87th Legislature, 2nd Called Session Statistics

The following bill statistics were calculated on August 31, 2021, at 9:00 a.m. The numbers will continue to change as the special session progresses.

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On September 1, 2021, 666 bills passed during the 87th Legislature will take effect. In addition, provisions of 5 bills passed during the 86th Legislature will become effective.

Sections of bills passed during the 84th Legislature also will take effect on September 1.

To keep up with new laws throughout the year, check the Library's list of bill effective dates.

This entry was posted on August 31, 2021 at 1:10 PM and has received 1340 views. Print this entry.

The Library is continually adding new books to its collection. Below are the titles from our August 2021 New & Noteworthy list.

Check out and delivery of New & Noteworthy titles is available to legislative staff in Capitol and District offices. To arrange check out and delivery of any of these items, you can submit an online request through the New & Noteworthy page on our website, contact the library at 512-463-1252, or use our PDF request form.

1. Just Algorithms: Using Science to Reduce Incarceration and Inform a Jurisprudence of Risk
By Christopher Slobogin
Comments on the use of risk assessment instruments in the criminal justice system – statistical formulas that predict the likelihood a person will commit a crime in the future. Explains how risk algorithms work, the types of legal questions they should answer, and the criteria for judging whether they do so in a way that minimizes bias and respects human dignity. Provides examples of a number of these instruments to illustrate their diversity and nuances. Points out the author's shorter related publication Primer on Risk Assessment Instruments for Legal Decision-Makers.
Cambridge University Press, 2021, 182 pages
345.73 SL634J 2021

 

 

2. When the Lone Star Froze Over - Winter Storm Uri and the Lived Experiences of Texas Low-Income Communities
By Texas Energy Poverty Research Institute
Details how Texans, particularly low-income individuals, were impacted by the February 2021 winter storm that caused 4.5 million households to lose electricity when temperatures fell below freezing. Discusses the failure of the electrical grid, the resulting increase in electricity market rates, and the unexpected consequences of the storm on low-income families, many who were already struggling with energy cost burdens. Addresses the 87th Legislature's actions following the storm, as well as regulatory actions taken by the Public Utility Commission of Texas.
Texas Energy Poverty Research Institute, 2021, 18 pages
976.4 EN56W 2021

 

 

3. Texas Supreme Court Justice Bob Gammage: A Jurisprudence of Rights and Liberties
By John C. Domino
Examines Justice Bob Gammage's service on the Texas Supreme Court during a tumultuous period of judicial history (1991-1995), including the debate on judicial campaigns and contributions, changes in the partisan and ideological composition of Texas courts, and the birth of the judicial reform movement. Discusses Gammage's terms in the Texas Legislature from the 62nd through 64th Legislatures (1971-1976), particularly his role in the Constitutional Convention of 1974.
Lexington Books, 2020, 273 pages
347.764 D671T 2020

 

 

4. The Rise and Fall of the Voting Rights Act
By Charles S. Bullock III, Ronald Keith Gaddie, and Justin J. Wert
Traces the Voting Rights Act from its inception in 1965 through the Supreme Court's 2013 decision in Shelby County v. Holder, analyzing the evolving legislation and the future of voting rights in the United States. Discusses redistricting, preclearance review, voter identification laws, and voter participation and registration in Texas. Explores potential next steps after the Shelby County ruling, including proposals to restore the preclearance process.
University of Oklahoma Press, 2016, 240 pages
342.73072 B876R 2016

 

 

5. Rotten Boroughs, Political Thickets, and Legislative Donnybrooks: Redistricting in Texas
By Gary A. Keith
Presents legal, political, and historical aspects of redistricting in Texas. Brings together essays on the process of redistricting since 1965 from attorneys, political scientists, and practitioners. Includes an essay by former state legislator and U.S. Congressman Craig A. Washington, on his experiences with redistricting in the Texas Legislature from the 1970s to the 1990s.
University of Texas Press, 2013, 202 pages
328.3345 R748 2013

 

 

6. The Evolution of American Legislatures: Colonies, Territories, and States, 1619-2009
By Peverill Squire
Explores how state legislatures have evolved in the United States and speculates how they could change in the future. Addresses the establishment of colonial assemblies and territorial legislatures as well as the institutional history of state legislatures and their professionalization since 1900. Discusses the evolution of legislative procedures and rules, including quorum standards for conducting legislative business in Texas and other states.
University of Michigan Press, 2012, 440 pages
328.73 SQ58E 2012

 

This entry was posted on August 30, 2021 at 3:15 PM and has received 902 views. Print this entry.

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

• Review a proposed federal rule related to health care price transparency, patient safety, and access to emergency care in rural areas. (Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, July 19, 2021)
• Consider public opinion on whether the government should restrict misinformation online. (Pew Research Center, August 18, 2021)
• Read about the newly-established Broadband Development Office. (Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts, August 2, 2021)
• Find answers to common questions about Regeneron's monoclonal antibodies treatment for some COVID-19 infections. (U.S. Food and Drug Administration, July 30, 2021)

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.

This entry was posted on August 26, 2021 at 3:15 PM and has received 701 views. Print this entry.

Looking for signed copies of bills? Here are some tips.
 

• Signed Copies of Bills
  • 87th Legislative Session
  • 83rd — 86th Legislative Sessions
  • 78th — 86th Legislative Sessions
  • Prior to the 78th Legislative Session

Signed Copies of Bills

The signing deadline for the 87th Regular Session was Sunday, June 20.

Instructions on how to locate signed copies of bills and concurrent resolutions are available on the Legislative Reference Library (LRL) website. Click on the Signed copies of bills link located in the drop-down menu of the Legislation tab on our homepage.




