Latest news with #JoanHuffman
Yahoo
a day ago
- Business
- Yahoo
In final act, Texas Legislature boosts judges pay and lawmaker pensions
Texas lawmakers passed a bill that will give judges a long-awaited raise and boost their own pensions, after an 11th hour clash between the House and Senate. Texas judges will get a 25% raise, with base pay increasing to $175,000. This bill was not expected to be controversial — both chambers and parties agree this pay raise, the first since 2013, is overdue and necessary to lift Texas out of the bottom for judicial pay among states. Where it hit the skids was around legislator pensions, which are tied to judicial pay. A raise for judges should have meant a pension increase for lawmakers, but the House added an amendment decoupling them. The Senate rejected the proposal, with the disagreement spilling onto social media and pushing beyond the normal deadlines to reach a compromise. On Sunday, the chambers finally agreed to negotiate, and just hours before they closed out the 140 day session, they reached a compromise. Legislative pensions will rise with judicial salaries this time, but will be decoupled going forward. In 2030, the Texas Ethics Commission will take over assessing legislator pensions, as they do for the per diem and other lawmaker benefits. The bill says the commission will come up with equitable rules to determine pension amounts, taking into account possible raises for other elected officials, and reassess every five years. The Senate approved the proposal unanimously, with Sen. Joan Huffman, the Houston Republican who carried the bill, saying it "finally gives the judges of the state of Texas a long, well-deserved raise.' The House voted 114-26, approving the proposal over hesitation from both sides of the aisle. Democrats seemed concerned about cutting the pension benefit, while conservatives indicated they were expecting election season blowback for voting to raise their own pensions. Texas' part-time lawmakers earn $7,200 a year, plus a per diem for days they are in Austin. But those who serve more than eight years are eligible for a pension when they turn 60 (or when they turn 50 if they've served 12 years.) Rather than basing that payout on their meager legislative salary, it's long been tied to the base salary for a district judge, a benefit that allows some of the longest-standing lawmakers to earn annual retirement payments of $140,000 a year. 'For too long, the Legislature has been unwilling to give district court judges the raises that they deserve because it's tied to legislative pensions,' Rep. Brent Money, a conservative Republican from Greenville, said, calling it a 'politically toxic' issue. He said voting for the compromise was a choice between voting for the right thing, or the politically safe thing. "Let's break this stalemate, support our judiciary and face the consequences together," he said. The usual deadline for the chambers to reach a compromise would have been Saturday at midnight. As that deadline came and went without a deal, judges began barraging their legislators with phone calls and emails, demanding they reach a compromise. On Sunday afternoon, both chambers agreed to appoint conferees, including Leach and Huffman. The deal was still being hammered out when the House and Senate gaveled in on the last day of session, usually a ceremonial day to celebrate the wins of the session. Members from both chambers breathed a sigh of relief with the passage of the conference committee report Monday afternoon. 'I don't think I've ever worked so hard on a bill that wasn't mine,' Sen. José Menéndez, D-San Antonio, said Monday. 'I have never gone back and forth as much between the House and the Senate in one day as I have today." First round of TribFest speakers announced! Pulitzer Prize-winning columnist Maureen Dowd; U.S. Rep. Tony Gonzales, R-San Antonio; Fort Worth Mayor Mattie Parker; U.S. Sen. Adam Schiff, D-California; and U.S. Rep. Jasmine Crockett, D-Dallas are taking the stage Nov. 13–15 in Austin. Get your tickets today!
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Bail reform legislation dies in Texas House. Will Greg Abbott call a special session?
