FORTIETH DAY --- TUESDAY, APRIL 8, 2025

The house met at 10 a.m. and was called to order by the speaker.

The roll of the house was called and a quorum was announced present (Record 77).

Present — Mr. Speaker(C); Alders; Allen; Anchía; Ashby; Barry; Bell, C.; Bell, K.; Bernal; Bhojani; Bonnen; Bowers; Bryant; Buckley; Bucy; Bumgarner; Button; Cain; Campos; Canales; Capriglione; Cole; Collier; Cook; Cortez; Craddick; Cunningham; Curry; Darby; Davis, A.; Dean; DeAyala; Dorazio; Dutton; Dyson; Fairly; Flores; Frank; Gámez; Garcia, J.; Garcia, L.; Garcia Hernandez; Gates; Gerdes; Geren; Gervin-Hawkins; González, M.; Goodwin; Guerra; Guillen; Harless; Harris; Harris Davila; Harrison; Hayes; Hefner; Hernandez; Hickland; Hinojosa; Holt; Hopper; Howard; Hull; Hunter; Isaac; Johnson; Jones, J.; Jones, V.; Kerwin; King; Kitzman; LaHood; Lalani; Lambert; Landgraf; Leach; Leo Wilson; Little; Longoria; Lopez, J.; Lopez, R.; Louderback; Lowe; Lozano; Lujan; Luther; Manuel; Martinez; Martinez Fischer; McLaughlin; McQueeney; Metcalf; Meyer; Meza; Money; Moody; Morales, C.; Morales, E.; Morales Shaw; Morgan; Muñoz; Noble; Olcott; Oliverson; Ordaz; Orr; Patterson; Paul; Perez, M.; Perez, V.; Phelan; Pierson; Plesa; Raymond; Reynolds; Richardson; Rodríguez Ramos; Romero; Rose; Rosenthal; Schatzline; Schofield; Schoolcraft; Shaheen; Shofner; Simmons; Slawson; Smithee; Spiller; Swanson; Talarico; Tepper; Thompson; Tinderholt; Toth; Troxclair; Turner; VanDeaver; Vasut; Villalobos; Virdell; Vo; Walle; Ward Johnson; Wharton; Wilson; Wu; Zwiener.

Absent — Davis, Y.; González, J.

The invocation was offered by Jason J. Nelson, pastor, Grace Woodlands Church, The Woodlands, as follows:

Heavenly Father, we come before your throne of grace this morning with boldness and confidence––not because of who we are or what we've done; not because of any awards, accolades, or accomplishments we have. We boldly approach your throne of grace because of who Jesus is and because of what he has done.

Your word tells us your mercies are new every morning, and this morning we are thankful for the many blessings that flow from your throne of grace. We're thankful for the gifts of life and love and laughter; for the gifts of faith, family, and freedom; and for the men and women who fight to protect this freedom. We're especially thankful for the freedom found in Christ, who died on the cross to set us free from sin, guilt, and shame and was raised from the dead to give us life. For those who have not yet tasted this freedom Jesus offers, I pray they accept him as their savior today and come to experience the powerful reality that when the son sets you free, you are free indeed (John 8:36).

With this freedom comes incredible authority. You've given us the keys to the kingdom. Whatever we bind on earth will be bound in heaven. And whatever we loose on earth will be loosed in heaven. So today, in Jesus' name, we bind the spiritual forces of wickedness and evil at work in the world, and we unlock and unleash the power of your love and light upon any and all forms of hatred, hostility, mendacity, and oppression.

We also pray, by your Holy Spirit, that you empower us to be your salt and light in a world that is dark and bland at best. Employ us to be your agents and ambassadors of hope and healing to those who have been pushed to the periphery of human existence. As your hands and feet, mobilize us to reach out in care and concern to those who have been discarded and disregarded by society. Inspire us to act justly, love mercy, and walk humbly with you. Teach us to love one another as Christ has loved us.

And for this body here, I pray you do a new work in their lives this day. You've called them "for a time such as this" (Esther 4:14) to lead this state and their communities in a manner reflective of your character. Pour out your Holy Spirit upon them. Fan the flame within them. Reignite a renewed passion for righteousness and an insatiable thirst for holiness. May truth reign, absolutely, in their hearts and throughout this place, convicting and compelling the members of this body to speak the truth courageously but with gentleness and respect.

Give the speaker and this house supernatural wisdom to discern and decide your will and your way for their lives, both individually and collectively. Strengthen your servants to persevere with clarity and focus. Let them be productive, creating good and godly legislation, and, at the same time, produce within them an abundance of the fruit of the spirit. May love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, gentleness, faithfulness, goodness, and self-control flow from their lives.

And finally, omnipotent Father of mercy and grace, place your mighty right hand of protection upon these leaders, their families and staff, and upon all those in this building who have answered the high call on their lives to serve you and the blessed state of Texas. We pray this in the name of Jesus and in the power of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

The chair recognized Representative McQueeney who led the house in the pledges of allegiance to the United States and Texas flags.

(Y. Davis and J. González now present)

The chair presented Dr. Paraag Kumar of Austin as the "Doctor for the Day."

The house welcomed Dr. Kumar and thanked them for their participation in the Physician of the Day Program sponsored by the Texas Academy of Family Physicians.

A message from the senate was received at this time (see the addendum to the daily journal, Messages from the Senate, Message No. 1).

On motion of Representative Geren and by unanimous consent, the reading and referral of bills was postponed until just prior to adjournment.

Speaker Burrows addressed the house, speaking as follows:

Members, I would like to read into the record for inclusion in the journal a statement to remind the body of the House Rules governing parliamentary inquiries. In accordance with long-standing House practice and Congressional precedent, the Chair will continue to decline to entertain any parliamentary inquiry:

Asking hypothetical questions;

Asking general questions about the House rules or procedures;

Related to committee proceedings; or

Related to the status of other legislation that is not immediately eligible for consideration.

