Texas House In Recess Until Sunday
We have reached the point in the Texas Legislative Session where it's not just Republicans versus Democrats, but it's the House versus the Senate and tensions are rising.
The House on Thursday gaveled out of session after many House Republicans expressed anger that the Texas Senate was sitting on Republican priority bills dealing with healthcare and criminal justice reform.
According to the Dallas Morning News, by gaveling out and being in recess until Sunday, many Senate bills are now on the verge of defeat, including priority legislation from Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick.
The move means several Senate bills are at risk of dying simply because the clock runs out. Potentially imperiled legislation includes several of Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick’s priorities, including bills to require professional sports teams to play the Star-Spangled Banner, ban taxpayer funded lobbying and target social media platforms for censorship.
Tuesday is the last day to debate Senate bills on the House floor; the 2021 session ends on May 31.
Sen. Joan Huffman, who chairs the Jurisprudence Committee where many of the House criminal justice bills are awaiting debate, said the committee is meeting later Thursday “hear and pass many House bills.”
The move by the House may also put the final nail in any legislation dealing with the prohibition of allowing doctors to give children gender modification drugs and surgery.
This does further complicate getting important legislation passed in the final week of the session. So far, the Lieutenant Governor and Governor have not responded to the action taken by the House.