Today, November 9, is the first day lawmakers can pre-file bills for the upcoming 90th Texas Legislature.1 These early filings will give a first look at the policies and ideas that will be on the table when the session starts in January, policies that could raise taxes, grow spending, or add new rules and regulations that could make life more difficult for businesses and families.
Filing continues until the 60th day of the regular session. The Legislature convenes at noon on Tuesday, January 12, 2027. The deadline to file most bills is March 12, 2027. The session ends May 31, 2027, the 140th day,2 as required by the Texas Constitution.
During the previous pre-filing period in late 2024, lawmakers submitted 1,511 bills and resolutions just on day one.3 By the end of the 89th session they had filed more than 8,700 bills. Pre-filed bills get assigned numbers and become public right away, even though they sit until the session opens and committees are formed. But the earlier the bill is filed, the sooner it will get referred to committee once the session begins, and the sooner it will have a potential opportunity of receiving a committee hearing, provided the committee chair is favorable to granting one.
Taxpayers can follow every filing on the official Texas Legislature Online site. The homepage4 has member lists, committee schedules, calendars, as well as live and archived videos of House and Senate proceedings from past or current sessions. The legislation page5 lets you look up bills by number, search by text or subject, and pull reports of filed bills. You can also create a free account, build a personal bill list, and get email alerts when a bill’s status changes as it moves through the process. The site includes a “Who Represents Me?” tool, as well as links to the official House and Senate journals.
With an incoming Democrat majority in the House,6 a Republican majority in the Senate, as well as a new Democrat Governor and Lieutenant Governor, the next few months will begin to indicate whether the 90th session leans toward restraint, or an explosive growth in the size and scope of government.
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- https://tlc.texas.gov/docs/legref/Dates-of-Interest.pdf ↩︎
- https://www.texaspolicyresearch.com/legislative-calendar-89th-legislative-session/ ↩︎
- https://www.kxan.com/news/texas-politics/texas-legislators-to-pre-file-bills-ahead-of-2027-session/ ↩︎
- https://capitol.texas.gov/Home.aspx ↩︎
- https://capitol.texas.gov/MnuLegislation.aspx ↩︎
- https://texastaxpayers.com/democrats-sweep-statewide-races/ ↩︎