the problem and it can’t, as that is due to federal policies. You can’t deport them. Only the federal government can do that and they won’t.
You can’t order someone to leave who’s been here any length of time. This proposed law is intended to target illegals recently arrived and not mess with those who have had time to settle in.
Can you order them to return if you haven’t seen them cross into the U.S.? Of course not. The problems are endless and talk was very long on things we can’t do with little attention to trying to actually solve the problem.
There are very few criminals here, according to one of the witnesses. They are just mostly good people. Just like with Colony Ridge, it’s all our imagination.
Rock, meet A Hard Place. This is Texas in 2023. And as hard as we fight for each of these modest bills, it is in reality a spit in the ocean in contrast to the problem.
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SB 4 authored by Representative David Spiller of District 68 that would give Texas authorities the ability to detain illegal immigrants, escort them to the border, and order them to return to their country passed in the House State Affairs Committee today on an 8-3 vote. Illegal immigrants who decline face charges that could result in 2-20 years in prison, depending on the track record of the detained.
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The House State Affairs Committee also welcomed Colony Ridge CEO John Harris, as well as other witnesses who seemed to support Harris’ points of view.
Here are some of the things we heard:The Texas Commission on Environment quality told us that there have been 45 completed investigations, 32 enforcement actions and there are 28 ongoing investigations on issues regarding wastewater, drinking water, storm water runoff, and air quality, and that is about average for developments of that size.
Harris testified that most of the stories on Colony Ridge are not true, that the massacre of five Honduran family members was not in their community.
Further, Harris testified that they bought 500 acres that no one wanted and sold it to people that could not buy property conventionally, using financing the buyers could not get elsewhere. They also help them with permits and provide translation services.
Further, the company donated 65 acres for schools, land for a sheriff’s annex, and an activity center.
Harris said his company paid more than $40 million in taxes last year.
Harris said that only a third of the property owners actually live on the property.
And Harris said that the people complaining may be people who lost their hunting leases or just don’t want neighbors.
An officer from DPS testified that crime rates in Colony Ridge are basically no worse than any other large city in Texas and that they have no major crime issues.
An officer from the Liberty County Sheriff’s Office testified that you simply cannot not judge an area’s crime by the condition of the homes.
He did admit that there are cartels operating in Colony Ridge but they are not causing problems and are being monitored by the FBI.
Further, he contended that there is no such thing as a ‘no go zone.’ And further yet, although there are gangs in the community, they are not committing crimes, there is no proof that they are MS-13, and they are being monitored by DEA.
Feel better?
Legislation regarding Colony Ridge did make it out of committee on an 8-3 vote. Now it goes to the full House, should they meet again. Currently, they have adjourned until Monday.
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Today was another strange day in the city of Austin, with the House finally proceeding with business… more or less. The House State Affairs Committee Committee took up and heard testimony on three bills that passed the full Senate last week, none of which were voted upon in committee.
SB 7 is the ban on COVID vaccine mandates by employers, SB 4 deals with punishment for human smuggling and the operation of stash houses, and SB 11 provides the State of Texas with a criminal offense for illegal entry from a foreign nation.
And while proponents of the bills laid out their cases, opponents showed up in numbers, particularly on the border security measures.
The rationalizations are endless and endlessly interesting. Here are some of the highlights:
- It does not address the root problem
-It’s expensive. We’ll fill up our prison and have mass incarceration
-We have data that shows that mandatory minimum sentences don’t work
-It criminalizes our youth
-Most cases of human smuggling are just moving families around
-The jurisdiction for immigration enforcement is federal, not state
-We should offer care, not cages
-It actually helps smugglers by allowing them to charge more
-And the ever popular, “racist, racist, racist.”
Meanwhile, the full House gaveled in this morning and passed two resolutions; one declaring Domestic Violence Month and a second recognizing a birthday. And neither chamber is expected to return until Thursday.
What do you suppose is happening in the background, while not much is going on at our state capitol? -
An attempt by Representative Tony Tinderholt of District 94 to clarify House rules, with the intention of presenting a motion to vacate the chair was shot down by Speaker of the House Dade Phelan, as the House gaveled in again for the third special session.
Clearly prepared for the inquiry, Phelan read from a statement saying that he was declining to respond to hypothetical questions, based on historical precedent.
Tinderholt challenged the ruling saying that he’d been in the legislature for 10 years and they’d always been able to do inquiries for things they would like to do. But Phelan insisted it was not a proper inquiry.
Further, Phelan charged that, in light of Tinderholt’s history, he would no longer entertain further inquiries from him on the House floor without going to Phelan to clear them first.
