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.

• December 7
  • Senate Committee on Health & Human Services
  • Senate Committee on State Affairs CANCELED
• December 8
  • Senate Committee on Health & Human Services
  • Senate Committee on State Affairs

December 7
Senate Committee on Health & Human Services
Topics:
COVID-19: Examine clinical best practices, including therapeutics, for treating COVID-19 patients at each stage of the disease. Monitor the status of vaccine development and distribution.

• Curated Tracker of Treatment and Vaccine Development for COVID-19, Stanford Medicine, Stanford University, as of November 30, 2020
• COVID-19 Vaccine Information, Texas Department of State Health Services, last updated November 23, 2020
• Infectious Diseases Society of America Guidelines on the Treatment and Management of Patients with COVID-19, Infectious Diseases Society of America, last updated November 22, 2020
• Coronavirus (COVID-19) Clinical Guidance Repository, Association of American Medical Colleges, last updated November 20, 2020
• COVID-19 Treatment Guidelines, National Institutes of Health, last updated November 18, 2020
• COVID-19 Real-Time Learning Network (Clinical Guidelines & Guidance, Therapeutics & Interventions, Disease Manifestations & Complications, Vaccines & Immunity), Infectious Diseases Society of America
• Coronavirus: Operation Warp Speed, United States Department of Defense

COVID-19: Analyze the procedures for collecting, modeling, and reporting data on COVID-19 tests, cases, hospitalizations, and fatalities. Examine the role of state agencies, local governments, and private entities.

• COVID-19 Guidance for Hospital Reporting and FAQs: For Hospitals, Hospital Laboratory, and Acute Care Facility Data Reporting, United States Department of Health and Human Services, updated October 6, 2020
• "How a Glitchy Computer System Skewed Texas' Coronavirus Data and Hampered Its Pandemic Response," Texas Tribune, September 24, 2020
• Texas COVID-19 Data, Texas Department of State Health Services
• Coronavirus (COVID-19) (Surveillance and Data Analytics, COVID-19 Mathematical Modeling, About CDC COVID-19 Data), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
• UT Austin COVID-19 Modeling Consortium, The University of Texas at Austin
• COVID-19 Dashboard (Interactive Data), The University of Texas Health Sciences Center at Houston

Senate Committee on State Affairs CANCELED

Top

December 8
Senate Committee on Health & Human Services
Topic: COVID-19: Evaluate the effects of the COVID-19 public health emergency and the impact of the COVID-19 response on behavioral health, child abuse, family violence, long-term care residents, and delayed medical care.

• Chronic Disease Management During COVID-19 (Webinar), National Conference of State Legislatures, October 7, 2020
• "Uninsured Texans: Many More Lose Coverage in Pandemic," Fiscal Notes, Texas Comptroller of Pubic Accounts, October 2020
• Child Abuse and Neglect Risks During COVID-19, TexProtects, September 2020
• Trauma-Informed Strategies for Supporting Children and Youth in the Child Welfare System During COVID-19, Child Trends, September 2020
• "The Crushing Isolation of Nursing Homes During the Pandemic," Texas Tribune, August 14, 2020
• Strengthening Nursing Home Policy for the Postpandemic World: How Can We Improve Residents' Health Outcomes and Experiences?, The Commonwealth Fund, August 2020
• Finding Policy Responses to Rising Intimate Partner Violence During the Coronavirus Outbreak, Kaiser Family Foundation, June 11, 2020
• Projected Deaths of Despair from COVID-19, Well Being Trust, May 8, 2020

Senate Committee on State Affairs
Charge: Study how governmental entities use public funds for political lobbying purposes. Examine what types of governmental entities use public funds for lobbying purposes. Make recommendations to protect taxpayers from paying for lobbyists who may not represent the taxpayers’ interests.

• Legislators' Guide to the Issues 2021-2022: Taxpayer-Funded Lobbying, Texas Public Policy Foundation, September 24, 2020
• Limiting Public Funds for Lobbying, National Conference of State Legislatures, August 27, 2020
• Lobbying in Texas: A Guide to the Texas Law, Texas Ethics Commission, revised January 1, 2020

Charge: Study and recommend ways Texas can further protect the lives of the unborn, including fetal heartbeat legislation and any other law or regulation that protects life.

