Legislative Services

House Committees Set

Speaker Dustin Burrows released his eagerly awaited committee assignments on Thursday. Assignments of note to county officials include:

• Greg Bonnen (R-Friendswood) returns as Chair of the House Appropriations Committee, with Rep. Mary Gonzalez (D-El Paso) also returning, this time as Vice Chair.
• Rep. Cecil Bell (R-Montgomery) will serve as Chair of the new Intergovernmental Affairs Committee, alongside Vice Chair Rep. Erin Zweiner (D-Driftwood).
• Rep. David Spiller (R-Jacksboro) will serve as Chair of the new Permanent Standing Subcommittee on County and Regional Government, with Rep. Sheryl Cole (D-Austin) as Vice Chair.
• Rep. Todd Hunter (R-Corpus Christi) will Chair the Calendars Committee.
• Rep. John Smithee (R-Amarillo) will Chair the Criminal Jurisprudence Committee.

Full committee assignments are available online, sorted by committee and member.

Help Lawmakers Understand Costs

Throughout the 89th Legislature, TAC will assist the Legislative Budget Board (LBB) in its preparation of fiscal notes — written estimates of the costs, savings and revenue gains or losses associated with a bill or joint resolution. TAC relies on data and feedback from our members to provide the LBB with estimates of the fiscal impact of proposed bills on county finances. TAC's legislative consultants and policy analysts will contact you to solicit your input, then assemble the collected data and provide it to the LBB, which it may use to populate the local government section of the fiscal note.

If you have any questions about the fiscal note process, please feel free to send your inquiry to FiscalNotes.

County Officials Offer Local Perspective to Senate Committees

The Senate Finance Committee met Wednesday to consider agency budget requests for the Texas Department of Motor Vehicles (TxDMV) and Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT). Several county officials testified in support of critical funding initiatives:

Williamson County Tax Assessor-Collector Larry Gaddes, Johnson County Commissioner and TAC Board Member Larry Woolley and McMullen County Judge James Teal testified in support of TxDMV's request for $10 million to complete phase 2 of its registration and title system modernization project. Sen. Paul Bettencourt (R-Houston) emphasized the need for this funding, noting it is a significant point of interaction with county residents. Bell County Tax Assessor-Collector and TAC Board Member Shay Luedeke also attended the hearing and registered in support of the measure.

Archived video of the hearing may be viewed here. Gaddes' testimony begins at the 4:10:40 mark.

At around the 4:20:40 mark of the same hearing, DeWitt County Judge Daryl Fowler, Judge Teal and Commissioner Woolley can be seen testifying in support of continuing TxDOT's County Transportation Infrastructure Fund program, which provides eligible counties with funding to enhance and maintain roads used by heavy trucks associated with hydraulic fracture oil and gas extraction. Rick Thompson of the County Judges and Commissioners Association also testified in support.

Current funding for the program ends June 24, but TxDOT's Legislative Appropriation Request includes an exceptional item to extend the program. Committee Chair Joan Huffman (R-Houston), citing frequent feedback from rural constituents, said she intends to help counties on this issue.

As a reminder, TxDOT has requested eligible project applications be submitted by April 24 under the current program. More information is available on TxDOT's website.

The Senate Criminal Justice Committee met Thursday to consider several bail reform bills. Several county officials offered public testimony on the proposals, including Montgomery County District Attorney Brett Ligon, Waller County Justice of the Peace J.R. Woolley, Comal County Criminal District Attorney Jennifer Tharp and Chambers County Sheriff Brian Hawthorne.

Video of the hearing is archived online in two segments: Part 1 and Part 2.

For more information about this article, please contact Pete Winckler.