One of the primary duties of the Chair is to preserve orderly discussion of matters before the House. Our rules, precedents, and practices establish the conduct of those discussions, including the bounds of proper parliamentary inquiries. Improper parliamentary inquiries waste the time of the House and its membership because they attempt to bring matters before the House without fair notice. The Chair declines to answer improper parliamentary inquiries out of profound respect for the body, its membership, and the constitutional oath taken to faithfully execute the duties of the office of Speaker, including the preservation of order and decorum.

The chair recognized Representatives Curry and Raymond who introduced family members of Clyde Vance Dunnam.

Representative Y. Davis moved to suspend all necessary rules to take up and consider at this time HR 648.

The motion prevailed.

The following resolution was laid before the house:

HR 648, Congratulating the Duncanville High School boys' basketball team on winning the 2025 UIL 6A Division 1 state championship.

HR 648 was adopted.

The chair recognized Representative Y. Davis who introduced coaches and members of the Duncanville High School boys' basketball team.

The chair laid out the following previously adopted resolution:

HR 79, Recognizing the city of Palestine.

Representative J. Jones moved to suspend all necessary rules to take up and consider at this time HR 793.

The motion prevailed.

The following resolution was laid before the house:

HR 793, Recognizing April 8, 2025, as Texas African American Lawyers Foundation Day at the State Capitol.

HR 793 was adopted.

Representative J. Jones moved to suspend all necessary rules to take up and consider at this time HR 794.

The motion prevailed.

The following resolution was laid before the house:

HR 794, Recognizing April 8, 2025, as Black Lawyers & Students Day at the State Capitol and commending The Barbara Jordan Leadership Institute.

HR 794 was adopted.

The following bills were laid before the house and read second time:

SB 14, A bill to be entitled An Act relating to reforming the procedure by which state agencies adopt rules and impose regulatory requirements and the deference given to the interpretation of laws and rules by state agencies in certain judicial proceedings.

SB 14 was considered in lieu of HB 10.

Representative Bryant raised a point of order against further consideration of SB 14 under Rule 8, Section 1(a)(1), of the House Rules. The speaker overruled the point of order, announcing his decision to the house as follows:

Mr. Bryant raises a point of order against further consideration of SB 14 under Rule 8, Section 1(a)(1), of the House Rules on the grounds that the caption fails to give reasonable notice of the subject of the proposed measure. Mr. Bryant argues that the bill's creation of a new office, an interactive website, and an advisory panel are not addressed in the caption of the bill. The Chair finds that those elements of the bill are directly related to the state agency rulemaking process. See 86 H. Jour. 3130 (2019). Accordingly, the point of order is respectively overruled.

Representative Rodríguez Ramos offered the following amendment to SB 14:

Amend SB 14 (house committee report) by striking page 5, lines 15 through 19, and substituting the following:

Representative Capriglione moved to table Amendment No. 1.

The motion to table prevailed by (Record 78): 98 Yeas, 50 Nays, 1 Present, not voting.

Yeas — Alders; Ashby; Barry; Bell, C.; Bell, K.; Bonnen; Buckley; Bumgarner; Button; Cain; Capriglione; Cook; Cortez; Craddick; Cunningham; Curry; Darby; Dean; DeAyala; Dorazio; Dyson; Fairly; Flores; Frank; Gates; Gerdes; Geren; Guerra; Guillen; Harless; Harris; Harris Davila; Harrison; Hayes; Hefner; Hickland; Holt; Hopper; Hull; Hunter; Isaac; Johnson; Kerwin; King; Kitzman; LaHood; Lalani; Lambert; Landgraf; Leach; Leo Wilson; Little; Longoria; Lopez, J.; Louderback; Lowe; Lozano; Lujan; Luther; McLaughlin; McQueeney; Metcalf; Meyer; Money; Morales, E.; Morgan; Muñoz; Noble; Olcott; Oliverson; Orr; Patterson; Paul; Perez, M.; Perez, V.; Phelan; Pierson; Raymond; Richardson; Schatzline; Schofield; Schoolcraft; Shaheen; Shofner; Slawson; Smithee; Spiller; Swanson; Tepper; Tinderholt; Toth; Troxclair; VanDeaver; Vasut; Villalobos; Virdell; Wharton; Wilson.

Nays — Allen; Anchía; Bernal; Bhojani; Bowers; Bryant; Bucy; Campos; Canales; Cole; Collier; Davis, A.; Davis, Y.; Dutton; Gámez; Garcia, J.; Garcia, L.; Garcia Hernandez; Gervin-Hawkins; González, J.; González, M.; Goodwin; Hernandez; Hinojosa; Howard; Jones, J.; Jones, V.; Lopez, R.; Manuel; Martinez; Martinez Fischer; Meza; Moody; Morales, C.; Morales Shaw; Ordaz; Plesa; Reynolds; Rodríguez Ramos; Romero; Rose; Rosenthal; Talarico; Thompson; Turner; Vo; Walle; Ward Johnson; Wu; Zwiener.

Present, not voting — Mr. Speaker(C).

Absent — Simmons.

When Record No. 78 was taken, I was shown voting yes. I intended to vote no.

Flores

When Record No. 78 was taken, I was shown voting yes. I intended to vote no.

Guerra

Representative Bryant raised a point of order against further consideration of SB 14 under Rule 8, Section 3, of the House Rules and under Article III, Section 35(a), of the Texas Constitution. The speaker overruled the point of order, announcing his decision to the house as follows:

Mr. Bryant raises a point of order against further consideration of SB 14 under Rule 8, Section 3, of the House Rules and Article III, Section 35, Texas Constitution, on the grounds that the bill contains more than one subject. Mr. Bryant argues that the bill has more than one subject because it requires different entities to act on different programs. The standard for finding a violation of the one-subject rule is a heightened one. 78 H. Jour. 5586 (2003). Each entity in the bill is acting on some part of the state agency rulemaking process, from rule promulgation to judicial challenge. See 86 H. Jour. 6240 (2019). Accordingly, the point of order is respectfully overruled.

