87th Legislature, 2nd Called Session Statistics

The following bill statistics were calculated on September 23, 2021.

This entry was posted on September 23, 2021 at 10:45 AM and has received 733 views. Print this entry.

The General and Special Laws of Texas, often referred to as the "session laws," constitute a complete set of all bills passed into law by each session of the Texas legislature. The Secretary of State assigns each passed Act a chapter number. Following each legislative session, the Acts are arranged in chapter-number order and published as a bound set.

Session law chapter numbers are included in session law citations, which are listed after each section of code in the Texas statutes as a means to track the legislative history of a statute.

For example, Texas Government Code, Sec. 405.014. Acts of the Legislature, includes the following session law citations:

 

Note: For a thorough legislative history of a Texas statute, see the bound volumes of Vernon's Texas Codes and Statutes Annotated, which are available in the LRL's collection.

 

For a discussion and examples of various session law citations, see Chapter 7, Subchapter C, Section 7.64. Session Laws and Bills from the Texas Legislative Council Drafting Manual.


87th Legislative Session

The Secretary of State's Bills and Resolutions webpage lists the session law chapter assigned to each bill that is enacted into law.

For example, when looking at the list of House Bills from the 87th Regular Session, the first column with the heading "Bill," lists the bill numbers. The second column with the heading "Chapter," contains the corresponding chapter number.




For questions about bill/chapter numbers for bills from the 87th Regular Session, please contact the Secretary of State's office at (512) 463-5561.


1st — 87th Legislative Sessions

Session law chapter numbers for previous sessions are available online through the Legislative Archive System on the LRL's website.

To view the complete bill/session law chapter cross reference table for a session, use the "Search by session law chapter" option.
Select a legislative session in the drop-down menu and leave the chapter box blank, then click on "Search by chapter."

 

For example, the bill/chapter cross reference table for the 87th Regular Session lists the session law chapters, the corresponding bills, and the bill captions or bill subjects.

 

This entry was posted on September 20, 2021 at 10:10 AM and has received 1369 views. Print this entry.

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

• Explore information about uninsured children by state. (Center for Children & Families (CCF), ©2021)
• Consider statistics that illustrate the effectiveness of the COVID-19 vaccines. (The Heritage Foundation, August 12, 2021)
• Find out how to hide your house on online mapping services such as Google Maps. (Lifehacker, September 2, 2021)
• See when is the best time to view fall foliage in different parts of the country. (SmokyMountains.com, accessed September 15, 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 September 16, 2021 at 3:20 PM and has received 821 views. Print this entry.

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.

• Texas Redistricting, Texas Legislative Council
• Guide to 2021 Redistricting, Texas Legislative Council, September 2021
• Past Committee Meetings (see Handouts), House Committee on Redistricting
• 2020 Census Data Releases, Texas Demographic Center, accessed September 7, 2021
• "2020 Census Statistics Highlight Local Population Changes and Nation's Racial and Ethnic Diversity," United States Census Bureau, August 12, 2021
• Redistricting Data Program, United States Census Bureau
• Redistricting (including redistricting legislation, 1901-present), Legislative Reference Library

September 13
House Committee on Redistricting
Topic: 2020 U.S. Census data

September 15
House Committee on Redistricting
Topic: 2020 U.S. Census data

September 18
House Committee on Redistricting
Topic: 2020 U.S. Census data

This entry was posted on September 13, 2021 at 10:00 AM and has received 569 views. Print this entry.

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

• Explore the affordable housing gallery by region of the state. (Texas Department of Housing & Community Development, accessed September 8, 2021)
• Read about improving access to monoclonal antibody therapy. (Health Affairs blog, September 7, 2021)
• Find resources related to preparing, planning for, and managing natural disasters. (National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, August 31, 2021)
• Consider the role of solar energy in the nation's power grids. (U.S. Department of Energy, September 8, 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 September 9, 2021 at 3:15 PM and has received 627 views. Print this entry.

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.

• Texas Redistricting, Texas Legislative Council
• Guide to 2021 Redistricting, Texas Legislative Council, September 2021
• 2020 Census Data Releases, Texas Demographic Center, accessed September 7, 2021
• "2020 Census Statistics Highlight Local Population Changes and Nation's Racial and Ethnic Diversity," United States Census Bureau, August 12, 2021
• Redistricting Data Program, United States Census Bureau
• Redistricting (including redistricting legislation, 1901-present), Legislative Reference Library

September 7
Senate Special Committee on Redistricting
Topic: 2020 census data and the upcoming legislative redistricting process

September 8
House Committee on Redistricting
Topic: Public testimony regarding 2020 U.S. Census data, invited testimony from the State Demographer

Senate Special Committee on Redistricting
Topic: 2020 census data and the upcoming legislative redistricting process

September 9
House Committee on Redistricting
Topic: Public testimony regarding 2020 U.S. Census data

Senate Special Committee on Redistricting
Topic: 2020 census data and the upcoming legislative redistricting process

September 10
Senate Special Committee on Redistricting
Topic: 2020 census data and the upcoming legislative redistricting process

September 11
Senate Special Committee on Redistricting
Topic: 2020 census data and the upcoming legislative redistricting process

This entry was posted on September 7, 2021 at 12:00 PM and has received 504 views. Print this entry.

This entry was posted on September 2, 2021 at 3:15 PM and has received 925 views. Print this entry.

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.

This entry was posted on August 31, 2021 at 2:25 PM and has received 610 views. Print this entry.

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 1396 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 933 views. Print this entry.