Texas Scorecard by Jeramy Kitchen September 2, 2021
Whether those unfinished priorities will be put on a future special session call is unclear, but the legislative stalemate between parties on issues like election integrity has finally reached its conclusion.Thursday night marked the early conclusion of the second called special legislative session.
Putting an end to what seemed like an endless stalemate between Republican and Democrat lawmakers on issues like election integrity, banning critical race theory, social media censorship, the session concluded with many of the issues on Gov. Greg Abbott’s special session agenda addressed, with some notable exceptions.
What Did Get Done?Election IntegrityThough it ended up being a different bill than the one considered in the 87th regular legislative session, prompting the initial quorum break of House Democrat lawmakers enabled by House Republican leadership, election integrity legislation did pass both chambers and is currently awaiting Gov. Greg Abbott’s consideration.
At each step of the legislative process, it passed purely on partisan lines.
Border Security AppropriationsAdding an additional $1.8 billion to the funding that was already appropriated amounting to $1.1 billion during the 87th regular legislative session, the Legislature passed a bill providing for funding to seven different state entities for the purposes of border security. Some of those state entities include the Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS), Texas Department of Criminal Justice (TDCJ), Office of Court Administration (OCA), Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS), Texas Military Department (TMD), and Trusteed Programs within the Office of the Governor.
Increased Virtual Education OptionsThe Legislature passed a bill that would authorize a school district or charter school to establish a remote-learning program to offer additional virtual learning courses outside of the already existing state virtual school network as long as it meets certain parameters. Ultimately, the bill allows school districts and charter schools to implement best practices learned in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Social Media and Email CensorshipSlightly different than legislation considered in the 87th regular legislative session that ended up having its legislative prospects cut short in the House, a bill seeking to stop social media and email service censorship did pass both chambers of the Legislature.
Critical Race Theory “Ban” ImprovementsThough a purported ban on critical race theory passed the 87th legislative session specific to social studies curriculum, Abbott added the issue on his special session agenda again citing improvements were needed.
More:
https://texasscorecard.com/state/second-special-session-ends-early-with-some-priorities-incomplete/