Gavel To Gavel 87th Legislative Session: November 13, 2020
As the interim comes to a close, so thankfully does the uncertainty around leadership of the Texas House of Representatives heading into Texas’ 87th legislative session. Last week, Representative Dade Phelan announced that he had broad bipartisan support for his candidacy for Speaker of the House of Representatives. Over the next two days, other candidates would drop out and the majority of the Republican Caucus would coalesce around him, likely clinching his path to the nomination. Already, Presumptive Speaker Phelan has appointed Tommy Williams as Chairman of the Speakers’ transition team. Williams’ credentials include serving as Senior Advisor to Governor Greg Abbott, and as a public servant in both the House and Senate. In his role as Chairman, he will assist in building a staff and subsequent workgroups to facilitate a smooth transition of power from outgoing House Speaker Dennis Bonnen.
Additionally, Phelan has created a bipartisan workgroup to develop recommendations on legislative operations during the COVID-19 pandemic. Phelan stated that “the goal of establishing this workgroup is to determine how best to protect the health and safety of legislators, staff, and the public while providing for meaningful public participation in the legislative process.” Representatives Tom Oliverson and Senfronia Thompson will serve as the Chair and Vice Chair, respectively. Other appointed members include Reps. Briscoe Cain (R-Deer Park), Charlie Geren (R-Fort Worth), Donna Howard (D-Austin), Stephanie Klick (R-Fort Worth), Joe Moody (D-El Paso), Chris Paddie (R-Marshall), John Smithee (R-Amarillo), Chris Turner (D-Grand Prairie), John Turner (D-Dallas), and Armando Walle (D-Houston).
Governor Abbott released a statement on Tuesday congratulating the Presumptive Speaker and expressing his eagerness to “work with him and all members of the House on common sense, conservative legislation to create an even brighter future for the people of Texas.”
In other news, prefiling for the 87th Session began on November 7th. We’ve since seen more than 700 bills filed related to Medicaid expansion and eligibility, law enforcement and criminal justice reform, elections procedures, redistricting, and more. We will be reviewing each of these bills as they are filed and will keep you informed on legislation important to you and your organization.