Two proposed amendments to the Texas Constitution which were a major part of GOP-priority bail reform legislation are dead after the state House declined to pass them by a Wednesday deadline. Senate Joint Resolution 1 and SJR 87 were part of the bail reform package authored by Houston Republican Sen. Joan Huffman and backed by Gov. Greg Abbott, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick and a bipartisan majority of the state Senate. Neither resolution, however, garnered the constitutionally required 100-vote supermajority to advance from the House to a November statewide referendum despite attempts by supporters to rally additional votes. Down to the wire: Key highlights from Texas' legislative session with one week to go SJR 1 — called "Jocelyn's Law" after 12-year-old Jocelyn Nungaray, whose body was found last year in a Houston bayou after allegedly being bound, sexually assaulted and strangled to death by two men believed to be in the U.S. illegally — would have kept defendants charged with a felony who are in the U.S. without legal authorization in jail until trial. It died with an 87-39 third-reading vote Wednesday. SJR 87 would have required judges to automatically deny bail to suspects accused of nine specific serious crimes — including murder, capital murder, aggravated sexual assault and human trafficking — if the person had been previously convicted of, or is out on bond for, one of those offenses. The resolution died Tuesday with a 97-40 vote, just three supporters short of making it on this fall's statewide ballot. The measure was not reconsidered despite indications lawmakers hoped to bring it back for another vote. Supporters of the legislation, including House sponsor Rep. John Smithee, R-Amarillo, framed the bills as a matter of life and death, citing homicides allegedly committed by defendants who were already out on bail for a different charge. "Had we passed this constitutional amendment six years ago, there would be little boys and girls still alive today who were tragically killed," Smithee said during debate on SJR 1 last week. "I can promise you this: If we adopt this amendment and the voters approve it, it will save innocent human life. Period." Democratic House members, however, have argued the measures are discriminatory and strip suspects of their constitutional right to due process. "A lot of folks are going to be tied up in this that are members of my community," said Rep. Ramon Romero, D-Fort Worth, during debate on SJR 1 on Wednesday. "Laws like this, and putting this before the public and asking them to go out and vote so you can throw away the key when some undocumented person ends up in jail, that hurts our communities." More: Texas House advances bail reform package while immigration-related proposal faces challenges Lawmakers have approved several other parts of Huffman's bail reform package, including a proposed constitutional amendment which, if adopted by voters, would give judges greater discretion to deny bail to defendants charged with certain violent offenses. Senate Democrats praised the passage of that amendment, SJR 5, in a statement late Thursday after the upper chamber voted to accept House changes to the legislation and send the measure to voters. "We faced two hard truths this session. One: Families have lost loved ones to violent crimes committed by people who never should have been released. Two: Our justice system holds too many people behind bars who don't belong there — people not yet convicted and who aren't dangerous but can't afford bail," the statement reads. "We supported SJR 5 because it acknowledges both realities." At least one Republican House member belives the failure of several pieces of bail reform legislation in the lower chamber will prompt Abbott to call lawmakers back for a special session. 'I have no doubt that we will be called into a special session if this is not passed,' Rep. J.M. Lozano, R-Kingsville, wrote in a post on X after a Tuesday vote. 'We will ask for it to be reconsidered and will not stop until it passes.' Only the governor can call a special session. Bail reform has been one of Abbott's key issues. The Republican designated the legislation an emergency item during his biennial State of the State address in February toward the beginning of the legislative session. The governor has consistently voiced support for the measures on social media, firing off a spate of tweets in recent weeks urging lawmakers to vote in favor of the legislation. He also made an impromptu visit to the House last week, ostensibly to shore up support for bail reform and other legislative priorities. Speaking briefly with reporters on the House floor last week, Abbott was clearly pleased with the passage of much of the bail reform package but urged lawmakers to push through the remaining items. "We've been working hard on this for a long time," the governor said after chatting informally with several House members. "Too many people have been murdered because of the broken bail system that we've had. "It needs to get done." This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Bail reform bills die in Texas House. Will Abbott call special session?
Associated Press
5 days ago
- Business
- Associated Press
Texas to increase funding to state film incentive program by $300 million