Representative Rodríguez Ramos offered the following amendment to SB 14:

Amend SB 14 (house committee report) by striking SECTIONS 7 and 8 of the bill.

Representative Capriglione moved to table Amendment No. 2.

The motion to table prevailed by (Record 79): 92 Yeas, 56 Nays, 1 Present, not voting.

Yeas — Alders; Ashby; Barry; Bell, C.; Bell, K.; Bonnen; Buckley; Bumgarner; Button; Cain; Capriglione; Cook; Craddick; Cunningham; Curry; Darby; Dean; DeAyala; Dorazio; Dutton; Dyson; Fairly; Frank; Gates; Gerdes; Geren; Guerra; Guillen; Harless; Harris; Harris Davila; Harrison; Hayes; Hefner; Hickland; Holt; Hopper; Hull; Hunter; Isaac; Jones, V.; Kerwin; King; Kitzman; LaHood; Lambert; Landgraf; Leach; Leo Wilson; Little; Lopez, J.; Lowe; Lozano; Lujan; Luther; McLaughlin; McQueeney; Metcalf; Meyer; Money; Morales, E.; Morgan; Noble; Olcott; Oliverson; Orr; Patterson; Paul; Perez, V.; Phelan; Pierson; Raymond; Richardson; Schatzline; Schofield; Schoolcraft; Shaheen; Shofner; Slawson; Smithee; Spiller; Swanson; Tepper; Tinderholt; Toth; Troxclair; VanDeaver; Vasut; Villalobos; Virdell; Wharton; Wilson.

Nays — Allen; Anchía; Bernal; Bhojani; Bowers; Bryant; Bucy; Campos; Canales; Cole; Collier; Cortez; Davis, A.; Davis, Y.; Flores; Gámez; Garcia, J.; Garcia, L.; Garcia Hernandez; Gervin-Hawkins; González, J.; González, M.; Goodwin; Hernandez; Hinojosa; Howard; Johnson; Jones, J.; Lalani; Longoria; Lopez, R.; Manuel; Martinez; Martinez Fischer; Meza; Moody; Morales, C.; Morales Shaw; Muñoz; Ordaz; Perez, M.; Plesa; Reynolds; Rodríguez Ramos; Romero; Rose; Rosenthal; Simmons; Talarico; Thompson; Turner; Vo; Walle; Ward Johnson; Wu; Zwiener.

Present, not voting — Mr. Speaker(C).

Absent — Louderback.

When Record No. 79 was taken, I was shown voting yes. I intended to vote no.

Guerra

When Record No. 79 was taken, I was in the house but away from my desk. I would have voted yes.

Louderback

Representative Rodríguez Ramos offered the following amendment to SB 14:

Amend SB 14 (house committee report) by adding the following appropriately numbered SECTION to the bill and renumbering subsequent SECTIONS accordingly:

SECTION ____.  Chapter 465, Government Code, as added by this Act, is amended by adding Subchapter E to read as follows:

SUBCHAPTER E. EXPIRATION OF OFFICE

Sec. 465.0201. SUNSET PROVISION. The Texas Regulatory Efficiency Office is abolished and Chapter 465 expires September 1, 2029, unless continued in existence by the legislature under Chapter 325.

Representative Capriglione moved to table Amendment No. 3.

The motion to table prevailed by (Record 80): 88 Yeas, 59 Nays, 2 Present, not voting.

Yeas — Alders; Ashby; Barry; Bell, C.; Bell, K.; Bonnen; Buckley; Bumgarner; Button; Cain; Capriglione; Cook; Cortez; Craddick; Cunningham; Curry; Darby; Dean; DeAyala; Dorazio; Dyson; Fairly; Frank; Gates; Gerdes; Geren; Guerra; Guillen; Harless; Harris; Harris Davila; Hayes; Hefner; Hickland; Holt; Hull; Hunter; Isaac; Kerwin; King; Kitzman; LaHood; Lambert; Landgraf; Leach; Leo Wilson; Little; Lopez, J.; Louderback; Lowe; Lozano; Lujan; Luther; McLaughlin; McQueeney; Metcalf; Meyer; Morales, E.; Morgan; Muñoz; Noble; Olcott; Oliverson; Orr; Patterson; Paul; Phelan; Pierson; Raymond; Richardson; Schatzline; Schofield; Schoolcraft; Shaheen; Shofner; Slawson; Smithee; Spiller; Swanson; Tepper; Tinderholt; Toth; Troxclair; VanDeaver; Vasut; Villalobos; Wharton; Wilson.

Nays — Allen; Anchía; Bernal; Bhojani; Bowers; Bryant; Bucy; Campos; Canales; Cole; Collier; Davis, A.; Davis, Y.; Dutton; Flores; Gámez; Garcia, J.; Garcia, L.; Garcia Hernandez; Gervin-Hawkins; González, J.; González, M.; Goodwin; Hernandez; Hinojosa; Hopper; Howard; Johnson; Jones, J.; Jones, V.; Lalani; Longoria; Lopez, R.; Manuel; Martinez; Martinez Fischer; Meza; Money; Moody; Morales, C.; Ordaz; Perez, M.; Perez, V.; Plesa; Reynolds; Rodríguez Ramos; Romero; Rose; Rosenthal; Simmons; Talarico; Thompson; Turner; Virdell; Vo; Walle; Ward Johnson; Wu; Zwiener.

Present, not voting — Mr. Speaker(C); Harrison.

Absent — Morales Shaw.

When Record No. 80 was taken, I was shown voting yes. I intended to vote no.

Guerra

SB 14 was passed to third reading by (Record 81): 97 Yeas, 51 Nays, 1 Present, not voting.

