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.
September 13, 2022
House Committee on Energy Resources and House Committee on State Affairs (Joint)
Charge: Monitor the agencies and programs under the Committee's jurisdiction and oversee the implementation of relevant legislation passed by the 87th Legislature. Conduct active oversight of all associated rulemaking and other governmental actions taken to ensure the intended legislative outcome of all legislation, including the following:
- SB 3, relating to preparing for, preventing, and responding to weather emergencies and power outages. (Joint charge with Committee on State Affairs)
House Committee on Public Health
Charge: Monitor the agencies and programs under the Committee’s jurisdiction and oversee the implementation of relevant legislation passed by the 87th Legislature. Conduct active oversight of all associated rulemaking and other governmental actions taken to ensure the intended legislative outcome of all legislation, including the following:
- HB 4 relating to the provision and delivery of telemedicine and telehealth services; and
- HB 1616 relating to the Interstate Medical Licensure Compact
Charge: Study the impact of fentanyl-related overdoses and deaths in Texas. Evaluate existing data collection, dissemination, and mitigation strategies regarding opioid abuse in Texas. Make recommendations to improve coordinated prevention, education, treatment, and data-sharing.
- With National Data on Drug Overdoses Lacking, University of Texas Project Looks to Help Provide a Solution, Texas Tribune, July 5, 2022
- As Opioid Overdoses Surge, States Expand Treatment, National Conference of State Legislatures, May 17, 2022
- First Digital Platform to Track and Prevent Drug Overdoses in Texas Launches, The University of Texas at Austin, December 2, 2021
- Addressing Substance Use in Texas: Public Health Agency Action Plan, Texas Health and Human Services Commission and Texas Department of State Health Services, January 2020
- Agency Action Plan to Address Substance Abuse, Texas Department of State Health Services
- Death Rate Maps & Graphs, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
- Drug Overdose Deaths, Texas Department of State Health Services
- Provisional Drug Overdose Death Counts, National Center for Health Statistics
Charge: Study current telemedicine trends by assessing and making recommendations related to standardizing required documentation healthcare providers must obtain for consent for treatment, data collection, sharing and retention schedules, and providing telemedicine medical services to certain cancer patients receiving pain management services and supportive palliative care.
- National Survey Trends in Telehealth Use in 2021: Disparities in Utilization and Audio vs. Video Services, Office of Health Policy, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, February 1, 2022
- 2022 Interoperability Standards Advisory Reference Edition, Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology, January 10, 2022
- Removing Regulatory Barriers to Telehealth Before and After COVID-19, Brookings Institution, May 6, 2020
- Telemedicine in Texas, Texas Medical Association
- United States Core Data for Interoperability (USCDI), Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology
Senate Committee on Local Government
Charge: Affordable Housing: Study issues related to affordable housing, homelessness, and methods of providing and financing affordable housing. Make recommendations to improve transparency and accountability, as well as to better utilize existing federal, state, and local programs.
- Texas Housing Insight, Texas Real Estate Research Center, August 17, 2022
- The State of The Nation's Housing 2022, Joint Center for Housing Studies of Harvard University, June 22, 2022
- Housing Choice Plan, Texas Health and Human Services Commission, May 2022 revised
- The Gap: A Shortage of Affordable Homes, National Low Income Housing Coalition, April 2022
- Here's One Way States Are Boosting Affordable Housing, Stateline, March 2, 2022
- Housing Not Handcuffs 2021: State Law Supplement, National Homelessness Law Center, November 2021
- Housing Affordability and Homelessness in Texas, Fiscal Notes, Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts, March 2021
- Interim Report to the 86th Legislature (Charge 2 – Housing Affordability), Senate Committee on Intergovernmental Relations, November 2018
- Paycheck to Paycheck Database, National Housing Conference
Charge: Taxpayer Funded Lobbying: Study how governmental entities use public funds for political lobbying purposes. Examine what types of governmental entities use public funds for lobbying purposes and what level of transparency is available to the public. Make recommendations to protect taxpayers from paying for lobbyists who may not represent the taxpayers' interests.