The Texas Senate gave final approval to a bill increasing the amount of money the state spends to attract film and television productions. However, the amount is significantly lower than what had originally been proposed at the start of the year. Senate Bill 22, filed by Houston Republican Sen. Joan Huffman, would allow the comptroller to deposit $300 million into a new Texas Moving Image Industry Incentive Fund every two years until 2035. The Senate's version of the bill would deposit $500 million every two years until 2035. Eligible expenses that could be paid for by incentives would include Texas workers' wages, meals purchased from local restaurants, and airfare on Texas-based airlines. Huffman and Senate lawmakers on Wednesday concurred with amendments from the House that added additional funding for productions that use historical sites and those who partner with an institution of higher education. The bill now awaits approval from Gov. Greg Abbott. Rep. Todd Hunter, R-Corpus Christi, who was presenting the bill in the lower chamber, introduced a proposal on Monday to lower the amount at the suggestion of the budget committee. Chase Musslewhite, co-founder of Media for Texas, a non-profit organization dedicated to boosting the state's film and media industry, said on Tuesday she had heard discussions about decreasing the $500 million amount. Still, as long as the bill provides more than $200 million, she said her organization is content. 'This bill makes us competitive with our neighbors so that we wouldn't be losing our stories to New Mexico, Louisiana, and Georgia, but it wouldn't make us competitive enough to open the floodgates,' said Musslewhite. 'About six or seven other states still offer more or have stronger incentives, and I think that works perfectly for Texas. We're not trying to have everybody come here and join the rat race to get more incentives. We just want to be baseline competitive.' This bill has been the subject of commentary and discussion for several weeks now. Critics have been alarmed at the amount of money that would be given to productions and the potential political and local impact Hollywood might have on Texas. 'This bill provides taxpayer-funded incentives to the film and entertainment industry. The same industry that trashed us for supporting President Trump, mocked us for standing up for the unborn, and ridiculed our Christian faith at every opportunity,' said Rep. David Lowe, R-North Richland Hills, who spoke against the bill. 'Now we are expected to trust them to produce family-friendly content and reimburse them $2.5 billion over the next decade. Let's stop the Hollywood handouts.' Others have raised concerns about how the governor's office will determine which productions to fund. The bill gives the governor's office complete discretion over which projects receive grant funding. However, supporters pointed out that many of these provisions have already been in place, and the bill doesn't stop films from being made; it just provides extra incentives. According to the National Conference of State Legislatures, Texas is one of 37 states to offer a film incentive program. However, due to the uncertainty surrounding their incentive pr ogram, Texas is far behind states like New York, Georgia, and New Mexico when it comes to Westerns and other film and TV productions. 'There are tons of Texans who live in California and New York, all over the globe, who are pursuing their careers, because those opportunities weren't here in Texas,' said Grant Wood, co-founder of Media for Texas. 'We have essentially been subsidizing the workforce of these other states. It's all about bringing that workforce home and continuing to create a more robust and diverse economy.' Since 2007, lawmakers have funded the film incentive program at varying levels, with $50 million during one legislative session followed by $45 million the next. A then-historic $200 million came during the most recent session in 2023. The program has boosted economic activity in Texas, producing a 469% return on investment, according to the Texas Film Commission, though economists and some House lawmakers have criticized that metric and denounced film incentives as wasteful spending. The bill has received support from actors like Matthew McConaughey, Woody Harrelson and Dennis Quaid, and creators like Chad Gunderson, who produces the show 'The Chosen,' and Taylor Sheridan, who wrote the movie Hell or High Water. 'I think with the celebrity power we have behind this, once this bill gets passed, it will spread like wildfire,' Musslewhite said, mentioning 10 productions are already interested in shooting in Texas. In addition to pumping more money into film incentives, SB 22 would make smaller films eligible for larger grants. Currently, projects that spend between $1 million and $3.5 million in Texas are eligible for a 10% rebate, and projects that pay more than $3.5 million can receive a 20% grant. The bill proposes a larger, 25% grant for feature films and television programs that spend at least $1.5 million. Texas' film incentive program offers an additional 2.5% incentive to productions shot in certain 'underutilized' or 'economically distressed areas,' as well as to those with veterans who make up 5% of the total paid crew. One of the biggest fears expressed by Republican lawmakers about the bill is the amount of influence it would give Hollywood executives over Texans. Fears about them booking stadiums or parks, closing down roads or streets, and taking up other resources are unfounded, Musslewhite said. 'I have always found this fear interesting because I think it doesn't give enough credit to how Texans operate, how strong we are in our sensibilities, who we are, and how we do business,' Musslewhite said. 'Instead of fearing what Hollywood will do to Texas, we should be enthusiastic about what Texas will implement on the industry.' ___ This story was originally published by The Texas Tribune and distributed through a partnership with The Associated Press.