With that, Phelan again adjourned, pending reading and referral of bills from committees at 3 pm Monday. No committees have yet met in the House.______________________________
The Senate has had a full day and they are still going at it at the time of this writing at 8:30 p.m. At 10 a.m. this morning, the Senate gaveled in and began the process of debating bills that were heard in their respective committees and passed on to the full Senate Chamber.
SB 7, the bill that would ban the practice of banning covid vaccine mandates by Senator Mayes Middleton of District 7, has taken up the whole day and into the evening with robust debate on both sides. Ultimately, a vote on the issue has been postponed.
Next up was SB 4 by Senator Pete Flores of District 24. The bill seeks to deal with criminal activities, such as human smuggling, the operation of stash houses and evading arrest or detention. The sailing was much smoother for this bill, dealing with some of the worst problems caused by an open border, passing on to the House.
As we were calling it a night, the Senate was taking up SB 11, which would create a new state crime for illegally entering the State of Texas from a foreign nation. They were expecting to work until midnight.
Meanwhile, in the House, the only business of significance has been the slap down by Speaker Dade Phelan of Representative Tony Tinderholt for making an inquiry on House rules that would have resulted in a motion to vacate the chair.
This is how they roll in Phelan’s House. Slow walk, block, tackle and outright kill the bills that are important to the majority of Texans. When will it end? -
Tomorrow, October 12, the full Senate will begin taking up bills Senate committees have reviewed, heard testimony on and passed, including Governor Abbott’s priority bill on School Choice.
SB 1 by Senator Brandon Creighton of District 4 addresses the issue by the establishment of Education Savings Accounts that would provide an $8000 ‘scholarship’ for qualified students that would go toward their expenses at private institutions.
To qualify for the scholarships, a student must have been in a Texas public school at least 90% of the previous school year. The money must be used at accredited private schools and there must be no rebates of the monies.
The ESA program provides funds to be spent on tuition and fees at an accredited private school and other approved educational expenses such as textbooks, uniforms, tutoring, transportation, educational therapies, and academic assessment fees.
There was significant testimony against the plan by opponents that insist that public schools will suffer from money sent to other institutions. Of course, they would also have fewer students to educate under the plan and competition is always a healthy path toward excellence and efficiencies.
The other main complaint was the charge that private institutions won’t have the accountability and transparency of public schools. Two things came to mind on hearing those repeated complaints.
First, if our public schools were more accountable to parents, we likely would not find ourselves here, in the first place. As to transparency, the entire fiasco over pornographic materials in our school libraries and secrets kept from parents regarding gender confusion of their children, belie that notion. It would seem that our school systems are only accountable and transparent to insiders in those school systems.
Of course, a point of the accountability and transparency complaint was to suggest that private schools might discriminate against students of various races, sexual orientation and the apparent dozens of different genders.
And one can’t help but wonder if these complaints are simply attempts to impose the same regulations and control over private schools as public ones. That is one of the reasons that some conservative parents are opposed to the otherwise good idea of directing their tax dollars to schools outside the public system.
But, as was pointed out in committee, accountability will start with the parents. If they don’t think their chosen schools are doing their jobs, they will move on.
If you want to have a say on whether School Choice through an ESA plan, contact your senator ask let him/her know your thoughts on SB1. -
The Senate Committee on Border Security met this afternoon and heard discussion and testimony on two bills to deal with the crisis that is our Texas/Mexican border.
SB 4 by Senator Pete Flores of District 24 passed on a 5-0 vote. The bill seeks to deal with criminal activities, such as human smuggling, the operation of stash houses and evading arrest or detention.
In the bill’s analysis, the author states, “Currently, the punishment for offenses such as smuggling persons, operating a stash house, or evading an arrest or detention is too low.
“As such, offenders are likely to and have continued to re-engage in this same criminal conduct. The governor has called for the imposition of mandatory minimum sentences for persons smuggling persons into the state and to go after those who are profiting off and endangering the lives of innocent people.”
The bill would increase criminal penalties for those crimes and establish a mandatory 10-year minimum sentence.
It is hard to believe that anyone would find cause to testify against such an important measure in the dangerous environment in which we find ourselves in Texas, but they did. The ACLU was amongst the witnesses, insisting that mandatory minimum sentences don’t work.
SB 11 by Senator Brian Birdwell of District 22 passed out of committee by a slim 3-2 vote. The bill creates a new state crime of illegal entry into Texas from a foreign nation and authorizes state law enforcement to arrest and prosecute offenders. Punishment can range from a misdemeanor and a year in jail for first time offenders to life in prison for the worst convicted felons with multiple entries.