87th Legislative Session

Bills and concurrent resolutions from the 87th Legislative Session that the governor signed were sent to the Secretary of State's office. These bills are available on the Bills and Resolutions page of the Secretary of State's website. Click on legislative bills on the drop-down menu under the Forms & Other Services tab.

 

On the Bills and Resolution page, use the drop-down menu to select one of the following types of bills: House Bills, House Concurrent Resolutions, House Joint Resolutions, Senate Bills, Senate Concurrent Resolutions, or Senate Joint Resolutions.

 

Using the Bill Lookup option on the Texas Legislature Online (TLO), you can find out whether a bill was signed by the governor or filed without the governor's signature by checking the Actions table. If a bill passed but was filed without the governor's signature, you will see the action, "Filed without the governor's signature." Bills filed without the governor's signature are also sent to the Secretary of State with the signatures of Speaker of the House and the President of the Senate.


On TLO, you can also view lists of bills based on a specific action by the governor.

1. On TLO's homepage, click on the "Reports" link under Additional searches.

 

2. The "General Reports" section has three lists of bills by the governor's action.

 

83rd — 86th Legislative Sessions

Signed copies of bills and concurrent resolutions enacted during the 83rd through the 86th Legislative Sessions (2013—2019) are available through the Legislative Archive System on the library's website.

For example, to obtain a signed copy of HB 36, 86th R.S. (2019), look for the "Signed legislation" link on the History page of the bill file.




78th — 86th Legislative Sessions

The University of North Texas Libraries provides access to images of signed copies of bills from the 78th throught the 86th Regular Sessions (2003—2019) in their Texas Laws and Resolutions Archive in The Portal to Texas History.


Prior to the 78th Legislative Session

Copies of signed bills older than the 78th Regular Session (2003) are available through the Texas State Library and Archives Commission (TSLAC). Digitized copies of signed bills from the 1st through the 18th Legislative Sessions (1846—1883) are available in TSLAC's Texas Digital Archive. Please call (512) 463-5480 for more information about accessing copies of signed bills.

 

This entry was posted on August 24, 2021 at 4:00 PM and has received 1079 views. Print this entry.

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

• Calculate the living wage for your area. (Dr. Amy K. Glasmeier and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, ©2021)
• Read about CEO pay. (Economic Policy Institute, August 10, 2021)
• Find new hunting regulations effective September 1, 2021. (Texas Parks & Wildlife Department, August 18, 2021)
• Review redistricting data for Texas counties and places. (Texas Demographic Center, accessed August 18, 2021)

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.

This entry was posted on August 19, 2021 at 3:15 PM and has received 540 views. Print this entry.

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

• Consider whether the U.S. Supreme Court will overturn Roe v. Wade. (The Heritage Foundation, August 11, 2021)
• Track population growth among the 50 states. (Pew Charitable Trusts, updated July 27, 2021)
• Read about recent efforts by state legislatures to limit public health authority. (Network for Public Health Law, May 2021)
• Review remote work and in-person work accomodations for employees with disabilities. (Petrie-Flom Center at Harvard Law School, August 4, 2021)
• Explore the state of primary care in all 254 Texas counties. (Texas Primary Care Consortium, accessed August 11, 2021)

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.

This entry was posted on August 12, 2021 at 3:15 PM and has received 390 views. Print this entry.

87th Legislature, 1st Called Session Statistics

The following bill statistics were calculated on August 9, 2021.

This entry was posted on August 9, 2021 at 4:10 PM and has received 524 views. Print this entry.

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

• Find information related to the Emergency Rental Assistance Program. (U.S. Department of the Treasury, updated June 24, 2021)
• Track the progress of the infrastructure bill through the U.S. Congress. (Congress.gov, accessed August 4, 2021)
• Review tips to avoid heat-related illnesses. (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, June 30, 2021)
• Report feeling an earthquake and explore data and maps related to earthquakes. (U.S. Geological Survey, accessed August 4, 2021)

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.

This entry was posted on August 5, 2021 at 3:15 PM and has received 699 views. Print this entry.

The Legislative Reference Library (LRL) staff reviews the text of all bills that become law to determine their effective dates and enters the information into Texas Legislature Online (TLO) and on the library's website.

Effective Dates on the LRL's Website

The library compiles a detailed list of bills and their effective dates following each regular and called session. The Effective Dates for Bills list for the 87th Legislature, Regular Session, is now available on the LRL's website.

 

Effective Dates on TLO

To find the effective date of a bill, look up the bill in TLO and see the "Last Action" field in the history window.

For example, the "Last Action" field for SB 2, 87th Legislature, Regular Session, indicates that the bill is effective immediately and includes the effective date.

 

Sometimes a bill becomes effective on a specific date other than the beginning of the fiscal year (i.e., September 1) or the beginning of the calendar year (i.e., January 1). In these cases, the effective date is not stated in the "Last Action" field, but instead is indicated further down the page in the Actions table.

For example, the effective date for SB 197, 87th Legislature, Regular Session, is provided in the "Comment" column of the last action in the Actions table.

 

In some cases, sections of a bill may have different effective dates. These other effective dates are provided in the "Remarks" field.

For example, the "Last Action" field for HB 766, 87th Legislature, Regular Session, refers to the comments in the "Remarks" field because Section 2 of the bill has a different effective date from the rest of the bill.

 

You can also view lists of bills by effective date on TLO.

1. On TLO's homepage, click on the "Reports" link under Additional Searches.

 

2. The "General Reports" section has links to four lists of bills by effective date.

 

For House and Senate bills from the 87th Regular Session (2021), the two largest groupings are:

• Bills Effective Immediately: 329
• Bills Effective on September 1st: 666

 

For more information about bill effective dates, see the Section 3.14 of the Texas Legislative Council Drafting Manual.

This entry was posted on August 2, 2021 at 12:20 PM and has received 1241 views. Print this entry.