Yahoo
6 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Bail reform measure fails on House floor ahead of vote on Jocelyn's Law
AUSTIN (Nexstar) — A joint resolution that would require a magistrate or judge to deny bail to someone who is a repeat offender of a violent crime narrowly failed on the House floor Tuesday. Senate Joint Resolution 87 is a part of a bail reform package spearheaded by State Sen. Joan Huffman, R – Houston, and strongly supported by Gov. Greg Abbott. It would amend the constitution to require a judge to deny bail for anyone who is accused of certain violent crimes — like murder and aggravated assault — and is either out on bail for a similar crime or been convicted for a similar crime. Because it is a constitutional amendment, it needs two-thirds approval from the House, or 100 votes. The final tally on the third reading of the vote was 97 yeas, just three votes short of the needed amount. Supporters of the legislation argue innocent Texans are being injured and murdered by people who are out on bail for a serious crime they already committed. State Rep. Armando Martinez, a Democrat from Weslaco, spoke in favor of SJR 87 saying the resolution is 'protecting Texans by saying one murder is too many and two is absolutely unacceptable.' However, opponents of SJR 87 argue it takes away a person's due process and presumption of innocence. 'Why not lock up all people accused of crimes indefinitely for fear that they might do something. I guarantee that a handful of lives will be saved doing that too. But at what cost? The cost of our liberty,' State Rep. Joe Moody, D – El Paso, said in opposition to the joint resolution. Wednesday is the deadline for the House to pass all Senate bills and resolutions before midnight. On the calendar ahead of that deadline is SJR 1, also known as Jocelyn's Law. It's named after Jocelyn Nungaray, a 12-year-old Houston girl who was sexually assaulted and murdered near her home in June 2024. Houston police say they found her body in shallow water underneath a bridge within walking distance of her home. Johan Jose Martinez-Rangel and Franklin Pena, two Venezuelan nationals, are charged with sexual assault and murder. Her death shocked the local community, but its impact was far-reaching. SJR 1 would require a judge to deny bail to a person in the country illegally who is accused of a violent crime. When it was read a second time on the House floor it only received 88 votes. That's enough to get to a third reading, but it too will need 100 votes to pass out of the House. It has been postponed seven times since then, and Wednesday is its last day to get passed. If it does get the required votes, it would need to be approved by Texas voters at the ballot in November. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
7 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Down to the wire: Key highlights from Texas' legislative session with one week to go
On the last day for the Texas House to consider bills sent over from the Senate, the mood in the lower chamber for much of Tuesday was anything but frantic. In fact, the more accurate description might be methodical as the 2025 legislative session enters its final week ahead of final adjournment June 2. Most of the early action was routine, such as recognizing selected Texans for good works and recent achievements and giving something akin to putting the final stamp of approval for legislation that was voted on the day before. Tuesday was not a major deadline day in the Senate. Here's a look at some of the highlights of the day in the Capitol. A bill with potential to tie up the House with a protracted debate was killed on a procedural point. At issue was Senate Bill 552, which would have made "illegal aliens" ineligible to be sentenced to deferred adjudication for criminal offenses. The bill, authored by Sen. Joan Huffman, R-Houston and sponsored by Republican Rep. Jeff Leach of Plano, was unacceptable to House Democrats who are outnumbered in the chamber. Without the votes needed to defeat the bill, Democratic Rep. Trey Martinez Fischer of San Antonio pointed out that the legislation's official description — called the "caption" in legislative parlance — gave no notice that its provisions applied only to people who had entered the United States without legal authorization. Because House rules state that members must be able to gain an at-a-glance understanding of the subject matter of any bill, House leadership ruled that SB 552 was ineligible for consideration. Part of a signature Republican effort to toughen Texas' bail laws fell just short of passing the Texas Legislature on Tuesday. Lawmakers have already approved several bail reform provisions, including a proposed constitutional amendment which, if approved by voters, would give judges greater discretion to deny bail to defendants charged with certain violent offenses. But another proposed constitutional amendment – Senate Joint Resolution 87 by Huffman – died lacking just three votes, 97-40, as it failed to reach the two-thirds margin of lawmakers required to pass it on to voters. SJR 87 would have required judges to automatically deny bail to suspects accused of nine specific serious crimes — including murder, capital murder, aggravated sexual assault and human trafficking — if the person has been convicted of or is out on bond for one of those offenses. Rep. J.M. Lozano, R-Kingsville, wrote on social media after the vote that he expects a call for legislative overtime if the resolution is not reconsidered before a looming Wednesday deadline. 'I have no doubt that we will be called into a special session if this is not passed,' he wrote in a post on X. 'We will ask for it to be reconsidered and will not stop until it passes.' The median age of Texas homebuyers is 49 years old, according to a 2024 Texas REALTORS report, and state lawmakers are hoping to remove barriers to homeownership. Senate Bill 15, which the Texas House preliminarily approved Tuesday, would overrule local government ordinances to allow smaller homes on smaller lot sizes. Large cities would be barred from requiring lot sizes to be larger than 1,400 square feet, wider than 20 feet, or deeper than 60 feet. They would also be forbidden from density caps below 31 units per acre. Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, the three-term Republican who presides over the Senate, designated the measure a priority this session. SB 15, authored by state Sen. Paul Bettencourt, R-Houston, passed the upper chamber by a 29-2 vote in March. 'This bill cuts red tape and lets the market do its job,' Bettencourt said in a March 24 news release. 'Local regulations and permitting issues are choking our housing supply and making it impossible for our communities to meet current and future demand.' Some Democratic House members, however, argued the bill inappropriately infringed on the authority of local governments. One was Rep. Ramon Romero of Fort Worth, who said some high-density developments in his hometown are costly and difficult for police to secure. 'I think it's really important that we think for a moment about what we do up here at the Capitol and how much local control we take away from the local electeds,' Romero said. 'It's important for us to allow these local officials to decide what these lot sizes are.' The House voted in favor of the bill 87-48 Tuesday, advancing it to a final vote Wednesday. May 27 is just not a good date for Attorney General Ken Paxton in the Texas House. On Tuesday, which was May 27, Paxton sauntered onto the House floor during the floor session, as statewide elected officials sometimes do. Plus, he is a former member of House, and sometimes former members are allowed on the floor while the chamber is conducting business. However, while the governor, lieutenant governor and secretary of state have automatic House floor privileges, the attorney general and the others do not. Therefore, Paxton was escorted out of the chamber by the sergeant at arms. More: Dan Patrick blasts 'wasted taxpayer funds' for Ken Paxton impeachment. Here's the cost. The kerfuffle came two years to the day of another unpleasant day in the House for Paxton. On May 27, 2023, the House overwhelmingly voted to impeach him on 20 charges, including abuse of office and bribery. The Senate later acquitted him. Sometimes victory looks like a loss and sometimes a loss looks like a win. Case in point: A bill that would offer some student loan forgiveness for people who become mental health counselors appeared doomed after some members suggested it was a backdoor for subsidizing counselors who might recommend controversial measures such as gender-affirming care. Supporters called such arguments distractions, saying the goal is to make sure Texas can improve mental health care across the board. More: Bringing down the hammer: Where the Texas Legislature's gavels are made When the vote was called, the opponents had 68 votes while supporters only had 64. As often happens with close votes, the House did what's called a "verification," which means everyone sits at his or her own desk and verifies that the vote they cast was actually reflected on the big tally boards at the head of the chamber. On this occasion, the bill's supporters ended up with 70 votes, and the opponents tallied 63. The measure is now on its way to the governor's desk. Why the discrepancy in the vote counts? The standard answer is that some voting machines "malfunctioned." The right answer is, representatives are often scattered throughout the chamber lobbying their colleagues on unrelated matters or simply taking a break, trusting their neighbors to press their voting buttons for them. Rep. Brian Harrison, a conservative Midlothian Republican who often bucks his party's leadership, used the opportunity to pull back the veil on the long-accepted practice known as "ghost voting." Harris — sort of tongue in cheek, sort of seriously — asked why House business wasn't immediately halted so a maintenance crew could be brought in to debug all of the malfunctioning machines. Gov. Greg Abbott signed a bill that will require mobile phone app stores to verify the ages of users, despite a phone call from the CEO of one of the world's largest companies urging the governor to veto the legislation. Having secured the governor's blessing, Senate Bill 2420 by Republican Sen. Angela Paxton of McKinney will take effect in January. It will require operators of mobile phone app marketplaces, like Apple and Google, to limit access of app downloads to minors without parental consent. Tech companies will be required to use an industry-standard method to verify users' ages, which supporters say will protect kids from harmful content online. While the proposal has support from some industry giants, like social media companies Meta and X, iPhone manufacturer Apple has pushed back against the proposal. The company's chief executive, Tim Cook, personally called Abbott to urge him to veto the bill, the Wall Street Journal reported. Abbott signed it anyway. App store operators have argued that the bill would place onerous requirements on virtual storefronts while sparing developers. Others have shared concerns about privacy, as users would likely be required to provide personal information to prove their age. The signing comes as the Legislature contemplates other internet age-gating bills, like one that would bar minors from holding accounts on social media platforms. Incoming freshman and undergraduate transfer students of institutions of higher education would have to attend an "orientation on the institution's sexual harassment, sexual assault, dating violence, and stalking policy before or during the first semester or term in which the student is enrolled at the institution" under Senate Bill 500, which the House approved Tuesday. The House added amendments to the bill aimed at preventing suicide, reporting sex crimes and finding support organizations. The Senate will have to review those changes before the bill can advance to the governor's desk. This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Key highlights from Texas' legislative session with one week to go