Yeas — Alders; Ashby; Barry; Bell, C.; Bell, K.; Bhojani; Bonnen; Buckley; Bumgarner; Button; Cain; Capriglione; Cook; Cortez; Craddick; Cunningham; Curry; Darby; Dean; DeAyala; Dorazio; Dyson; Fairly; Frank; Gates; Gerdes; Geren; Guillen; Harless; Harris; Harris Davila; Hayes; Hefner; Hickland; Holt; Hopper; Hull; Hunter; Isaac; Kerwin; King; Kitzman; LaHood; Lalani; Lambert; Landgraf; Leach; Little; Longoria; Lopez, J.; Louderback; Lowe; Lozano; Lujan; Luther; Martinez; McLaughlin; McQueeney; Metcalf; Meyer; Money; Moody; Morales, E.; Morgan; Muñoz; Noble; Olcott; Oliverson; Ordaz; Orr; Patterson; Paul; Perez, M.; Perez, V.; Phelan; Pierson; Raymond; Richardson; Schatzline; Schofield; Schoolcraft; Shaheen; Shofner; Slawson; Smithee; Spiller; Swanson; Tepper; Tinderholt; Toth; Troxclair; VanDeaver; Vasut; Villalobos; Virdell; Wharton; Wilson.

Nays — Allen; Anchía; Bernal; Bowers; Bryant; Bucy; Campos; Canales; Cole; Collier; Davis, A.; Davis, Y.; Dutton; Flores; Gámez; Garcia, J.; Garcia, L.; Garcia Hernandez; Gervin-Hawkins; González, J.; González, M.; Goodwin; Guerra; Harrison; Hernandez; Hinojosa; Howard; Johnson; Jones, J.; Jones, V.; Lopez, R.; Manuel; Martinez Fischer; Meza; Morales, C.; Morales Shaw; Plesa; Reynolds; Rodríguez Ramos; Romero; Rose; Rosenthal; Simmons; Talarico; Thompson; Turner; Vo; Walle; Ward Johnson; Wu; Zwiener.

Present, not voting — Mr. Speaker(C).

Absent — Leo Wilson.

When Record No. 81 was taken, my vote failed to register. I would have voted yes.

Leo Wilson

When Record No. 81 was taken, I was shown voting yes. I intended to vote no.

V. Perez

When Record No. 81 was taken, I was shown voting no. I intended to vote yes.

Plesa

Representative Capriglione moved to lay HB 10 on the table subject to call.

The motion prevailed.

CSHB 12, A bill to be entitled An Act relating to the review and audit of certain state agency operations.

Representative K. Bell offered the following amendment to CSHB 12:

Amend CSHB 12 (house committee printing) on page 3, line 13, between "agency" and the period, by inserting "to reduce fraud, waste, and abuse and to increase efficiencies".

Amendment No. 1 was adopted.

CSHB 12, as amended, was passed to engrossment by (Record 82): 149 Yeas, 0 Nays, 1 Present, not voting.

Yeas — Alders; Allen; Anchía; Ashby; Barry; Bell, C.; Bell, K.; Bernal; Bhojani; Bonnen; Bowers; Bryant; Buckley; Bucy; Bumgarner; Button; Cain; Campos; Canales; Capriglione; Cole; Collier; Cook; Cortez; Craddick; Cunningham; Curry; Darby; Davis, A.; Davis, Y.; Dean; DeAyala; Dorazio; Dutton; Dyson; Fairly; Flores; Frank; Gámez; Garcia, J.; Garcia, L.; Garcia Hernandez; Gates; Gerdes; Geren; Gervin-Hawkins; González, J.; González, M.; Goodwin; Guerra; Guillen; Harless; Harris; Harris Davila; Harrison; Hayes; Hefner; Hernandez; Hickland; Hinojosa; Holt; Hopper; Howard; Hull; Hunter; Isaac; Johnson; Jones, J.; Jones, V.; Kerwin; King; Kitzman; LaHood; Lalani; Lambert; Landgraf; Leach; Leo Wilson; Little; Longoria; Lopez, J.; Lopez, R.; Louderback; Lowe; Lozano; Lujan; Luther; Manuel; Martinez; Martinez Fischer; McLaughlin; McQueeney; Metcalf; Meyer; Meza; Money; Moody; Morales, C.; Morales, E.; Morales Shaw; Morgan; Muñoz; Noble; Olcott; Oliverson; Ordaz; Orr; Patterson; Paul; Perez, M.; Perez, V.; Phelan; Pierson; Plesa; Raymond; Reynolds; Richardson; Rodríguez Ramos; Romero; Rose; Rosenthal; Schatzline; Schofield; Schoolcraft; Shaheen; Shofner; Simmons; Slawson; Smithee; Spiller; Swanson; Talarico; Tepper; Thompson; Tinderholt; Toth; Troxclair; Turner; VanDeaver; Vasut; Villalobos; Virdell; Vo; Walle; Ward Johnson; Wharton; Wilson; Wu; Zwiener.

Present, not voting — Mr. Speaker(C).

HB 147, A bill to be entitled An Act relating to the establishment of an electronic registry of livestock marks and brands.

Representative Guillen moved to postpone consideration of HB 147 until 10 a.m. Tuesday, April 15.

The motion prevailed.

CSHB 1522, A bill to be entitled An Act relating to notice of a meeting held under the open meetings law.

Representative Gerdes offered the following amendment to CSHB 1522:

Amend CSHB 1522 (house committee printing) as follows:

(1)  On page 1, line 9, strike "Subsection (c)" and substitute "Subsections (c) and (c-1)".

(2)  On page 1, line 19, between "include" and "a physical", insert the following:

(3)  On page 1, line 22, between "website" and the underlined period, insert:

(4)  On page 1, line 22, strike "This subsection", and substitute the following:

Amendment No. 1 was adopted.

CSHB 1522, as amended, was passed to engrossment by (Record 83): 148 Yeas, 0 Nays, 1 Present, not voting.

