Today's Committee Meetings on the LRL website is a calendar of interim committee hearings with links to agendas. Below are resources related to upcoming Interim Hearings.
House Committee on Urban Affairs (Houston)
Topic: Short- and long-term housing needs and related issues resulting from Hurricane Harvey and associated flooding
- Action Plans and Amendments (State of Texas Plan for Disaster Recovery: Hurricane Harvey – Round 1, State of Texas Plan for Disaster Recovery: Hurricane Harvey, and amendments), Texas General Land Office, Community Development & Revitalization Program, 2018
- Recovery Tracker, The Governor's Commission to Rebuild Texas, Updated May 4, 2018
- Interim Hearings – Week of January 15, 2018, House Committee on Urban Affairs, January 18, Legislative Reference Library, January 8, 2018
Senate Committee on Higher Education
Charge: Funding models
- Higher Education Funding: Overview of Higher Education Institutions' Non-Formula Support Item Funding (Presented to Joint Interim Committee on Higher Education Formula Funding), Legislative Budget Board, February 2018
- Higher Education Funding: Overview of Formula Funding for All Institution Types, Small Institution Supplement Funding & the Available University Fund and Higher Education Fund (Presented to Joint Interim Committee on Higher Education Formula Funding), Legislative Budget Board, February 2018
- Higher Education Funding Supplemental Materials, Legislative Budget Board, February 2018
- Summary of Higher Education Non-formula Support Items, Legislative Budget Board, February 2018
- Non-Formula Support Items Funding with Objectives and Descriptions, Legislative Budget Board, February 2018
- The Federal-State Higher Education Partnership: How States Manage Their Roles, Urban Institute, May 2017
- Ten Year Formula Funding History (Fund distribution, appropriations by institution), Legislative Budget Board, October 2016
- Financing Public Higher Education in Texas: Legislative Primer, Legislative Budget Board, August 2016
- Performance-Based Funding for Higher Education, National Conference of State Legislatures, July 31, 2015
- Formula Funding, Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board
Senate Committee on Veteran Affairs & Border Security
Charge: Veterans health
- The Veterans Choice Program (VCP): Program Implementation, Congressional Research Service, April 20, 2018
- Report on the Mental Health Program for Veterans, Texas Health and Human Services Commission, November 2017
- "VA Releases Suicide Data by State" (Press Release) and Texas Veteran Suicide Data Sheet, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, September 15, 2017
- Interim Report to the 85th Texas Legislature (Public Hearing #6: Substance Abuse, Homelessness, and Veterans), House Select Committee on Mental Health, December 2016
- Interim Report (Charge 1 – Choice Act), Senate Committee on Veteran Affairs and Military Installations, November 2016
- Veterans Choice Program (VCP), VHA Office of Community Care, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs
- Mental Health: Suicide (Briefs, reports, and other resources), Health Services Research & Development, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs
- Pain Management, Office of Research & Development, Department of Veterans Affairs
Charge: State-delivered federal services
- Texas Veterans App (Presentation to Task Force on Military & Veterans Affairs, National Conference of State Legislatures), Texas Health and Human Services Commission, August 6, 2017
- Interim Report (Charge 1 – Strike force teams), Senate Committee on Veteran Affairs and Military Installations, November 2016
- Report and Recommendations to the 84th Texas Legislature (Charge 3 – Strike force teams), Senate Committee on Veteran Affairs and Military Installations, December 2014
- Texas Veterans App, TexVet.org
- Health Care Advocacy Program, Texas Veterans Commission
House Committee on Criminal Jurisprudence
Charge 4: Prosecutorial misconduct and ineffective assistance of defense counsel
- "New Report Finds — Surprise — Indigent Defense Attorneys Shouldn't Be Under the Control of the State Prison System," Texas Observer, January 11, 2018
- Review of the Operations of State Counsel for Offenders: Report by the State Bar of Texas Legal Services to the Poor in Criminal Matters Committee, Approved for publication December 8, 2017
- "Prosecutorial Misconduct and the Role of Discipline," 80 Texas Bar Journal 430 (July 2017)
