Second special session gaveled to a close
The second special session of the Texas Legislature ended last Thursday with a new congressional map, flood relief and safety measures but a stalemate on whether to ban or regulate THC. The Dallas Morning News reported that lawmakers approved most of the legislative priorities Gov. Greg Abbott listed for the special session.
In addition to those mentioned above, lawmakers made ivermectin an over-the-counter medication available in pharmacies, agreed to replace the annual STARR education test, authorized the Texas attorney general to prosecute election fraud, and further tightened the availability of mail-order abortion pills.
The original reason the first special session was called came after Abbott vetoed a ban on THC, the psychoactive ingredient in many hemp-derived products. Instead, the governor wanted lawmakers to come up with regulations on its sale. However, the Senate again passed a ban that went nowhere in the House.
“I’m proud of all of you,” Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick told senators before closing the session. “I know we didn’t always agree on every issue or between parties or within a party, but everybody always was respectful to the other members on the floor, and I’m proud of you.”
Patrick and Abbott remained at loggerheads concerning the THC ban while agreeing on nearly all the other agenda items in the special session.
The first special session went nowhere after Democratic lawmakers broke quorum by leaving the state to block passage of a new congressional redistricting plan. They returned for the second session, where a redistricting map that would likely give the GOP five additional congressional seats was passed on party lines. That map was quickly challenged in court.
In addition, lawmakers passed four bills requiring increased safety measures after the deadly Hill Country flooding in July.
GOP lawmakers roll back voting bill they helped pass
A voting bill that allowed some voters to update their addresses on Election Day went into effect Sept 1. However, after an outcry by some Republicans, the Legislature during the second special session voted to undo that provision and sent the bill to the governor’s desk.
The San Antonio Express-News reported the now-undone law affected voters who changed addresses within the same county. Abbott added the call to reverse the legislation after members of the State Republican Executive Committee and some conservative activists expressed concerns the change would lead to voter fraud.
State Rep. Matt Shaheen, R-Plano, authored both the original bill amendment adding the same-day provision and the bill last week to reverse it.
“A lot of the questions were raised during the convention of the elections administrators,” Shaheen said. “So I took it upon myself and thought it would be prudent to reverse the amendment and then hold interim hearings and have all the different stakeholders come to the Capitol and work through all the different scenarios.”
Gary Borders is a veteran award-winning Texas journalist. He published a number of community newspapers in Texas during a 30-year span, including in Longview, Fort Stockton, Nacogdoches, Lufkin and Cedar Park. Email: [email protected]