Texas Senate

Subject: Misuse of Rainy Day Fund, Senate Joint Resolution 5 (SJR 5)

• Author: State Sen. Joan Huffman (R-Houston)
• TFR Position: Oppose
• Background: SJR 5 seeks to amend the Texas Constitution by changing the name of the National Research University Fund to the Texas University Fund and seeks to dedicate $2.5 billion from taxpayer money to increase the total money invested in the fund. SJR 5 also dedicates a continuous revenue source of interest accrued on money that is part of the Economic Stabilization Fund (ESF) or “Rainy Day Fund”. The ESF was not designed as a slush fund for higher education. For this reason, TFR opposes SJR 5.

Subject: Misuse of Rainy Day Fund, Senate Bill 19 (SB 19)

• Author: State Sen. Joan Huffman (R-Houston)
• TFR Position: Oppose
• Background: SB 19 is the enabling legislation for SJR 5. Ultimately SB 19 seeks to change the mechanisms by which money allocated to the fund is dispersed to various higher education institutions across the state using a structured and tiered funding model. With the constitutional amendment, SJR 5 seeking to dedicate a continuous revenue source of interest accrued on money that is part of the Economic Stabilization Fund (ESF) or “Rainy Day Fund”, TFR believes that the ESF was not designed as a slush fund for higher education. For this reason, TFR opposes SB 19.

Subject: Local Government Preemption of Burdensome Regulation, Senate Bill 784 (SB 784)

• Author: State Sen. Brian Birdwell (R-Granbury)
• TFR Position: Support
• Background: SB 784 seeks to amend current law giving exclusive jurisdiction to the state to regulate greenhouse gas emissions, preempting the regulation of such by local governmental jurisdictions. This protects local businesses from local governments seeking to push radical environmental agendas that hurt the free market and businesses across the state. For these reasons, TFR supports SB 784.

Subject: Election Integrity, Senate Bill 1070 (SB 1070)

• Author: State Sen. Bryan Hughes (R-Mineola)
• TFR Position: Support
• Background: SB 1070 seeks to expand the factors by which a system can compare with the Electronic Registration Information Center (ERIC) as a part of the interstate voter registration crosscheck program. The integrity of the voting electorate is paramount, secure elections are the cornerstone of a Constitutional Republic. For this reason, TFR supports SB 1070.

Subject: Local Government Preemption of Burdensome Regulation, Senate Bill 1117 (SB 1117)

• Author: State Sen. Kelly Hancock (R-North Richland Hills)
• TFR Position: Support
• Background: SB 1117 seeks to prohibit municipalities from charging a cable franchise fee to a video service provider that does not use cable lines. TFR supports the preemption of onerous and burdensome regulation and the imposition of fees by local governmental jurisdictions. For these reasons, TFR supports SB 1117.

Subject: Burdensome Regulation, Senate Bill 1120 (SB 1120)

• Author: State Sen. Charles Schwertner (R-Georgetown)
• TFR Position: Oppose
• Background: SB 1120 seeks to further regulate estheticians and cosmetologists by prohibiting them from being able to inject Botox. Further regulation of industry only hurts the free market and seeks to empower a corrupt medical establishment that proved during the COVID pandemic it cannot be trusted with individual medical decisions. The correct response is allowing the free market to work and allowing Texans to make their own decisions based on the information at their disposal. For this reason, TFR opposes SB 1120.

Subject: Border Security, Senate Bill 1427 (SB 1427)

• Author: State Sen, Pete Flores (R-Pleasanton)
• TFR Position: Support
• Background: SB 1427 seeks to define bad actors, like Mexican cartels that have trafficked humans and fentanyl across the Texas-Mexico border, as terrorist organizations. Texas has suffered under the inaction of the Biden Administration on border security and SB 1427 would help to secure the border and hold criminals accountable for their actions. A state with an open border is not a state at all, and TFR supports efforts to protect our border. For this reason, TFR supports SB 1427.

Subject: Election Integrity, Senate Bill 1907 (SB 1907)

• Author: State Sen. Paul Bettencourt (R-Houston)
• TFR Position: Support
• Background: The election of 2020 and the accusations of voter fraud nationwide have resulted in many Texans calling for strict, but free and fair elections. Increasing criminal penalties on voter fraud only further secures our elections. Texas wants it to be easy to vote, but hard to cheat. SB 1907 would provide added oversight to the collection of precinct returns helping to secure our elections. For this reason, TFR supports SB 1907.

Subject: Election Integrity, Senate Bill 1950 (SB 1950)

• Author: State Sen. Paul Bettencourt (R-Houston)
• TFR Position: Support
• Background: The election of 2020 and the accusations of voter fraud nationwide have resulted in many Texans calling for strict, but free and fair elections. Increasing criminal penalties on voter fraud only secures our elections. Texas wants it to be easy to vote, but hard to cheat. SB 1950 would require that the county clerk, elections administrator, early voting clerk, or early voting ballot board not have the ability to suspend the requirements of the mail ballot review. For this reason, TFR supports SB 1950.

Texas House of Representatives

Subject: Energy Freedom, House Bill 2374 (HB 2374)

• Author: State Rep. Brooks Landgraf (R-Odessa)
• TFR Position: Support
• Background: HB 2374 seeks to prevent political subdivisions from adopting or enforcing any regulation that prohibits or restricts the use, sale, or lease of an engine based on its fuel source. HB 2374 would also prohibit political subdivisions from enacting regulations that would limit access to an energy source or that result in the effective prohibition of a wholesaler, retailer, energy producer, or related infrastructure that is necessary to provide access to a specific energy source. HB 2374 seeks to preempt onerous regulation. For these reasons, TFR supports HB 2374.

Subject: Licensing, House Bill 797 (HB 797)

• Author: State Rep. Angie Chen Button (R-Garland)
• TFR Position: Support
• Background: HB 797 lowers the threshold to sit for the exam as a CPA. It lowers the number of hours required from 150 to 120. It also lowers the semester hour requirements from 24 to 21. Although this bill does not eliminate the need for the occupational license which is the ultimate goal, it does lower the burden on those seeking to become a certified CPA. This ultimately makes it easier for Texans to become a CPA, for this reason, TFR supports HB 797.

Subject: Prescription Drug Importation Program, House Bill 25 (HB 25)

• Author: State Rep. James Talarico (D-Austin)
• TFR Position: Support
• Background: HB 25 would require the Health & Human Services Commission (HHSC) to establish a wholesale prescription drug importation program and implement such a program with specific parameters. Many prescription drug prices are artificially high due to the lack of competition and a protected market by government regulation. HB 25 would allow for increased competition and thereby drive prices on many prescription drugs down. For these reasons, TFR supports HB 25.

Subject: Campus Security Volunteer Program, House Bill 249 (HB 249)

• Author: State Rep. Glenn Rogers (R-Graford)
• TFR Position: Support
• Background: HB 249 allows for a public school district and a charter school in a county with a population of less than 200,000 to design a plan to allow veterans or qualified law enforcement officers who have undergone background checks to volunteer to provide campus security to address a shortfall in qualified individuals in those areas. This is a fiscally responsible solution for school safety in Texas. For these reasons, TFR supports HB 249.

Reminder: Vote Notices are provided to both Texas state lawmakers and the general public in advance of Texans for Fiscal Responsibility’s position on issues to be rated as part of the Fiscal Responsibility Index 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 as part of the Fiscal Responsibility Index. We will make every effort to provide notice on amendments that are pre-filed