Yeas — Alders; Allen; Anchía; Ashby; Barry; Bell, C.; Bell, K.; Bernal; Bhojani; Bonnen; Bowers; Bryant; Buckley; Bucy; Bumgarner; Button; Cain; Campos; Canales; Capriglione; Cole; Collier; Cook; Cortez; Craddick; Cunningham; Curry; Darby; Davis, A.; Davis, Y.; Dean; DeAyala; Dorazio; Dutton; Dyson; Fairly; Flores; Frank; Gámez; Garcia, J.; Garcia, L.; Garcia Hernandez; Gates; Gerdes; Geren; Gervin-Hawkins; González, J.; González, M.; Goodwin; Guerra; Guillen; Harless; Harris; Harris Davila; Harrison; Hayes; Hefner; Hernandez; Hickland; Hinojosa; Holt; Hopper; Howard; Hull; Hunter; Isaac; Johnson; Jones, J.; Jones, V.; Kerwin; King; Kitzman; LaHood; Lambert; Landgraf; Leach; Leo Wilson; Little; Longoria; Lopez, J.; Lopez, R.; Louderback; Lowe; Lozano; Lujan; Luther; Manuel; Martinez; Martinez Fischer; McLaughlin; McQueeney; Metcalf; Meyer; Meza; Money; Moody; Morales, C.; Morales, E.; Morales Shaw; Morgan; Muñoz; Noble; Olcott; Oliverson; Ordaz; Orr; Patterson; Paul; Perez, M.; Perez, V.; Phelan; Pierson; Plesa; Raymond; Reynolds; Richardson; Rodríguez Ramos; Romero; Rose; Rosenthal; Schatzline; Schofield; Schoolcraft; Shaheen; Shofner; Simmons; Slawson; Smithee; Spiller; Swanson; Talarico; Tepper; Thompson; Tinderholt; Toth; Troxclair; Turner; VanDeaver; Vasut; Villalobos; Virdell; Vo; Walle; Ward Johnson; Wharton; Wilson; Wu; Zwiener.

Present, not voting — Mr. Speaker(C).

Absent — Lalani.

HB 422, A bill to be entitled An Act relating to limitations on the issuance of bonds by the Texas Water Development Board for the development of certain projects in economically distressed areas.

HB 422 was passed to engrossment by (Record 84): 106 Yeas, 43 Nays, 1 Present, not voting.

Yeas — Allen; Anchía; Ashby; Barry; Bell, C.; Bell, K.; Bernal; Bhojani; Bonnen; Bowers; Bryant; Buckley; Bucy; Button; Campos; Canales; Capriglione; Cole; Collier; Cortez; Darby; Davis, A.; Davis, Y.; Dean; Dutton; Dyson; Fairly; Flores; Frank; Gámez; Garcia, J.; Garcia, L.; Garcia Hernandez; Gates; Gerdes; Geren; Gervin-Hawkins; González, J.; González, M.; Goodwin; Guerra; Guillen; Harless; Harris; Hefner; Hernandez; Hinojosa; Howard; Hull; Hunter; Johnson; Jones, J.; Jones, V.; King; Kitzman; Lalani; Lambert; Landgraf; Leach; Longoria; Lopez, J.; Lopez, R.; Louderback; Lujan; Manuel; Martinez; Martinez Fischer; McLaughlin; McQueeney; Metcalf; Meyer; Meza; Moody; Morales, C.; Morales, E.; Morales Shaw; Muñoz; Noble; Ordaz; Orr; Patterson; Perez, M.; Perez, V.; Phelan; Plesa; Raymond; Reynolds; Rodríguez Ramos; Romero; Rose; Rosenthal; Shaheen; Simmons; Smithee; Talarico; Tepper; Thompson; Turner; VanDeaver; Villalobos; Vo; Walle; Ward Johnson; Wharton; Wu; Zwiener.

Nays — Alders; Bumgarner; Cain; Cook; Craddick; Cunningham; Curry; DeAyala; Dorazio; Harris Davila; Harrison; Hayes; Hickland; Holt; Hopper; Isaac; Kerwin; LaHood; Leo Wilson; Little; Lowe; Lozano; Luther; Money; Morgan; Olcott; Oliverson; Paul; Pierson; Richardson; Schatzline; Schofield; Schoolcraft; Shofner; Slawson; Spiller; Swanson; Tinderholt; Toth; Troxclair; Vasut; Virdell; Wilson.

Present, not voting — Mr. Speaker(C).

HB 675, A bill to be entitled An Act relating to the imposition of charges by a governmental body for providing copies of public information under the public information law.

Representative Hopper offered the following amendment to HB 675:

Amend HB 675 (house committee report) as follows:

(1)  On page 1, line 16, strike "Subsection (c)" and substitute "Subsections (c), (d), (e), and (f)".

(2)  On page 1, following line 24, insert the following:

Amendment No. 1 was adopted.

HB 675, as amended, was passed to engrossment by (Record 85): 146 Yeas, 3 Nays, 1 Present, not voting.

Yeas — Alders; Allen; Anchía; Ashby; Barry; Bell, C.; Bell, K.; Bernal; Bhojani; Bonnen; Bowers; Bryant; Buckley; Bumgarner; Button; Cain; Campos; Capriglione; Cole; Cook; Cortez; Craddick; Cunningham; Curry; Darby; Davis, A.; Davis, Y.; Dean; DeAyala; Dorazio; Dutton; Dyson; Fairly; Flores; Frank; Gámez; Garcia, J.; Garcia, L.; Garcia Hernandez; Gates; Gerdes; Geren; Gervin-Hawkins; González, J.; González, M.; Goodwin; Guerra; Guillen; Harless; Harris; Harris Davila; Harrison; Hayes; Hefner; Hernandez; Hickland; Hinojosa; Holt; Hopper; Howard; Hull; Hunter; Isaac; Johnson; Jones, J.; Jones, V.; Kerwin; King; Kitzman; LaHood; Lalani; Lambert; Landgraf; Leach; Leo Wilson; Little; Longoria; Lopez, J.; Lopez, R.; Louderback; Lowe; Lozano; Lujan; Luther; Manuel; Martinez; Martinez Fischer; McLaughlin; McQueeney; Metcalf; Meyer; Meza; Money; Moody; Morales, C.; Morales, E.; Morales Shaw; Morgan; Muñoz; Noble; Olcott; Oliverson; Ordaz; Orr; Patterson; Paul; Perez, M.; Perez, V.; Phelan; Pierson; Plesa; Raymond; Reynolds; Richardson; Rodríguez Ramos; Romero; Rose; Rosenthal; Schatzline; Schofield; Schoolcraft; Shaheen; Shofner; Simmons; Slawson; Smithee; Spiller; Swanson; Talarico; Tepper; Thompson; Tinderholt; Toth; Troxclair; Turner; VanDeaver; Vasut; Villalobos; Virdell; Vo; Walle; Ward Johnson; Wharton; Wilson; Wu; Zwiener.

