January 21st, 2013 at 2:02 pm by Josh Hinkle under Politics
In case you’re keeping count this Texas Legislative Session, here’s a look at the total number of filed legislation, so far. By Day 14 of 140, it’s definitely adding up, but lawmakers still have a long way to go to hit their final tally last session.
83rd Regular Session To-date – 949
82nd Regular Session Final Total – 10,315
June 20th, 2011 at 5:47 pm by Josh Hinkle under Politics
Courtesy: Office of the Governor
As the deadline for Gov. Rick Perry to take action on legislation came and went over the weekend, we took a look what became of every single regular session bills to hit his desk since his first term as governor. Since 2001, he has had to review nearly 8,700 items passed by lawmakers.
With 71% of the bills he signed since the 77th Regular Legislative Session, he took them up within the last three days before the deadline to do so passed. When it comes to the bills he vetoed, that number goes up to 98%.
Why so many late decisions? If the legislature is in session at the time of a veto, lawmakers could have the chance to override that decision. This is a rare move though, as the last time it happened was in 1979 with Republican Gov. Bill Clements’ veto of a hunting and fishing bill.
Clements’ veto of 184 vetoes in his tenure is a good indication of his relationship with the Democratic legislature. Now, Perry has beat Clements’ record with 259 vetoes, the bulk of those made in the three days before his deadline.
His last-minute moves were allowed because lawmakers typically did not pass most of their bills until the end of the session. If the session ends within ten days of the governor receiving a bill, he has another twenty days after adjournment to take it up.
Extra time and a powerful advantage. Since they aren’t in session within that 20-day timeframe, they can’t override vetoes. This was questioned recently with an online sales tax bill from the most recent regular session. Because the governor called a special session immediately after, lawmakers wondered whether they could override his veto on that bill.
The 1875 Constitutional Convention took away the legislature’s ability to consider any vetoed bills from a previous session. In regard to the previously mentioned tax bill, the general consensus among parliamentary experts was that a special session should not be reason to bend the rules. It’s not an extension of the regular session.
There have been 90 bills over the years Perry has let slide through as law by simply not signing them. And, in scouring his record, we found two others that never resulted in any action:
February 11th, 2011 at 7:05 pm by Josh Hinkle under Politics
Nine hours of testimony in the Senate State Affairs Committee, hundreds of pro-life advocates rallying at the state Capitol and even a technician performing ultrasounds live on expectant mothers just outside the House chamber. Still, with all that in-your-face attention over the past week, Sen. Dan Patrick, R-Houston, isn’t the only state lawmaker trying to make a splash with a sonogram bill.
Patrick’s bill, SB 16, passed the Senate committee 7-1 and could be hitting the Senate floor for a vote sometime next week. It would require a doctor to verbally explain what’s seen in a sonogram to a patient at least 24 hours before performing an abortion. It would also require doctors to give women the option of seeing the sonogram and hearing the fetal heartbeat. Patrick says the measure is all about informed consent, though he hasn’t hidden his hope that it could cut down on the number of abortions in Texas by changing the minds of any mothers-to-be.
Rep. Geanie Morrison, R-Victoria, penned the companion bill, HB 201, in the House, where some form of a sonogram bill is expected to pass, especially with more than 60 co-authors signed on so far. Such legislation was unsuccessful in previous sessions. However, with a historic GOP majority at the Capitol, this might be the year it becomes law.
While it’s generally understood Speaker Joe Straus, R-San Antonio, has given his blessing to the aforementioned version, others are popping up in the House, begging the question about bogging down an almost sure thing.
The latest – on Friday, Rep. Sid Miller, R-Stephenville, filed HB 15, which would require a doctor to perform a sonogram at least 24 hours before performing an abortion. Again, the doctor would have to explain what’s on the sonogram to the patient and make the image and audio available to her. Representatives Callegari, Geren, Kolkhorst and Patrick have signed on as co-authors.
“(It) will protect human life – the lives of the unborn victims of abortion, as well as those who are faced with such a life changing decision,” said Miller. “By providing women with a full 24-hour waiting period, our bill will provide expectant mothers with adequate time to review their sonogram and to carefully weigh the impact of their life-changing decision without undue pressure or influence from abortion providers or others.”
Critics are sure to blast Miller’s bill for the same reasons they did Patrick’s. Some say it wrongly interferes with the relationship between a doctor and a patient. Others say it’s forcing a woman into making another decision, possibly even adding further emotional trauma to the situation.
It’s not a new argument. Beyond previous sessions, several similar bills are already stacking up in the current one. For instance, in November, Rep. Todd Smith, R-Euless, filed a bill, HB 325, that would require women to undergo an ultrasound right before an abortion is scheduled to be done. Smith’s version allows women to refuse to see the sonogram but doesn’t give them the option to hear the heartbeat or explanation of the sonogram. It also says patients can’t have any sedatives or anesthesia before the ultrasound.
All of the bills make exceptions to the sonogram rule. Smith and Miller’s both take into consideration cases where the mother’s life is endangered or for medical emergencies. Patrick’s bill also allows a patient to opt out of all the doctor requirements if they’re victims of sexual assault, incest, or women carrying a fetus with abnormalities.
Joe Pojman, executive director of Texas Alliance for Life, said Patrick’s version is likely to pass through the Senate and the House, though the other versions could end up supplementing that bill.
“It’s just about the language at that point when it gets to the House committee,” Pojman said. “Those other bills will probably help amend, change, and improve the Senate bill.”
If and when the House passes a sonogram bill (assuming the Senate makes the first move) – and if it has any differences from the original version – the bill will get kicked back to the Senate for a vote. If that doesn’t pass muster, a conference committee between the two chambers will hammer out a final version for a majority vote on each side.
February 3rd, 2011 at 8:22 pm by Josh Hinkle under Politics
Another of Gov. Rick Perry’s emergency items is on the fast track to becoming law. The full Senate will soon consider a bill regarding eminent domain, after the Senate State Affairs Committee unanimously voted for the legislation 6-0.
Senate Bill 18 is the result of a efforts at the Capitol six years and running. Lawmakers worked to pass similar bills in the last three sessions to fix problems in the state’s eminent domain law.
The main problem – landowners losing their property for the wrong reasons. This bill, which has wide support from several ranch and farm groups, not to mention local governments and utilities among others, is nearly identical to the bill the Senate passed in the last session. However, it ultimately died in the House.
The legislation aims to keep any group – private or public – from taking property through the eminent domain law, if that land is not meant for public use. There are other stipulations for the intended buyer and enhanced rights for property owners under the bill.
It is expected to once again pass through the Senate. This would be the second of Perry’s emergency items (those lawmakers are allowed to push through in the first 60 days of the session) to do so. Senators approved a Voter ID bill last week.