- Limiting Public Funds for Lobbying, National Conference of State Legislatures, August 3, 2021
Charge: Extraterritorial Jurisdictions: Study issues related to municipal extraterritorial jurisdictions and annexation powers, including examining possible disannexation authority. Determine whether extraterritorial jurisdictions continue to provide value to their residents and make recommendations on equitable methods for disannexation.
- The Pursuit of Property in Texas: Municipal Annexation and Extraterritorial Jurisdiction, Texas Public Policy Foundation, December 2021
- Municipal Annexation in Texas, Texas Municipal League, updated July 2021
- Interim Report to the 86th Legislature (Charge 1 – ETJ Limitations and Notice), Senate Committee on Intergovernmental Relations, November 2018
Charge: Special Purpose Districts: Perform a comprehensive study on the powers and purposes of various special purpose districts and their associated legislative templates. Make recommendations to improve public transparency in operations of special purpose districts and associated legislative templates.
- Interim Report to the 86th Texas Legislature, House Committee on Special Purpose Districts, December 2018
- Invisible Government: Special Purpose Districts in Texas, Research Spotlight, Senate Research Center, October 2014
- Special Purpose District Sales and Use Tax, Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts
- Tax Rates and Levies (Special district rates and levies, 2017-2021), Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts
- Water District Database (WDD), Texas Commission on Environmental Quality
September 14, 2022
House Committee on Licensing & Administrative Procedures
Charge: Monitor agencies and programs under the Committee's jurisdiction and oversee the implementation of relevant legislation passed by the 87th Legislature. Conduct active oversight of all associated rulemaking and other governmental actions taken to ensure the intended legislative outcome of all legislation including:
- Oversight: Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission (TABC)
- Examine the impact of the dicamba herbicide on the implementation of HB 1957, relating to the labeling of wine as originating from an area of this state or with the name of a vineyard in this state.
- Facing Widespread Vine Death, Texas Vineyard Owners File Lawsuit Over Herbicide Drift, Wine Spectator, March 30, 2022
- Texas Wine and Grape Growers Association Responds to Dicamba Impact, Texas Wine and Grape Growers Association, June 21, 2021
- Herbicide Damage Survey for 2019, Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service, 2019
- Understanding and Recognizing Synthetic Auxin Damage in Grapes, Texas A&M Agriculture and Life Sciences, April 2017
House Committee on Public Health
Charge: Examine existing resources and available opportunities to strengthen the state’s nursing and other health professional workforce, including rural physicians and nurses.
- Nursing Workforce Reports, Texas Health and Human Services, updated August 17, 2022
- Going the Distance: Helping Rural Medicine on Its Hard Road to Better Health, Texas Medicine, August 2022
- Texas Physician Education Pipeline, As Required by Texas Health and Safety Code Section 105.009, Texas Health and Human Services, May 2022
- Nursing in Texas: Charting the State's Nursing Profession, Fiscal Notes, Texas Comptroller of Accounts, April 2022
- 2020 Trends, Distribution, and Demographics Fact Sheets (Health care professions), Texas Health and Human Services, updated October 26, 2021
- State Health Facts: Providers & Service Use (Data on the health care workforce and health care facilities, including hospitals, nursing homes, community health centers, and rural health centers), Kaiser Family Foundation
Charge: Assess ongoing challenges in the rural health care system and the impact of legislation and funding from the 87th regular and special sessions on strengthening rural health care and the sustainability of rural hospitals and health care providers. Evaluate federal regulations authorizing the creation of a Rural Emergency Hospital provider type and determine if promoting this type of facility could increase local access to care in rural areas of the state.
- Texas Rural Hospital Survey Results, Connected Nation Texas, May 11, 2022
- The Impact of COVID-19 on the Rural Health Care Landscape, Bipartisan Policy Center, May 2022
- Rural Emergency Hospital: Policy Brief and Recommendations to the Secretary, Department of Health and Human Services, October 2021
- Texas State Guide, Rural Health Information Hub, Last reviewed April 19, 2021
- Rural Emergency Hospital (REH) Model Summary, National Rural Health Association, April 12, 2021
- 2021-2022 Update to the Texas State Health Plan (Rural Health in Texas), Statewide Health Coordinating Council, March 2021
Senate Committee on Local Government
Charge: Property Tax Reform: Review the effect of Senate Bill 2 (86th Legislature), the Texas Property Tax Reform and Transparency Act of 2019, and related legislation passed by the 87th Legislature. Make recommendations for further property tax reform and relief.
