Previous state law explicitly permitted breastfeeding in public, but the bill adds a protection for women who choose to pump breast milk in public.
Texas Legislature 2019
The 86th Legislature runs from Jan. 8 to May 27. From the state budget to health care to education policy — and the politics behind it all — we focus on what Texans need to know about the biennial legislative session.
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Texas Legislature 2019
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott signs bill declaring children’s lemonade stands legal
The bill, which goes into effect Sept. 1, prevents cities and neighborhood associations from prohibiting or regulating children who sell nonalcoholic drinks on private property.
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Texas Legislature 2019
The Texas governor accused people of lying about Texas’ maternal mortality rate. The critics relied on the state’s own bad data.
Problems with the state’s data led to initial reports that Texas’ maternal mortality rate was far higher than it is.
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Texas Legislature 2019
Gov. Greg Abbott signs several school safety bills in wake of shooting at Santa Fe High
The bills would, among other things, strengthen mental health initiatives available to children, abolish the cap on how many school marshals can carry guns on public school campuses and allot money to school districts that can go toward “hardening” their campuses.
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Texas Legislature 2019
“No fist fights. No gun threats.” Lawmakers give 86th Texas Legislature high marks
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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Texas Legislature 2019
Some Texas gun rights groups oppose a state-funded gun storage safety campaign. But not the NRA.
Some gun rights groups want Gov. Greg Abbott to veto a line item in the Texas budget that puts $1 million toward a public safety campaign on gun storage. But one powerful bloc isn’t actively opposing the measure: the National Rifle Association.
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Texas Legislature 2019
Abbott vetoes popular domestic violence bill because of an unrelated provision about radioactive waste fees
The bill would have required domestic violence survivors to be notified when offenders are released on bond. But the Republican governor nixed the legislation over a provision by Democratic state Rep. Poncho Nevárez that would have delayed a West Texas waste facility’s increase in state fees.
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Texas Legislature 2019
Analysis: What’s a botched voter purge between friends?
Gov. Greg Abbott added David Whitley to his state staff after Texas Senate Democrats refused to confirm Whitley as secretary of state. Whitley’s handling of a botched voter citizenship review undermined his Senate support. But isn’t the hiring a sign that the governor didn’t mind?
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Texas Legislature 2019
Texas governor signs bills to combat human trafficking, aid sexual assault survivors
The bills aim to create a “hostile environment” for human trafficking in Texas and address sexual assault, said Gov. Greg Abbott at a bill signing ceremony Tuesday in Dallas.
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Texas Legislature 2019
Gov. Greg Abbott says he can keep plumbing board alive without special session
“We’ve got this,” the governor tells plumbers worried as their profession faces deregulation next year in Texas.