- Fair Defense Laws 2017–2019, Texas Indigent Defense Commission, 2017
- Gideon at 50: A Three-Part Examination of Indigent Defense in America (Part I – Rationing Justice: The Underfunding of Assigned Counsel Systems; Part II – Redefining Indigence: Financial Eligibility Guidelines for Assigned Counsel; Part III – Representation in All Criminal Prosecutions: The Right to Counsel in State Courts), National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, 2013–2016
Charge 5: Legal framework surrounding sexual assault protections
- 85th Legislative Session Update, Texas Association Against Sexual Assault, 2017
- Sexual Assault Legal Advocacy Manual, Texas Association Against Sexual Assault, 2014
House Committee on Natural Resources (Brady)
Specific issue related to charge 3: Groundwater policy in Texas; g. emerging issues in groundwater and surface water interaction, in particular in areas of increasing competition for scarce resources
- Groundwater Valuation in Texas: The Comparable Transactions Method, Baker Institute for Public Policy, Rice University, March 20, 2018
- State Water Supply Enhancement Plan, Texas State Soil and Water Conservation Board, January 2017
- Priority Groundwater Management Areas and Groundwater Conservation Districts: Report to the 85th Texas Legislature, Texas Commission on Environmental Quality and Texas Water Development Board, January 2017
- 2017 State Water Plan (Amendments and documents, Chapter 6 – Water supplies), Texas Water Development Board, 2017
- Interim Report to the 85th Texas Legislature (Charge 1 – Ownership, production and transfer of surface water and groundwater), Senate Committee on Agriculture, Water & Rural Affairs, November 2016
- Reorganizing Groundwater Regulation in Texas, Bush School of Government & Public Service, Texas A&M University, 2016
- Sustainable Water Management in the Texas Oil and Gas Industry (Energy-related water issues), Atlantic Council, July 2014
- Ground Water Report to the Nation: A Call to Action (Section 11 – Groundwater and Alternative Water Supplies), Groundwater Protection Council, 2014
- Rules and Statutes (Groundwater management, water districts), Texas Water Development Board
Staff presentation and public testimony (links to Sunset Review Documents for 2018-2019 Review Cycle, 86th Legislative Session):
House Committee on Appropriations
Charge: Use of federal funds in response to Hurricane Harvey, federal funds and investment in infrastructure projects to reduce impact of future natural disasters
- State of Texas Plan for Disaster Recovery: Hurricane Harvey, Texas General Land Office, January 18, 2018
- Greater Houston Strategies for Flood Mitigation 1st Edition, Greater Houston Flood Mitigation Consortium, April 9, 2018
- Greater Houston Flood Mitigation Projects by Watershed, Greater Houston Flood Mitigation Consortium, April 5, 2018
- "Houston Surveys Post-Harvey Policy Landscape: The 'Bayou City' Considers Land Use Rules Changes," Land Lines, April 2018
- Preparedness, Response, and Rebuilding: Lessons from the 2017 Disasters (Testimony before the U.S. House Committee on Homeland Security), Reed Clay, Chief Operating Officer for Texas Governor Greg Abbott, March 15, 2018
- Chapter 19 - Flood Plain (Public comment draft), Houston City Council, February 13, 2018
- "A Storm to Remember: Hurricane Harvey and the Texas Economy," Fiscal Notes, Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts, February 2018
- Hurricane Harvey Contract Reporting and Oversight (Presented to House General Investigating and Ethics Committee), Legislative Budget Board, January 18, 2018
- "Gulf Coast Universities Team Up to Address Hurricane Resilience" (Press Release), University of Houston, December 13, 2017
- Top 20 Zip Codes for FEMA Assistance Applications Highlight Widespread Damage from Hurricane Harvey, Episcopal Health Foundation, November 20, 2017 [link question]
- Seeking Higher Ground: How to Break the Cycle of Repeated Flooding with Climate-Smart Flood Insurance Reforms, National Resources Defense Council, July 2017
- Interim Report to the 85th Texas Legislature, Joint Committee to Study a Coastal Barrier System, December 15, 2016
- Houston Recovers (City of Houston disaster recovery information and forms), City of Houston
- Ike Dike (Project description, resolutions, presentations, and FAQs), Texas A&M University, Galveston Campus
- Recovery Tracker, The Governor's Commission to Rebuild Texas