• State Legislation Tracker: Major Developments in Sexual & Reproductive Health (Abortion), Guttmacher Institute, as of November 15, 2020
• Alternatives to Abortion, As Required by 2020-21 General Appropriations Act, House Bill 1, 86th Legislature, Regular Session, 2019 (Article II, Health and Human Services Commission, Rider 80), Texas Health and Human Services Commission, December 2019
• State Laws on Fetal Homicide and Penalty-Enhancement for Crimes Against Pregnant Women, National Conference of State Legislatures, May 1, 2018
• Interim Report to the 85th Legislature (Charge 1B – Wrongful Birth), Texas Senate Committee on Health and Human Services, November 2016

November 30
Legislative Budget Board
Topic: Report and testimony from the Comptroller of Public Accounts regarding the financial condition of this state as required by Section 322.003(f) of the Government Code

Topic: Review and adopt the items of information required to set the Article VIII constitutional limit on certain appropriations for the 2022-23 biennium

• Meeting Materials
• Technical Memorandum

Legislative Reference Library Board
Topic: Discuss and take action on rules for Legislative Reference Library in accordance with Section 324.007(d), Government Code

House Committee Resources: Corrections
The committee has requested written submissions on the following topics. Below are resources related to those topics.

House Committee on Corrections
Charge 1: Monitor the agencies and programs under the Committee's jurisdiction and oversee the implementation of relevant legislation passed by the 86th Legislature. Conduct active oversight of all associated rulemaking and other governmental actions taken to ensure intended legislative outcome of all legislation, including the following:

• HB 374, which relates to meetings or visits between a defendant on community supervision and a supervision officer. Monitor community supervision and corrections department rules regarding the scheduling of meetings or visits with a defendant placed on community supervision. Examine the process by which community supervision and corrections departments implement newly adopted policies.
  • Community Supervision in Texas (Fact Sheet), Texas Department of Criminal Justice, Community Justice Assistance Division, September 2019
• HB 650 and HB 3227, which relate to the welfare of confined females within the Texas Department of Criminal Justice (TDCJ). Monitor TDCJ rules regulating treatment of incarcerated women. Examine the process by which the department facilitates the educational, medical, and wellness needs of incarcerated pregnant women.
  • 2019 Statistical Report, Texas Department of Criminal Justice
• HB 1191, which relates to an annual report concerning the number of inmates who have been in the conservatorship of a state agency responsible for providing child protective services. Monitor the TDCJ's collection of statistical information concerning the total number of inmates who have at any time been in the conservatorship of a state agency responsible for providing child protective services.
  • Offenders Received Who Have Been in the Conservatorship of Child Protective Services: Fiscal Year 2019 Report, Texas Department of Criminal Justice
• SB 1147, which relates to conditions of community supervision for certain driving while intoxicated offenses. Monitor the implementation of the legislation and provide recommendations to improve access to treatment for defendants convicted of driving while intoxicated.
  • 2019 Statistical Report, Texas Department of Criminal Justice

House Committee on Corrections
Charge 2: Examine gaps in services and assess efforts to connect justice-involved veterans, senior citizens, and homeless populations to services while incarcerated and after release at both the local and state levels. Specifically, the committee should evaluate training and technical assistance provided by the Texas Veterans Commission to criminal justice agencies.

• House Committee Resources: Defense & Veterans' Affairs (Blog — Charge 4), Legislative Reference Library, November 2, 2020
• Texas Coordinating Council for Veterans Services Fifth Report (Criminal Justice Workgroup), Texas Coordinating Council for Veterans Services, Texas Veterans Commission, October 1, 2020
• Key Studies and Data About How Legal Aid Helps Veterans, The Justice in Government Project, American University, last updated September 24, 2020

House Committee on Corrections
Charge 3: Examine the current parole revocation warrant ("blue warrant") procedure. Specifically, the committee should consider the monetary costs to the counties; using Risk Assessment Instruments and the Offense Severity Scale to evaluate static and dynamic factors associated with an offender's record in order to escalate high-risk revocation offenders to the Department of Public Safety for immediate detention; and creating an online list providing the number of outstanding "blue warrants" pending per county.

