After some early tension, the Legislature’s Republican leaders say they are on the same page with the business that remains.
Texas Senate
Posted in
Winter Storm 2021
At least 111 people died in Texas during winter storm, most from hypothermia
The newly revised number is nearly twice the 57 that state health officials estimated last week and will likely continue to grow.
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Texas Legislature 2021
Texas lawmakers push bill to make it easier to sue abortion providers and harder for new anti-abortion laws to be blocked by courts
The provisions are packaged in one of Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick’s priority measures, dubbed the “heartbeat bill.” Senate Bill 8 would ban abortions as early as six weeks, before many women know they are pregnant.
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Texas Legislature 2021
Electricity repricing bill hits wall in House, marking first major schism with Senate this session
Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick said the House “stood for big business” after Speaker Dade Phelan signaled skepticism about reversing billions of dollars in charges for wholesale electricity during last month’s winter storm.
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Texas Legislature 2021
Analysis: Texas leaders’ closely watched breakfast club
One way to check the political mood when the Texas Legislature is meeting is to watch the state’s top three leaders — and how their Wednesday breakfasts are going.
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Texas Legislature 2021
Texas Senate scrambles to advance bill that would force ERCOT to reprice energy charges from winter storm
Senate Bill 2142, sponsored by state Sen. Bryan Hughes, R-Mineola, had not even been filed when the day started Monday, but lawmakers suspended their rules to hastily push it through the Senate.
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Coronavirus in Texas
Masks won’t be required at state Capitol — but lawmakers face stricter rules in House, Senate chambers
The Texas Senate and House have different rules for their members. But both require members to wear masks, though there are exceptions to when their faces must be covered.
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Politics
Gov. Greg Abbott appointee to a river authority steps down after contentious confirmation hearing over inflammatory tweets
The Brazos River Authority appointee, Darren Yancy, faced questions from Democratic senators Monday about his social media activity targeting President Joe Biden and former U.S. Sen. Harry Reid.
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Coronavirus in Texas
Debate ramps up at Texas Legislature over governor’s emergency powers during pandemic
Gov. Greg Abbott is well aware that some lawmakers, particularly in his own party, are interested in reining in his authority. However, it remains to be seen how much power Abbott is willing to relinquish.
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Winter Storm 2021
Catastrophic Texas power outages prompt finger pointing and blame shifting at legislative hearings
Lawmakers grilled public regulators and energy grid officials about how power outages happened and why Texans weren’t given more warnings about the danger.