Nays — Bucy; Canales; Collier.

Present, not voting — Mr. Speaker(C).

CSHB 204, A bill to be entitled An Act relating to the total annual salary from state and county sources for certain state prosecutors.

CSHB 204 was passed to engrossment by (Record 86): 116 Yeas, 33 Nays, 1 Present, not voting.

Yeas — Allen; Anchía; Ashby; Barry; Bell, C.; Bell, K.; Bernal; Bhojani; Bonnen; Bowers; Bryant; Buckley; Bucy; Button; Campos; Capriglione; Cole; Collier; Cortez; Craddick; Cunningham; Curry; Darby; Davis, A.; Davis, Y.; Dean; DeAyala; Dutton; Dyson; Fairly; Flores; Frank; Gámez; Garcia, J.; Garcia, L.; Garcia Hernandez; Gates; Gerdes; Geren; Gervin-Hawkins; González, J.; González, M.; Goodwin; Guerra; Guillen; Harless; Harris; Harris Davila; Hefner; Hernandez; Hickland; Hinojosa; Holt; Howard; Hull; Hunter; Isaac; Johnson; Jones, J.; Jones, V.; Kerwin; King; Kitzman; LaHood; Lalani; Lambert; Landgraf; Leach; Longoria; Lopez, J.; Lopez, R.; Louderback; Lujan; Manuel; Martinez; Martinez Fischer; McQueeney; Metcalf; Meyer; Meza; Moody; Morales, C.; Morales, E.; Morales Shaw; Muñoz; Noble; Oliverson; Ordaz; Paul; Perez, M.; Perez, V.; Phelan; Plesa; Raymond; Reynolds; Rodríguez Ramos; Romero; Rose; Rosenthal; Shaheen; Simmons; Smithee; Talarico; Tepper; Thompson; Troxclair; Turner; VanDeaver; Villalobos; Virdell; Vo; Walle; Ward Johnson; Wharton; Wu; Zwiener.

Nays — Alders; Bumgarner; Cain; Canales; Cook; Dorazio; Harrison; Hayes; Hopper; Leo Wilson; Little; Lowe; Lozano; Luther; McLaughlin; Money; Morgan; Olcott; Orr; Patterson; Pierson; Richardson; Schatzline; Schofield; Schoolcraft; Shofner; Slawson; Spiller; Swanson; Tinderholt; Toth; Vasut; Wilson.

Present, not voting — Mr. Speaker(C).

When Record No. 86 was taken, I was shown voting yes. I intended to vote no.

Harris Davila

When Record No. 86 was taken, I was shown voting yes. I intended to vote no.

Hickland

When Record No. 86 was taken, I was shown voting yes. I intended to vote no.

Kerwin

CSHB 748, A bill to be entitled An Act relating to the enforceability of certain nondisclosure or confidentiality provisions with respect to an act of sexual abuse.

REPRESENTATIVE LEACH: Members, I am extremely honored to present this important bill to you today, CSHB 748, "Trey's Law." Members, if you'll allow me just a minute or two to explain to you this bill and the story behind it. Trey Carlock was a talented, smart, and handsome young man from Dallas who took his own life at the age of 28 after being groomed and sexually abused at Kanakuk summer camp for a decade. At age 23, in a pursuit of justice against his abuser and those who harbored him, Trey and his family relived the trauma and the abuse through a civil law suit, which, while settled, included a restrictive nondisclosure agreement, otherwise known as an NDA. This tool was used by Trey's abuser and Kanakuk Kamps as a tool to silence Trey and to shield their criminal acts, all in exchange for a settlement—truly blood money.

Members, Cindy Clemishire was 12 years old when a traveling evangelist named Robert Morris began to sexually abuse her in the 1980s—on Christmas Eve of 1982, defiling her for the very first time. He made her promise at that time not to tell anyone about it. In her own words, Cindy said just to our committee about a month ago that "The first time Robert Morris made the premeditated decision to violate and to defile my purity, he told me, 'You can never tell anyone because it will ruin everything.'" Eighteen years ago, Robert Morris, who became one of the most popular and well-known preachers and pastors—if you can call him that—in all of the world, shepherding Gateway Church in North Dallas, one of the largest churches in the world—just eighteen years ago, he again tried to silence Cindy Clemishire. During negotiations over a civil settlement in 2007, Robert Morris offered Cindy Clemishire $25,000 in exchange for her signing a nondisclosure agreement prohibiting her from ever being able to speak out about her abuse that allegedly took place over five years in the 1980s—not allegedly, that did take place over five years in the 1980s. Unlike Trey, Cindy denied the blood money. Elizabeth Carlock Phillips, who lives in Dallas—Trey's wonderful sister, who has made this effort the cause of her life—said this. She said, "The use of NDAs in settlement agreements is essentially lawful hush money. It is institutional abuse on top of sexual abuse." And I couldn't agree with her more.

For too long, this has been the policy of this state. We have here in Texas allowed for sanctioned blood money—for hush money—in these awful cases of abuse. And today, with the passage of Trey's Law, that practice comes to an end. With the passage of this bill, we will explicitly prohibit these types of agreements in civil settlement agreements. We will render them totally void and unenforceable as a matter of law to the extent that they would prohibit a victim from speaking out about an act of sexual abuse or any facts related to those acts. The bill does allow for an agreement of the parties to keep other details or terms of the settlement, such as the amount or payment terms, confidential. Further, the bill describes an "act of sexual abuse" to include not only all aspects of child sexual abuse but also sexual assault, aggravated sexual assault, and human trafficking violations regardless of the age of the victim. Members, I do have a floor amendment that I'd like to go ahead and offer and accept.