• Parole Guidelines (Brochure, Parole Guidelines Score), Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles, revised September 25, 2020
• Forecasting Success: Using the Texas Risk Assessment System to Predict Early Discharge in a Large Sample of High, Moderate, and Low Risk Offenders (Thesis), University of Texas at Arlington, May 2020
• Interim Report to the 86th Texas Legislature (Charge 7 – Parole guidelines and assessments), House Committee on Corrections, November 2018
• The Cost of County Government: 2016 Unfunded Mandates Survey (County Jails: Blue Warrant Inmates), Texas Association of Counties, May 2017
• Legislative Budget Board Staff Reports (Costs of technical parole revocations), Legislative Budget Board, January 2017
• Parole Revocation Process, Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles
• Texas Government Code §§ 508.251-508.256, Warrants (Chapter 508. Parole and Mandatory Supervision)

House Committee on Corrections
Charge 4: Evaluate funding provided to the TDCJ for the repair, maintenance, and upgrade of prison facilities. Determine areas of the facilities that are in most need of repair, maintenance, or upgrade and examine the costs associated with such repairs, maintenance, or upgrades. Examine the Correctional Managed Health Care Committee's administration of Hepatitis C treatment and procedures. Review the Community Justice Assistance Division's current compliance practices and examine current funding formulas for adult probation departments. Study the TDCJ's ownership of real property not being used for prison facilities, including the amount of property owned and its highest and best use.

• "The Evolution of Health Care in the Texas Correctional System and the Impact of COVID-19," Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings, October 12, 2020
• Legislative Appropriations Request for Fiscal Years 2022-2023 (Institutional Operations and Maintenance, Correctional Managed Health Care), Texas Department of Criminal Justice, October 9, 2020
• Agenda (Hepatitis C), Texas Department of Criminal Justice, Correctional Managed Health Care Committee, September 16, 2020
• Real Property Evaluation Reports (Includes Texas Department of Criminal Justice), Texas General Land Office, September 2020
• Texas Progressive Interventions and Sanctions Bench Manual: 2020, Texas Department of Criminal Justice, Community Justice Assistance Division, July 2020
• Fiscal Size-Up: 2020-21 Biennium (Department of Criminal Justice), Legislative Budget Board, May 2020
• 2019 Statistical Report, Texas Department of Criminal Justice
• Interim Report (Charge 7 – Corrections, adult probation funding), Senate Finance Committee, November 2018

House Committee on Corrections
Charge 5: Monitor the State Auditor's review of agencies and programs under the committee's jurisdiction.

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 General Investigating
• Senate Committee on Senate Chamber Review

November 23
House Committee on General Investigating (Dallas)
The committee will meet for consideration of, and possible action on, a complaint received by the committee under House Rule 15 and Housekeeping Resolution Article 9.

Under Article 9.03(j), Housekeeping Resolution, and Committee Rule 12, all committee proceedings on a complaint are completely confidential.

The committee may enter into an executive session to consider any matter authorized to be considered in an executive session under Subchapter B, Chapter 301, Government Code, the Rules of the House of Representatives, the Housekeeping Resolution, and the committee's rules.

Senate Committee on Senate Chamber Review
Topic: Invited testimony on the history and procedure related to the placement of art and other decor in the Texas Senate Chamber

• The Texas Capitol: Symbol of Accomplishment (Art in the Capitol), 5th edition, Texas Legislative Council, 1990
• Capitol Artwork Gallery, State Preservation Board
• Capitol Art, Senate: The Upper House of State Government, Bob Bullock Texas State History Museum
• 13 Texas Administrative Code § 111.17, Capitol Collections Policy, and 13 Texas Administrative Code § 111.18, Capitol Collections Management Manual, State Preservation Board

House Committee Resources: Judiciary & Civil Jurisprudence

The committee has requested written submissions on the following topics. Below are resources related to those topics.

