FILED BILLS FOR THE 83RD TEXAS LEGISLATIVE SESSION (PART III)
In previous articles, I began outlining several of the bills which were filed for the 83rd Texas Legislative Session. Over the past several months members and their staff having been working on drafting and filing bills in the House and the Senate. In this week’s article I am going to continue outlining some of those bills which have been filed, leading up to the March 8th filing deadline.
Since the pre-filing period began on November 12, 2012, 3,347 bills, joint resolutions, and concurrent resolutions have been filed with the Chief Clerk of the House and the Secretary of the Senate’s respective offices. Of the 3,347 bills, joint resolutions, and concurrent resolutions which have been filed, 2,298 have been filed with the Chief Clerk of the House and 1,049 have been filed with the Secretary of the Senate’s offices. Below is a selection of those House bills which have been filed to-date:
• HB 508 is relating to certain laws relating to carrying concealed handguns on property owned or leased by a governmental entity; creating an offense.
• HB 523 establishes a prohibition relating to the purchase of energy drinks under the supplemental nutrition assistance program.
• HB 548 is relating to an exemption from ad valorem taxation of the residence homestead of the surviving spouse of a member of the armed services of the United States who is killed in action.
• HB 561 is concerning an exemption for land owned by a school from the additional tax imposed on the change of use of land appraised for ad valorem tax purposes as qualified open-space land.
• HB 568 relates to the creation of a select committee to evaluate the effects of reduction in or elimination of federal funding on the state budget due to federal fiscal policy.
• HB 572 is relating the issuance to veterans of specially marked licenses to carry a concealed handgun and specially marked personal identification certificates.
• HB 583 addresses the impoundment of a motor vehicle operated without financial responsibility and involved in an accident or traffic violation.
• HB 316 is relating the adoption of certain voting procedures necessary to implement the federal Military and Overseas Voter Empowerment Act, including the modification of certain election deadlines.
• HB 614 seeks to provide for the inclusion of the emblem of the veteran’s branch of service on Disabled Veteran specialty license plates.
Below is a selection of the Senate bills which have been filed to-date:
• SB 226 is relating to the operation of a golf cart or utility vehicle on a public highway in certain counties.
• SB 255 seeks to address the creation of a voluntary consumer-directed health plan for certain individuals eligible to participate in the group benefits program provided under the Texas Employees Group Benefits Act and their qualified dependents.
• SB 258 related to the authority of a psychologist to delegate the provision of certain care to a person under the psychologist’s supervision, including a person training to become a psychologist.
• SB 270 is relating to a limited exception to the prohibition on releasing personal information about a juror collected during the jury selection process in certain cases.
• SB 272 addresses water well recordkeeping and reporting requirements, including the production, use, and withdrawal of groundwater.
The filed bills for the 83rd (R) legislative session are available for the public to view at Texas State Capitol.
If you have questions or comments regarding any of the filed bills mentioned in this article, please do not hesitate to call my Capitol or District Office. As always, my offices are available at any time to assist with questions, concerns or comments (Capitol Office, 512-463-0672; District Office, 361-949-4603).
– State Representative Todd Hunter, District 32
Rep. Hunter currently represents Part of Nueces County. He can be contacted at todd.hunter@house.state.tx.us or at 512-463-0672.