In the analysis, Birdwell said, “Throughout the interim hearings for the Senate Committee on Border Security, landowners, residents, and businesses from border regions testified that they no longer feel safe on their land and they have witnessed firsthand the devastation and destruction as a result of federal abdication of border security. The impact of the border crisis has advanced beyond the border counties and is impacting communities throughout Texas.
“Texas reached a record number of illegal immigrant apprehensions in fiscal year 2022, with over 1 million apprehensions in Texas Sectors. As a result of the federal government's unwillingness to enforce federal immigration laws and secure our southern border, the State of Texas has stepped up and devoted time and resources to combat the unprecedented border crisis that the state is facing.”
Both bills will now advance to the full Senate, which will re-convene on Thursday. We shall see. We must start somewhere. Especially in light of the terrorists activity occurring in Israel and the data suggesting terrorists are planning attacks in major cities in the U.S. in the coming year, nothing should be off the table. -
Today marked the first day of real work for this third special session of the Texas Legislature, at least for the Senate. Three committee meetings were scheduled for today.
The Senate Health and Human Services Committee held a hearing on Covid mandates and specifically, SB 7 by Senator Mayes Middleton of District 11. The bill amends current law to prohibit an employer from adopting or enforcing certain COVID-19 vaccine mandates and authorizes an administrative penalty.
In the bill’s analysis, the author posits, “Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, a number of employers have implemented policies requiring the COVID-19 vaccine as a condition of employment. Concerns over the experimental nature and effectiveness of the vaccine have drawn criticism, causing many Texans to refuse to receive the vaccine altogether.”
The bill also prevents an employer from taking action against an employee, contractor, or applicant for employment or contract position for their refusal to receive the COVID-19 vaccine.
The bill will advance to the Committee on Calendars to be addressed on the Senate floor. -
The Texas Legislature convened at 1 p.m. Monday October 9th for the start of its third special session of the year and in short order, adjourned until 10 a.m. Thursday. Presumably that is to begin the review and advancement of bills in committee, although at this time the Texas Legislature Online site shows no scheduled committee meetings prior to Thursday.
The expected motion to vacate the chair of Speaker Dade Phelan was not offered in today’s activities. But Representative Tony Tinderholt rose to ask why the House has not provided the information requested regarding the impeachment of AG Ken Paxton. Tinderholt was shut down by Speaker Dade Phelan, who said he was out order, before adjourning the session.
Prior to adjournment, the House read the call from Governor Greg Abbott for the purpose of the special session, passed HR 10 in support of Israel in their war with Hamas and said Happy Birthday to a member.
Meanwhile, as usual, the Senate is forging ahead with committee meetings scheduled for Monday and Tuesday. The Senate Finance Committee will review school funding and teacher pay raise legislation on Monday at 2 p.m.
The Senate Education Committee will meet Tuesday at 9:30 a.m. to discuss bills on education savings accounts and the Senate Health and Human Services Committee will be meeting at the same time to deal with covid mandates.
At 2:30 p.m. Tuesday, the Senate Border Security Committee will work on legislation to create a criminal offense for illegal energy and increase penalties for human trafficking. -
The Senate has had a full day and they are still going at it at the time of this writing at 8:30 p.m. At 10 a.m. this morning, the Senate gaveled in and began the process of debating bills that were heard in their respective committees and passed on to the full Senate Chamber.
SB 7, the bill that would ban the practice of banning covid vaccine mandates by Senator Mayes Middleton of District 7, has taken up the whole day and into the evening with robust debate on both sides. Ultimately, a vote on the issue has been postponed.
Next up was SB 4 by Senator Pete Flores of District 24. The bill seeks to deal with criminal activities, such as human smuggling, the operation of stash houses and evading arrest or detention. The sailing was much smoother for this bill, dealing with some of the worst problems caused by an open border, passing on to the House.
As we were calling it a night, the Senate was taking up SB 11, which would create a new state crime for illegally entering the State of Texas from a foreign nation. They were expecting to work until midnight.
Meanwhile, in the House, the only business of significance has been a slap down by Speaker Dade Phelan of Representative Tony Tinderholt for making an inquiry on House rules that would have resulted in a motion to vacate the chair. Phelan declined to hear it.
And furthermore, Tinderholt is banned from asking anymore uncomfortable questions without approaching his dais and asking permission. Seriously.
This is how they roll in Phelan’s House. Slow walk, block, tackle and outright kill the bills that are important to the majority of Texans. When will it end. -
Governor Abbott announced the third special to begin October 9th to deal with 4 items: Education Freedom, Border Security, Public Safety, and Ending Covid Restrictions.
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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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