- Interim Report to the 87th Legislature (Implementation Monitoring: SB 2), House Committee on Ways and Means, January 2021
- Interim Report, Senate Committee on Property Tax, November 2020
- Truth-in-Taxation: Tax Rate Adoption, Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts
Appraisal Reform: Review the implementation of Senate Bill 63, House Bill 988, and other related legislation passed by 87th Legislature. Make recommendations to ensure appraisal guidelines are effective and taxpayers have enforcement mechanisms.
- Interim Report, Senate Committee on Property Tax, November 2020
- Appraisal Protests and Appeals, Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts
- Valuing Property, Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts
Charge: Efficiency Audits: Study the concept of efficiency audits for cities, counties and special purpose districts and under what circumstances they should be performed. Evaluate whether efficiency audits provide Texans tools to combat wasteful government spending and report whether they are needed before local government tax ratification elections.
Senate Committee on Natural Resources & Economic Development
Charge: Natural Gas Storage: Study the economic benefits of expanding the state's underground natural gas storage capacity and infrastructure. Investigate and make recommendations for additional natural gas transportation opportunities.
- Underground Natural Gas Storage by All Operators, U.S. Energy Information Administration, August 31, 2022
- Underground Natural Gas Storage Capacity, U.S. Energy Information Administration, August 31, 2022
- Pipeline Projects Announced to Expand Permian Natural Gas Capacity, U.S. Energy Information Administration, August 4, 2022
- Gas Storage Statistics, Texas Railroad Commission, updated August 3, 2022
- Homeland Infrastructure Foundation-Level Data (HIFLD) - Natural Gas Storage Facilities, U.S. Department of Homeland Security
Monitoring: Monitor the implementation of legislation addressed by the Senate Committee on Natural Resources and Economic Development passed by the 87th Legislature, as well as relevant agencies and programs under the committee's jurisdiction. Specifically, make recommendations for any legislation needed to improve, enhance, or complete implementation of the following:
- House Bill 1284, Relating to the regulation of the injection and geologic storage of carbon dioxide in this state.
- House Bill 3973, Relating to a study on abandoned oil and gas wells in this state and the use of the oil and gas regulation and cleanup fund.
- The Rail Road Commission (RRC) will be providing the Committee with an update on their rules adoption pertaining to Senate Bill 3 (87R), relating to preparing for, preventing and responding to weather emergencies and power outages; increasing the amount of administrative and civil penalties. Public testimony will not be heard on the RRC update.
September 15, 2022
House Committee on Business & Industry
Charge: Monitor the agencies and programs under the Committee’s jurisdiction and oversee the implementation of relevant legislation passed by the 87th Legislature. Conduct active oversight of all associated rulemaking and other governmental actions taken to ensure the intended legislative outcome of all legislation, including the following:
- HB 3746, relating to certain notifications required following a breach of security or computerized data; and
- SB 1588 and SB 581, relating to the powers and duties of certain property owners’ associations.
Charge: Evaluate the overall state of data privacy and online consumer protections in Texas and study the related laws and legislative efforts of other states. Make recommendations to ensure consumer data protections and online privacy.
- US State Privacy Legislation Tracker, International Association of Privacy Professionals, last updated August 11, 2022
- Privacy Legislation Related to Internet Service Providers, National Conference of State Legislatures, August 8, 2022
- State Laws Related to Digital Privacy, National Conference of State Legislatures, June 7, 2022
- Texas at the Crossroads - An Update on Privacy Legislation, Texas Appleseed, November 15, 2021
- Report, Texas Privacy Protection Advisory Council, September 2020
- Data Breach Reporting, Attorney General of Texas