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Bill Filing Deadline Approaches

The Legislature hits a big milestone as the focus of session begins to migrate to the two chambers.

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Newly-elected state Rep. David Simpson at the head of the line to prefile bills on Nov. 8, 2010.
Credit: Elise Hu

Today marks the 60th day of the 84th legislative session, and with that the Legislature hits an important milestone.

After today, bills and other measures can't be filed without special permission. Bill filing deadline day serves as a handy transition point as the focus of legislative activity now moves decidedly to the two chambers.

Below is a chart tracking the number of bills over the past five sessions. Note that the statistics for the 84th session are incomplete, as bills can be filed until the end of the day today. However, it looks like the big year for bill filings was 2009, when nearly 7,500 bills were filed between the two chambers.

Enlarge source: Texas Legislature
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