Representatives Leach, Meyer, Johnson, Schofield, and Little offered the following amendment to CSHB 748:

Amend CSHB 748 (house committee report) as follows:

(1)  On page 2, lines 8 and 11, strike "party" and substitute "person, including a party," in each place it appears.

(2)  On page 2, line 14, strike "The" and substitute "(a) Subject to Subsection (b) of this section, the".

(3)  On page 2, between lines 16 and 17, insert the following:

(b)  A person, including a party, may not enforce or attempt to enforce an agreement or a provision of an agreement described by Section 129C.002, Civil Practice and Remedies Code, as added by this Act, entered into before the effective date of this Act unless the person obtains a declaratory judgment under Chapter 37, Civil Practice and Remedies Code, that is final and not subject to appeal and declares that the agreement or provision is enforceable.

LEACH: Members, this floor amendment is the product of many conversations with many of you over the past many weeks, including over the past 24 hours, as well as various victims' groups. This addresses the concerns relating to retroactivity. It sets forth a very clear process by which any existing NDAs could ever be enforced to silence any victims in the future, which hopefully after this bill passes would never happen. Mr. Speaker, I move adoption of the amendment.

Amendment No. 1 was adopted.

LEACH: Members, I want to sincerely thank many of you—including most notably Vice-chair Ann Johnson, Chairman Morgan Meyer, Chairman David Cook, and Representative Mitch Little—for working with me on this and for adding such tremendous value to this conversation. Most importantly today, members—and with you standing with me here at the front mic, which I am so honored you've chosen to do—we are sending a message and thanking the brave and the courageous advocates and survivors—some of whom are in the gallery today with us, members—for speaking out so passionately and forcefully on this issue. To me and to all of you, it's clear: Today, you either stand with victims or you stand with the people who harmed them. Period. And today the Texas House is standing not with the victims but with the victors in this important fight. Mr. Speaker, I proudly move passage of CSHB 748.

REPRESENTATIVE LITTLE: Members of the house, I want to first express my sincere thanks to Chairman Leach for his leadership and partnership in advancing this important bill. As an attorney, I've had the great honor of representing both minor children and adult victims of sexual abuse. The situations that required my representation have been horrific. A little girl who was molested by one of her pastors in the middle of the night at a church summer camp. A woman raped by a member of her prayer team at her church who had a history of sexual violence that was known to the church. A boy who was ruthlessly bullied and sexually assaulted by his classmates at a therapeutic boarding school.

I'm going to share with you a hard truth. In litigation, the most valuable thing that these boys and girls had to sell was their silence. The purpose of this legislation is to notify sexual abusers and the organizations that harbor them that silence is no longer for sale in the State of Texas. Information about abuse is information the State of Texas should decide—as a matter of public policy—needs to be in the public domain. There are too many situations where a culture of concealment gives rise to future victimization and an inability to exclude abusers from environments where potential victims are plentiful. Please hear me. The heartbeat of this bill is to set captives free. Trey Carlock is the person for whom Trey's Law is named. The secret he was required by contract to keep was corroding his soul. And it shouldn't have. He did nothing wrong—didn't deserve the abuse that he suffered. It's my hope that this law is even a small consolation to his family and will allow others to heal on his behalf.

I know there are faith leaders who may be concerned about the impact of this law. I have been one of you. I, myself, served on the board of a megachurch for six years. The message I would like to communicate to you is that no building, no legal fiction, no bank account is worth our souls or the souls of those that we are committed to protecting. We must put others first.

CSHB 748, as amended, was passed to engrossment by (Record 87): 149 Yeas, 0 Nays, 1 Present, not voting.

Yeas — Alders; Allen; Anchía; Ashby; Barry; Bell, C.; Bell, K.; Bernal; Bhojani; Bonnen; Bowers; Bryant; Buckley; Bucy; Bumgarner; Button; Cain; Campos; Canales; Capriglione; Cole; Collier; Cook; Cortez; Craddick; Cunningham; Curry; Darby; Davis, A.; Davis, Y.; Dean; DeAyala; Dorazio; Dutton; Dyson; Fairly; Flores; Frank; Gámez; Garcia, J.; Garcia, L.; Garcia Hernandez; Gates; Gerdes; Geren; Gervin-Hawkins; González, J.; González, M.; Goodwin; Guerra; Guillen; Harless; Harris; Harris Davila; Harrison; Hayes; Hefner; Hernandez; Hickland; Hinojosa; Holt; Hopper; Howard; Hull; Hunter; Isaac; Johnson; Jones, J.; Jones, V.; Kerwin; King; Kitzman; LaHood; Lalani; Lambert; Landgraf; Leach; Leo Wilson; Little; Longoria; Lopez, J.; Lopez, R.; Louderback; Lowe; Lozano; Lujan; Luther; Manuel; Martinez; Martinez Fischer; McLaughlin; McQueeney; Metcalf; Meyer; Meza; Money; Moody; Morales, C.; Morales, E.; Morales Shaw; Morgan; Muñoz; Noble; Olcott; Oliverson; Ordaz; Orr; Patterson; Paul; Perez, M.; Perez, V.; Phelan; Pierson; Plesa; Raymond; Reynolds; Richardson; Rodríguez Ramos; Romero; Rose; Rosenthal; Schatzline; Schofield; Schoolcraft; Shaheen; Shofner; Simmons; Slawson; Smithee; Spiller; Swanson; Talarico; Tepper; Thompson; Tinderholt; Toth; Troxclair; Turner; VanDeaver; Vasut; Villalobos; Virdell; Vo; Walle; Ward Johnson; Wharton; Wilson; Wu; Zwiener.

Present, not voting — Mr. Speaker(C).

Representative Cain moved to print all remarks on CSHB 748.

The motion prevailed.