House Committee on Judiciary & Civil Jurisprudence

Charge 1: Monitor the agencies and programs under the Committee's jurisdiction and oversee the implementation of relevant legislation passed by the 86th Legislature. Conduct active oversight of all associated rulemaking and other governmental actions taken to ensure intended legislative outcome of all legislation, including the following:

• HB 2899, which specifies that highway construction contractors are not liable for design defects. Investigate whether expansion of those policies to other areas of public/private contracting is in the best interest of the state.
• HB 3809, which raises the statute of limitations for suit for injuries from a sexual assault of a child from 15 years to 30 years. Study and deliberate ways to enhance protections for victims of sexual abuse. Review other Texas laws relating to reporting and investigating incidents of workplace sexual harassment. Make recommendations to remove barriers to reporting and investigating incidents of sexual harassment and to make improvements to existing policies where necessary.
  • Sexual Assault Survivors' Task Force: Biennial Report to the Texas Legislature, Office of the Texas Governor, November 2020
  • 86th Texas Legislative Session Update: Sexual Assault Reform: Updates from the Texas Capitol, Texas Association Against Sexual Assault, October 2019
  • Interim Report to the 86th Texas Legislature (Charge 5 – Sexual Assault), House Committee on Criminal Jurisprudence, January 2019
• HB 4531, which authorizes adults under guardianship to consent to forensic medical examination protocols. Monitor the impact of the legislation on the prevention, investigation, and prosecution of sexual assault, and study the impact on other related offenses and the treatment and services provided to victims of those offenses.
  • "Texas Law Opens Doors for Sexual Assault Victims with Disabilities," The SAFE Alliance, March 17, 2020
  • 86th Texas Legislative Session Update: Sexual Assault Reform: Updates from the Texas Capitol, Texas Association Against Sexual Assault, October 2019
• SB 2342, which increases the amount in controversy for certain courts and expedited proceedings and makes reforms to jury requirements in order to improve access to courts. Review the impact of the legislation on the administration of justice and access to courts for Texas citizens.

Charge 2: Study opportunities to modernize and improve local and statewide data collection throughout the criminal justice system in Texas, including improving the collection and reporting of court records, to promote transparency and ensure uniform data collection processes. 

• "Measuring 'Access to Justice' in the Rush to Digitize," 88 Fordham Law Review 2381 (May 2020)
• Study on Record Retention, Availability and Access of Records Regarding Fine-Only Misdemeanors, As Directed by SB 47, 85th Legislature, Texas Office of Court Administration, January 2019
• Court Data: Open, With Care, Conference of State Court Administrators, 2019
• Fostering Innovation in the U.S. Court System: Identifying High-Priority Technology and Other Needs for Improving Court Operations and Outcomes, Priority Criminal Justice Needs Initiative, RAND Corporation, 2016
• Civil Legal System Modernization, Pew Charitable Trusts
• Statistics & Other Data, Texas Office of Court Administration

Charge 3: Study the Rule Against Perpetuities as used by trusts. Examine whether statutory changes are necessary and appropriate to make Texas more competitive and keep trust capital and estate planning businesses in Texas.

• "Of Piketty and Perpetuities: Dynastic Wealth in the Twenty-First Century (and Beyond)," 60 Boston College Law Review 145 (January 2019)
• Bill Analysis (H.B. 3744, 86th Legislature, R.S. (2019)), House Committee on Judiciary and Civil Jurisprudence
• "A Modern Guide to the Modifications of the Rule Against Perpetuities in New York," 32 Touro Law Review 947 (2016) 
• "Who Killed the Rule Against Perpetuities?," 40 Pepperdine Law Review 1291 (2013)
• Texas Property Code § 112.036, Rule Against Perpetuities

Charge 4: Monitor the State Auditor's review of agencies and programs under the committee's jurisdiction.

In this weekly post, we feature helpful research tools and recent articles of interest to the legislative community.

• Search for state legislation related to student loans. (National Conference of State Legislators, November 2, 2020)
• Track state vaccination plans for addressing the COVID-19 pandemic. (Council of State Governments, ©2020)
• Review safe holiday gathering activities as determined by doctors. (Texas Medical Association, November 17, 2020)
• Keep your pets safe over the winter holidays. (American Veterinary Medical Association, accessed November 19, 2020)

Librarians review and select articles from more than 1,000 print and online sources to compile a weekly annotated list of Current Articles of interest to the legislative community. View this week's Current Articles.

