Legislative Session Begins On Jan. 14

C APITAL Highlights 

The 89th Texas legislative session begins on Jan. 14 with a still-unresolved race for speaker of the Texas House of Representatives.

State Reps. David Cook, R-Mansfield and Dustin Burrows, R-Lubbock, are considered the frontrunners for speaker, but speculation continues as to whether other candidates will throw their hats into the ring.

The Republican caucus is split between those who oppose appointing any Democrat to chair a House committee and those who contend it’s essential to work across the aisle to get the state’s business done in a biennial five-month session. Historically, a few chairmanships have gone to members of the minority party.

In the wake of the November elections, the makeup of the 150-member Texas House is 87 Republicans and 63 Democrats.

School vouchers will again be on the legislative plate since they are a top priority for Gov. Greg Abbott. His efforts to pass what are also called Education Savings Accounts failed numerous attempts in 2023, including several special sessions.

Legislative watchers predict more bills aimed at property tax relief but geared more toward business owners, since those passed in the 2023 session were primarily aimed at homeowners.

Another issue that Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick has prioritized is banning the sale of all THC products in Texas. Since the state legalized the growth of hemp, some stores have begun selling products containing previously illegal levels of THC, the compound that gives marijuana its “high.”

GOP Bills Seek To Regulate Wind, Solar And Battery Power Projects 

Several Republican lawmakers have filed bills to increase government oversight over renewable energy projects, The Dallas Morning News reported. Proposals include requiring property buffers between the projects and neighboring properties. Another bill would require environmental fees and studies for any new renewable projects. The News reported that wind, solar and batteries account for about 46% of electric generation capacity for the Electric Reliability Council of Texas, which controls nearly all of the state’s power grid.

“Currently, renewable energy facilities do not have statewide guidelines for permitting and decommissioning, leading to variations in how the installations are installed,” said state Rep. Jared Patterson, R-Frisco and sponsor of one of the bills.

Texas rang in the New Year with more than 2.9 million business entities actively registered with the secretary of state’s office to conduct business here. That is up more than 125,000 from a year ago, according to Texas Secretary of State Jane Nelson.

“The economic climate in Texas continues to be strong as entrepreneurs grow and create businesses in our state and more out-of-state entities want to expand to Texas,” Nelson said.

That number includes both businesses incorporated in Texas and out-of-state companies conducting business here.