HB 912, A bill to be entitled An Act relating to the compensation of a distributed renewable generation owner in certain areas outside of ERCOT.

Representative Moody offered the following amendment to HB 912:

Amend HB 912 (house committee printing) on page 1 as follows:

(1)  On line 5, strike "Section 39.554(f)" and substitute "Section 39.554".

(2)  On line 5, between "amended" and "to", insert "by amending Subsection (f) and adding Subsection (i)".

(3)  Between lines 20 and 21, insert the following:

(4)  On line 21, strike "2025" and substitute "2026".

Amendment No. 1 was adopted.

HB 912, as amended, was passed to engrossment by (Record 88): 148 Yeas, 1 Nays, 1 Present, not voting.

Yeas — Alders; Allen; Anchía; Ashby; Barry; Bell, C.; Bell, K.; Bernal; Bhojani; Bonnen; Bowers; Bryant; Buckley; Bucy; Bumgarner; Button; Cain; Campos; Canales; Capriglione; Cole; Collier; Cook; Cortez; Craddick; Cunningham; Curry; Darby; Davis, A.; Davis, Y.; Dean; DeAyala; Dorazio; Dutton; Dyson; Fairly; Flores; Frank; Gámez; Garcia, J.; Garcia, L.; Garcia Hernandez; Gates; Gerdes; Geren; Gervin-Hawkins; González, J.; González, M.; Goodwin; Guerra; Guillen; Harless; Harris; Harris Davila; Harrison; Hayes; Hefner; Hernandez; Hickland; Hinojosa; Holt; Hopper; Howard; Hull; Hunter; Isaac; Johnson; Jones, J.; Jones, V.; Kerwin; King; Kitzman; LaHood; Lalani; Lambert; Landgraf; Leach; Leo Wilson; Little; Longoria; Lopez, J.; Lopez, R.; Louderback; Lowe; Lozano; Lujan; Luther; Manuel; Martinez; Martinez Fischer; McLaughlin; McQueeney; Metcalf; Meyer; Meza; Money; Moody; Morales, C.; Morales, E.; Morales Shaw; Morgan; Muñoz; Noble; Olcott; Ordaz; Orr; Patterson; Paul; Perez, M.; Perez, V.; Phelan; Pierson; Plesa; Raymond; Reynolds; Richardson; Rodríguez Ramos; Romero; Rose; Rosenthal; Schatzline; Schofield; Schoolcraft; Shaheen; Shofner; Simmons; Slawson; Smithee; Spiller; Swanson; Talarico; Tepper; Thompson; Tinderholt; Toth; Troxclair; Turner; VanDeaver; Vasut; Villalobos; Virdell; Vo; Walle; Ward Johnson; Wharton; Wilson; Wu; Zwiener.

Nays — Oliverson.

Present, not voting — Mr. Speaker(C).

When Record No. 88 was taken, I was shown voting no. I intended to vote yes.

Oliverson

The following committee meeting was announced:

Criminal Jurisprudence, scheduled to meet at 10:30 a.m. or upon final adjournment/recess or bill referral, if permission is granted, today, will convene 30 minutes after adoption of the adjournment motion in the posted location.

Notice was given at this time that the speaker had signed bills and resolutions in the presence of the house (see the addendum to the daily journal, Signed by the Speaker, House List No. 4).

Representative Curry moved that the house adjourn until 10 a.m. tomorrow in memory of Clyde Vance Dunnam of Waco.

The motion prevailed.

The house accordingly, at 12:16 p.m., adjourned until 10 a.m. tomorrow.

The following bills and resolutions were today signed in the presence of the house by the speaker:

House List No. 4

HCR 65, HCR 119

The following messages from the senate were today received by the house:

MESSAGE FROM THE SENATE

SENATE CHAMBER

Austin, Texas

Tuesday, April 8, 2025

The Honorable Speaker of the House

House Chamber

Austin, Texas

Mr. Speaker:

I am directed by the senate to inform the house that the senate has taken the following action:

THE SENATE HAS PASSED THE FOLLOWING MEASURES:

Relating to the text of ballot propositions for bond elections.

Relating to the operation near a public or private primary or secondary school of a retail establishment selling cigarettes, e-cigarettes, vaping apparatuses, or tobacco products; creating a criminal offense.

Relating to special education in public schools, including funding for special education under the Foundation School Program.

Relating to the advertising of certain used motor vehicles.

Relating to equitable relief from the enforcement of certain governmental requirements that affect agricultural operations.

Relating to the regulation of residential solar retail transactions; requiring an occupational registration; authorizing fees; providing civil and administrative penalties.

Relating to rights of a victim, guardian of a victim, or close relative of a deceased victim in certain criminal cases involving family violence, sexual or assaultive offenses, stalking, or a violation of a protective order or condition of bond.

Relating to electronic health record requirements; authorizing a civil penalty.

Relating to the operation of an unmanned aircraft over a spaceport; creating a criminal offense.

Relating to testimony or the production of evidence before a house of the legislature or a legislative committee.

Relating to sexually violent predators, to the Texas Civil Commitment Office, and to the prosecution of the offense of harassment by sexually violent predators and other persons confined in certain facilities; amending certain sex offender registration requirements; increasing criminal penalties.

Relating to public information regarding the rates of a transmission and distribution utility.

Relating to the Texas Emergency Services Retirement System.

Proposing a constitutional amendment establishing a parent's right to direct a child's education.

Respectfully,

Patsy Spaw

Secretary of the Senate

Favorable reports have been filed by committees as follows:

Criminal Jurisprudence - HB 166, HB 380, HB 502, HB 2066

Delivery of Government Efficiency - SB 14

Elections - HB 242, HB 521

Energy Resources - HB 48, HB 206, HB 2584, HB 2890, HB 3125, HB 3240, HB 3707

Higher Education - HB 718, HB 1507

Human Services - HB 136, HB 141, HB 694, HB 1155, HB 1201, HB 2071, HB 2358, HCR 78

Licensing and Administrative Procedures - HB 837, HB 1888

Public Health - HB 1275