Texas Senate

Members of the Texas House and Senate wasted little time touting the never-ending "kumbaya" feeling that enabled them to reform school finance and property taxes. For those who covered the Capitol, a substantive, successful session meant a "boring" one.

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A monthslong push from the governor’s office to confirm his longtime aide as secretary of state heated up in the session’s final days. Some Democrats feared retribution for defying the governor.

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Take a look back at the 2019 regular legislative session as seen through the lenses of Texas Tribune photographers.

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Whitley leaves his job after presiding over a botched review of the voter rolls that questioned the citizenship of thousands of eligible voters.

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The 86th legislative session is in the history books. Who's up and who's down after the 140-day marathon in Austin?

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In the past, personalities got in the way of policy at the Texas Capitol. This year, state leaders refused to let that happen.

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The money had been included in a previous version of the state's supplemental budget, and legislators had intended for President Donald Trump's administration to repay the funds.

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The Texas Senate needs two-thirds approval to confirm Whitley, but Democrats have stood in the way after his office's botched voter roll review.

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After opposing leadership — and mouthing off — the second-most senior Republican in the Texas Senate is the only senator who was not recognized to bring up a bill for a vote on the floor.

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The upper chamber added those changes to a broader bill that must pass for the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission to continue functioning. The House has already signaled it would let breweries sell beer to go.

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The legislation includes a provision to allow local governments to continue operating cameras until they finish out any contracts in effect as of May 7.

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Republicans in the Texas Senate passed the bill Thursday with the support of two Democrats. If the Texas House concurs with minor changes the Senate made to the measure, it will go to the governor.

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The measure moved quickly through the Senate after the LGBTQ Caucus killed a near-identical proposal on a procedural motion last week in the Texas House.

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The controversial and wide-ranging Senate Bill 9 has been pitched as an election security measure, but critics have raised concerns about the effects it could have on marginalized voters.

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Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick has done his best to knock down rumors he might take a job with the Trump administration. That hasn't stopped talk about what might happen if he leaves his current job.

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The bill already passed the Senate but will require another vote in the upper chamber due to minor changes made in the House.

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Behind the 181 members of the Texas Legislature, thousands of people work to keep the Capitol humming during legislative sessions. The work isn't always glamorous, but many view their small roles in helping state government function as an honor.

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Some of the central issues are momentous, but the 86th Texas Legislature has managed — so far — not to lose its temper. That's out of the ordinary, but for a group of politicians who don't want to be compared to their federal counterparts, it counts as a kind of success.

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The bill addresses many of the conditions of the state's incarcerated women. It would also require the department to offer up to 10 free feminine hygiene products to women each day.

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On this week’s TribCast, Aman talks to Ross, Matthew and Shannon about how Texas lawmakers' plan to raise the sales tax collapsed, why the 2019 session is like the 1997 one and what we'll be watching out for in the session’s final three weeks.

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