2009 Lege: Local Delegates Lay Out Agendas
Austin's Lege delegates ready to go back to work
By Richard Whittaker, Fri., Dec. 12, 2008
With the 81st legislative session a month away, Travis County legislators have started prefiling bills and finalizing their policy agendas. So what are local lawmakers trying to get on the books in 2009?
Dawnna Dukes (House District 46) wants to live up to her campaign word of looking out for her eastern Travis Co. district. Top priority is "a very aggressive bill to make more children and uninsured eligible for medical insurance." She thinks she can bring fiscal conservatives around to the proposal's $340 million price tag with the cost-saving results of moving the uninsured into preventative treatment, reducing costly trips to the emergency room. In the aftermath of the repurposing of Johnston High, she wants reform of the school repurposing system and a meet-and-confer bill for city employee negotiations. After the mixed results of her 2007 film-incentive bill, Dukes said, "We're looking at the nuts and bolts" of how studios location-hunt.
Major prefiled bills:
House Bill 201: State would pay 50% of Social Security costs for school districts.
HB 202: Extra protections for educators claiming benefits.
Valinda Bolton (HD 47) has yet to prefile any bills, but in her sophomore session, she plans to fine-tune some of her freshman successes, such as counseling for kids in Texas Youth Commission facilities. She intends to make sure the counseling programs have been implemented properly. She's also looking at "small changes on land and water use," such as redefining the powers of developing counties when it comes to water rights.
Donna Howard (HD 48) hasn't prefiled any bills and didn't get a major interim committee appointment, so she describes herself as taking "a supporting role" on the major legislation discussed over the summer. That said, she's still keenly interested in rebuilding public- and higher-education funding, especially reaching the state's target of doubling the number of registered nurses by 2012, and giving local government more power over the construction of big polluters like coal-fired power plants. She also wants better accountability for the Lower Colorado River Authority, giving the 10 counties along the river representation on the board and placing the agency under Sunset Advisory Commission review.
Elliott Naishtat (HD 49) has a few bills that he always brings back, such as medical marijuana, but he's realistic about their passage. Like his death sentence moratorium bill: "As long as Rick Perry's there, it probably won't get very far, and even if it did pass, he would probably veto it." He's much more upbeat about what he calls "a package of health and human services bills" that is currently with the Legislative Council.
Major prefiled bills:
HB 163: Forcing legislators to reveal fair market value of all gifts.
House Joint Resolution 23: A constitutional amendment requiring record votes on second reading of bills, amendments, and committee substitutes.
Mark Strama (HD 50) pledges, "I'll continue to be doing a lot on renewable energy and education." With the 2010 redistricting bearing down fast, Strama is also bringing back some unsuccessful bills filed in previous sessions that call for fixing the way district boundaries are redrawn.
Major prefiled bills:
HJR 19/HB 104: Replacing the controversial Legislative Redistricting Board (responsible for the last gerrymandering) with a more accountable Texas Redistricting Commission.
HB 105: Sweeping campaign finance reform, with tougher penalties.
Eddie Rodriguez (HD 51) leads the local prefiling field with eight bills, centering mainly on disability services, recycling, and renewable energy. With solar energy innovator HelioVolt in his district and plans for a Texas Clean Energy Park on the horizon, Rodriguez said, "I want to make Texas a renewable-energy center and to make Austin and more specifically Southeast Austin a center." He also hopes to grasp the transportation nettle. "You just can't get around," he said of the difficulty getting to destination points, "and it's not good for the economic future of Central Texas."
Major prefiled bills:
HB 239: A "25 by 25" proposal, ordering a study into switching the state to a minimum of 25% electricity produced from renewable technologies by 2025.
Kirk Watson (Senate District 14) says the three bills he has prefiled are representative of his biggest concern: getting the state to accept its responsibilities. He explained, "My son is part of the first generation of Texans who won't inherit an excess of infrastructure" – and by infrastructure, he doesn't just mean roads and broadband provisions but medical insurance and public education, as well. Not that roads aren't on his agenda: He wants to increase the planning and development toolbox available to regional communities if the Texas Department of Transportation won't step up. He's also determined to boost green-collar jobs and add more top-tier public universities. This, he argues, means shifting the state from the "getting while the getting's good" fiscal mindset back to real strategic investment. "Texas is great and prosperous today because those who came before us were prepared to think long-term," he said. "I'm a strong advocate for getting us back in the game."
Major prefiled bills:
Senate Bill 184: Commissioning a "no regrets" environmental study: All recommendations should cut greenhouse-gas emissions and costs.
SB 185: Establishing a 20-member long-term higher-education planning commission.
SB 186: Comprehensive anti-school-voucher legislation.
*Oops! The following correction ran in the December 19, 2008 issue: Following up from last week's News story on what Austin-area legislators are planning for the next session ("2009 Lege: Local Delegates Lay Out Agendas"), Rep. Elliott Naishtat's office called to say that what was described as a "death sentence moratorium" is more accurately described as giving the governor power to declare a moratorium on executions. We're happy to clear that up.
Got something to say on the subject? Send a letter to the editor.
