The Houston ReportHow Houston-Area Lawmakers Can Influence Legislation This Session
Published Feb 05, 2021 by Steven Will
After weeks of anticipation, Texas House Speaker Dade Phelan announced legislative committee assignments on Thursday. Now committee appointments are known for both the House and Senate, and activity in Austin will increase. While the Legislature was out of session this week, Governor Greg Abbott delivered his State of the State address, outlined his top five legislative priorities and set the tone on several other important issues. The Governor’s address and Speaker’s appointments will shape how the Partnership continues work on our two executive priorities – Access and Energy Competitiveness.
Texas House Committees
With new committee assignments, members from the Houston delegation fared well, chairing or vice chairing numerous committees important to our region.
The House Committee on Public Education is chaired by Representative Harold Dutton (D-Houston), a well-respected member and voice on education issues. Representative Greg Bonnen (R-Friendswood) chairs the powerful House Appropriations Committee, which drafts the biennial House budget. Representative Jim Murphy (R-Houston) chairs the Higher Education Committee at a time when higher education issues are increasingly important to Houston. Representative Ana Hernandez (D-Houston) is Vice-Chair of the State Affairs Committee, which handles many bills important to business. Representative Ed Thompson (R-Pearland) is Vice-Chair of the House Transportation Committee.
Other committees of interest to the Houston region include Ways & Means, which oversees tax and some economic development policy, and is chaired by Representative Morgan Meyer (R-Dallas). The Public Health Committee is chaired by Representative Stephanie Klick (R-North Richland Hills). Representative Craig Goldman (R-Ft. Worth) chairs the Energy Committee, with oversight over oil and gas regulations. Lastly, the Criminal Jurisprudence Committee, which is likely to handle many public safety reform bills, is chaired by Representative Nicole Collier (D-Ft. Worth).
Texas Senate Committees
As we noted two weeks ago, Senate committees are also set, and Senators from the Houston area were named to important committee leadership positions. Senator Brandon Creighton (R-Conroe) Chairs the Senate Higher Education Committee, with oversight over the state’s public universities. He also chairs the Senate Select Committee on Ports. Senator Larry Taylor (R-Friendswood) chairs the Education Committee, with oversight over Pre-K-12 education. Houston members also chair powerful committees of Transportation (Senator Robert Nichols, R-Jacksonville), Criminal Justice (Senator John Whitmire, D-Houston), Jurisprudence (Senator Joan Huffman, R-Houston), Health & Human Services (Senator Lois Kolkhorst, R-Brenham), Local Government (Senator Paul Bettencourt, R-Houston) and Redistricting (Senator Joan Huffman, R-Houston). Combined, Houston members serve as Chair or Vice Chair for 10 of the Senate’s 17 substantive committees, granting our region strong influence on most major legislation.
To view committee assignments by members, click here.
To view appointments by committee, click here.
State of the State
Monday evening Governor Greg Abbott delivered his biennial State of the State address, laying out his priorities for the 87th Texas Legislative Session. The Governor focused upon four themes: health, safety, freedom and economic prosperity. He noted early in his speech the most important priority for Texas is to accelerate vaccine rollout and recover from the pandemic. To review how his priorities will impact greater Houston, click here.
The Partnership’s legislative priorities can be found here.
Share this Blog Post
