Texans for Fiscal Responsibility has issued the following vote notice for April 1st, 2025 

Texas House of Representatives

None

Texas Senate

Subject:  Senate Joint Resolution 12 (SJR 12) – Parental rights in education

• Author: State Sen. Angela Paxton (R-McKinney)
• Caption: Proposing a constitutional amendment establishing a parent’s right to direct a child’s education.
• TFR Position: SUPPORT
• Background: 
  • SJR 12 affirms and constitutionally protects the fundamental right of parents to direct their children’s education in Texas. By enshrining these rights, the amendment promotes school choice and transparency, empowering families to seek alternatives to public education without government interference. It limits bureaucratic overreach and encourages accountability in local school governance. The amendment aligns with principles of limited government and empowers taxpayers to advocate for education that best meets their child’s needs.

Subject:  Senate Bill 27 (SB 27) – Empowers Teachers and Classroom Discipline

• Author: State Sen. Brandon Creighton (R-Conroe)
• Caption: Relating to the rights of public school educators and financial and other assistance provided to educators and to public schools by the Texas Education Agency related to public school educators.
• TFR Position: SUPPORT
• Background: 
  • SB 27 supports Texas educators by reducing regulatory burdens and streamlining certification processes for high-need teaching areas. It incentivizes the hiring of retired teachers by reimbursing districts for retirement-related costs, promoting workforce efficiency without long-term pension strain. The bill empowers teachers to maintain discipline and reduces bureaucratic interference with classroom management. Overall, it’s a common sense approach to teacher retention, classroom safety, and workforce development.

Subject:  Senate Bill 617 (SB 617) – Homeless housing notice requirement

• Author: State Sen. Charles Schwertner (R-Georgetown)
• Caption: Relating to hearing and public notice requirements regarding the conversion by a municipality of certain properties to house homeless individuals.
• TFR Position: SUPPORT
• Background: 
  • SB 617 requires Texas municipalities to provide at least 90 days’ public notice and conduct a local hearing before converting any government-controlled property into housing for the homeless. This includes notifying all residents and businesses within a one-mile radius by mail. The bill empowers community members to seek court injunctions if a city bypasses these steps. The bill promotes accountability, transparency, and local control, ensuring that taxpayers are not blindsided by costly and potentially burdensome government decisions. For these reasons, TFR supports SB 617.

Subject:  Senate Bill 922 (SB 922) – Limits electronic patient information access

• Author: State Sen. Kelly Hancock (R-North Richland Hills)
• Caption: Relating to the disclosure of certain medical information by electronic means.
• TFR Position: OPPOSE / AMEND
• Background: 
  • SB 922 delays the electronic release of certain sensitive medical test results to give doctors time to review and communicate them personally. While well-intentioned, the bill adds bureaucratic complexity and could interfere with timely patient access to care, and interferes with individuals personal decision making ability. A better approach would be to allow patients to opt into or out of this delay. Streamlining patient-doctor communication through voluntary tools or flags in patient portals could achieve the same goal without a blanket policy. For these reasons, TFR opposes SB 922 unless amended.

Subject:  Senate Bill 1098 (SB 1098) – Prescription Drug Price Transparency

• Author: State Sen. César Blanco (D-El Paso)
• Caption: Relating to the disclosure by a pharmacy to a patient of certain price information for a drug or biological product.
• TFR Position: SUPPORT
• Background: 
  • SB 1098 promotes free-market transparency and empowers patients by requiring pharmacies to disclose the lowest available cash price for prescribed drugs. This helps Texans, especially seniors and low-income individuals, avoid unnecessary copay overpayments and make informed financial decisions. By allowing patients to bypass inflated insurance copays, the bill curbs hidden costs driven by pharmacy benefit managers and insurance companies. Reducing healthcare expenses through transparency aligns with fiscally conservative principles of efficiency, accountability, and individual choice.

Subject:  Senate Bill 1188 (SB 1188) – Secures medical records, boosts parental rights

• Author: State Sen. Lois Kolkhorst (R-Brenham)
• Caption: Relating to electronic health record requirements; authorizing a civil penalty.
• TFR Position: SUPPORT
• Background: 
  • SB 1188 strengthens the security, accuracy, and appropriate use of electronic health records (EHRs) in Texas. It mandates that all EHRs be stored on servers physically located in the United States, protecting sensitive medical data from foreign access or breaches. The bill reinforces parental rights by ensuring parents have full access to their minor children’s records and requires that a patient’s biological sex at birth be documented for accurate medical treatment. It also prohibits the use of health records for non-medical purposes such as voter registration or credit score reporting. For these reasons, TFR supports SB 1188.

Subject:  Senate Bill 1453 (SB 1453) – Prevents unnecessary debt taxation

• Author: State Sen. Paul Bettencourt (R-Houston)
• Caption: Relating to the current debt rate and tax rate of a taxing unit for ad valorem tax purposes.
• TFR Position: SUPPORT
• Background: 
  • SB 1453 ensures taxpayers only pay what is strictly necessary to service a local government’s existing debt by capping the Interest & Sinking (I&S) tax rate at the minimum required amount. This prevents local taxing entities from overcollecting and stockpiling excess revenue under the guise of debt payments. If higher rates are desired, the bill mandates transparency and a public vote with supermajority approval. By tightening financial discipline and requiring justification for any tax increases, the bill promotes limited government and protects taxpayers. It’s a prudent reform to curb unnecessary taxation and restore fiscal accountability.

Subject:  Senate Bill 1822 (SB 1822) – AI in Healthcare regulation

• Author: State Sen. Nathan Johnson (D-Dallas)
• Caption: Relating to the use of artificial intelligence-based algorithms in utilization review conducted for certain health benefit plans.
• TFR Position: OPPOSE
• Background: 
  • SB 1822 mandates transparency and accountability in the use of AI algorithms by health insurance companies in medical treatment reviews. Although transparency can protect against discriminatory practices, the bill adds regulatory compliance burdens that may raise administrative costs, potentially driving up insurance premiums for consumers. These added regulations could inadvertently stifle innovation in healthcare by imposing costly, bureaucratic compliance measures. To improve the bill, lawmakers should narrow the compliance requirements, establish clearer criteria for determining noncompliance, and provide explicit protections to prevent excessive regulatory demands on insurers.

Subject:  Senate Bill 2188 (SB 2188) – Streamlines spaceport safety coordination

• Author: State Sen. Adam Hinojosa (R-Corpus Christi)
• Caption: Relating to space flight activities.
• TFR Position: SUPPORT
• Background: 
  • SB 2188 streamlines administrative authority for managing beach closures during spaceflight operations by empowering smaller local governments to coordinate weekday access near launch sites. This ensures safety and efficiency while respecting property rights and private enterprise. Supporting this bill promotes economic growth through private spaceflight investment while protecting taxpayers from unnecessary regulatory costs. The bill balances innovation and public safety with minimal government expansion.

Reminder: Vote Notices are provided to both Texas state lawmakers and the general public, sharing Texans for Fiscal Responsibility’s position on issues to be rated as a part of the Fiscal Responsibility Index. Notices are provided prior to votes being taken in each legislative chamber.

Disclaimer: We reserve the right to consider amendments to legislation that may be introduced without notice as a part of issues to be rated on the Fiscal Responsibility Index. We will make every effort to provide notice on amendments that are pre-filed.