Charge: Texas Emissions Reduction Plan (TERP)
- Overview of the Texas Emission Reduction Plan Account, (Presented to the Senate Finance Committee), Legislative Budget Board, January 30, 2018
- Texas Emissions Reduction Plan Biennial Report (2015-2016), Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, December 2016
- Texas Emissions Reduction Plan, Texas Commission on Environmental Quality
- Texas Health and Safety Code Chapter 386, Texas Emissions Reduction Plan
Charge: Allocation of municipal solid waste disposal fee between Waste Management Account 0549 and Solid Waste Disposal Fee Account 5000
- GR Account 5000: Solid Waste Disposal Fees (Fiscal 2018), Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts
- GR Account 0549: Waste Management (Fiscal 2018), Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts
- Existing Texas Packaging Policy: Analysis and Recommendations, State of Texas Alliance for Recycling (STAR), January 2017
- Texas Health and Safety Code § 361.014, Use of Solid Waste Fee Revenue
- Texas Health and Safety Code § 361.132, Hazardous and Solid Waste Fees; Waste Management Account
Charge: Effectiveness of cost-recovery model as a method of finance for programs and organizations across state government
House Committee on House Administration
Topic: Select committee budgets
House Committee on Public Education
Charge: Research-based options for evaluating student achievement beyond standardized test scores; scope of the current Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS); Student Success Initiative testing
- "Is Test-Based Accountability Dead?," Education Next, Summer 2017
- Assessment Matters: Constructing Model State Systems to Replace Testing Overkill, FairTest National Center for Fair and Open Testing, October 2016
- Study of the Essential Knowledge and Skills Assessment Instruments, Texas Education Agency, April 2016
- The Influence of Teaching, Beyond Standardized Test Scores: Engagement, Mindsets, and Agency, The Achievement Gap Initiative at Harvard University, October 2015
- Student Success Initiative, Texas Education Agency
- Texas Education Code § 28.0211, Satisfactory Performance on Assessment Instruments Required; Accelerated instruction (Social promotion, Student Success Initiative, 5th and 8th graders must pass reading and math tests)
- Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills, Texas Education Agency
Charge: Public school programs for students with disabilities, with an emphasis on programs specializing in autism, dysgraphia, and dyslexia; implementation and funding of pilot programs authorized in HB 21 and TEA's compliance with SB 160, which prohibits special education student caps
- Special Education Strategic Plan, Texas Education Agency, April 23, 2018
- U.S. Department of Education Issues Findings in Texas Individuals with Disabilities Education Act Monitoring, U.S. Department of Education, January 11, 2018
- Diplomas That Matter: Ensuring Equity of Opportunity for Students with Disabilities, National Center on Educational Outcomes, November 2016
- Special Education (SPED) Representation (Percent of enrolled students who receive SPED; excerpt from the Performance-Based Monitoring Analysis System 2016 manual; 8.5% benchmark on special education enrollment), Texas Education Agency, September 12, 2016
- Commissioner's Rule Related to Autism Rule/Guidance Side–By–Side, Texas Statewide Leadership for Autism Training
- Dyslexia, Texas Education Agency
- Improving Special Education in Texas, Texas Education Agency
- Texas Education Code § 38.003, Screening and Treatment for Dyslexia and Related Disorders
Joint Legislative Oversight Committee on Health & Human Services Transition
Invited testimony
- Update on HHS Transformation (Presentation to the Transition Legislative Oversight Committee), Texas Health and Human Services Commission, December 6, 2017
- Report to the 85th Legislature, Health and Human Services Transition Legislative Oversight Committee, November 29, 2016
- Health and Human Services Transformation (Transition plan, timeline, Sunset process, and presentations), Texas Health and Human Services Commission
Staff presentation and public testimony (links to Sunset Review Documents for 2018-2019 Review Cycle, 86th Legislative Session):
- Finance Agencies
- River Authorities
Commission decisions
- Texas Veterans Commission
- Behavioral Health Boards
- Texas Medical Board
- Texas Historical Commission