Members of the Texas legislative community may request articles by using our online form or by calling 512-463-1252.

In this weekly post, we feature helpful research tools and recent articles of interest to the legislative community.

• In-Person and Online Learning Go Together (Policy Brief), Stanford Institute for Economic Policy Research, August 2020
• Virtual School Policies (Policy Snapshot), Education Commission of the States, December 2019
• Report to the 83rd Legislature (Charge 3 – Virtual schools), Senate Committee on Education, January 2013
• COVID-19 Support: Texas Home Learning, Texas Education Agency
• Texas Virtual School Network, Texas Education Agency

• "Governor Abbott, TEA [Texas Education Agency] Establish Targeted Education Funds for Families of Students with Cognitive Disabilities (Press Release)," Office of the Texas Governor, October 21, 2020
• Letter from Laurie VanderPloeg, Director, Office of Special Education Programs, United States Department of Education, to the Honorable Mike Morath, Commissioner, Texas Education Agency (Includes an enclosure – OSEP's Analysis of the Texas Education Agency's Implementation of its Corrective Action Response), October 19, 2020
• Annual State Application Under Part B of the Individuals with Disabilities Act as Amended in 2004 for Federal Fiscal Year 2019, Texas Education Agency, May 17, 2019
• Special Education: Varied State Criteria May Contribute to Differences in Percentages of Children Served, United States Government Accountability Office, April 2019
• House Bill 2130: Study of Statewide Assessment Program in Relation to Students in Special Education Programs (Report to the Texas Legislature), Texas Education Agency, January 30, 2019
• Report to the Governor of Texas and Texas Legislature, Continuing Advisory Committee for Special Education, January 2019
• Letter from Mike Morath, Commissioner of Education, Texas Education Agency to Laurie VanderPloeg, Director, Office of Special Education Programs, United States Department of Education (Includes documentation related to the Texas Education Agency's implementation of the Corrective Action Response), December 21, 2018
• Letter from Ruth E. Ryder, Acting Director, Office of Special Education Programs, United States Department of Education, to the Honorable Mike Morath, Commissioner, Texas Education Agency (Response to the Texas Education Agency Corrective Action Response), October 19, 2018
• Special Education Strategic Plan, Texas Education Agency, April 23, 2018

• House Bill 3, relating to public school finance and public education.
  • There's a New School Finance Law in Texas…Now What?, Center for Public Policy Priorities, March 2020
  • HB 3 Implementation Update (Presentation to House Committee on Public Education), Texas Education Agency, October 28, 2019
  • Minimum Salary Schedule Increase Pursuant to House Bill 3 (HB3) and House Bill 3 (HB3) Implementation: Salary Increases (Correspondence to the Administrator Addressed), Texas Education Agency, June 11, 2019
  • HB 3 by Huberty: A True School Finance Overhaul, Texas Taxpayers and Research Association, June 2019
  • House Bill 3, Texas Education Agency
• House Bill 3906, relating to the assessment of public school students, including the development and administration of assessment instruments, and technology permitted for use by students.
  • House Bill 3906, Texas Education Agency

• "Will the Pandemic Change the Way We Deliver K-12 Education?," State Legislatures, National Conference of State Legislatures, October 6, 2020
• Learning in Real Time: How Charter Schools Serve Students During COVID-19 Closures, National Alliance for Public Charter Schools, August 2020
• COVID-19: Education Bill Tracking Database, National Conference of State Legislatures, July 17, 2020
• Public Education's Response to the Coronavirus (COVID-19) Pandemic, National Conference of State Legislatures, May 4, 2020
• COVID-19 Pandemic (COVID-19 Outline Series; State Legislative Development on Key Issues: Assessments and Accountability, Finance, In-Person Learning, Student Health and Wellness, Student Transitions, Teachers, and Virtual/Hybrid Learning), Education Commission of the States

In this weekly post, we feature helpful research tools and recent articles of interest to the legislative community.