Texas Catholic Voice May 19, 2025

With last Thursday night’s midnight deadline for House bills to pass the House, last week marked the longest working week of the legislative session for House members. They have been on the House floor debating bills until late into the night, every night, and attending 8 a.m. hearings in most committees the following mornings.  

Exhausted members become increasingly frustrated as their priorities are stalled, or the other party advances issues they find reprehensible. Legislators are away from their families and stuck on the House floor for hours to vote on hundreds of bills each day.  

They are hungry, angry, lonely, tired, and so are the advocates and lobbyists. It is not a good recipe for diplomacy and cooperation.  

However, Friday morning after the midnight House deadline on House bills, all was finally quiet in our office after a frenzied week. In this pause, I was able to read Pope Leo XIV’s Address the to Diplomatic Corps. Two points from our Holy Father struck me as especially relevant after an intense legislative week:  

“It is the responsibility of government leaders to work to build harmonious and peaceful civil societies. This can be achieved above all by investing in the family, founded upon the stable union between a man and a woman, 'a small but genuine society, and prior to all civil society.' In addition, no one is exempted from striving to ensure respect for the dignity of every person, especially the most frail and vulnerable, from the unborn to the elderly, from the sick to the unemployed, citizens and immigrants alike. 

For her part, the Church can never be exempted from speaking the truth about humanity and the world, resorting whenever necessary to blunt language that may initially create misunderstanding. Yet truth can never be separated from charity, which always has at its root a concern for the life and well-being of every man and woman. Furthermore, from the Christian perspective, truth is not the affirmation of abstract and disembodied principles, but an encounter with the person of Christ himself, alive in the midst of the community of believers. Truth, then, does not create division, but rather enables us to confront all the more resolutely the challenges of our time, such as migration, the ethical use of artificial intelligence and the protection of our beloved planet Earth. These are challenges that require commitment and cooperation on the part of all, since no one can think of facing them alone.” 

It’s easy when working on public policy on behalf of the Church to get distracted by the political nature of the work. These words of Pope Leo XIV remind us that our investment of our time and talent in legislative activity on behalf of the Church is rooted “in the encounter with the person of Christ himself.” 

May all of us remember this foundational principle of our advocacy. 

The DREAM Act

Unfortunately, SB 1798 is on the Senate Intent calendar for Monday. This bill would block opportunities for higher education for immigrant students. Since 2001, the Texas Dream Act has allowed eligible noncitizen students in Texas to pay in-state tuition at Texas public colleges and universities, recognizing them as Texas residents if they meet the following requirements:  

• Graduated from a public or private high school or its equivalent;  

• Lived in Texas for at least 3three years before graduating; and  

• Signed an affidavit stating that they will apply to become a U.S. permanent resident as soon as they become eligible. 

These migrant youth were brought into the United States by their parents when they were only children and, at no fault of their own, are currently unauthorized. With access to higher education, these students contribute in-demand skills to our state’s workforce and become leaders in their chosen fields. Please contact your legislator and let them know that as Catholics we oppose placing higher education out of financial reach for many low-income students. 

Thriving Texas Families

On Monday, SB 1388 by Senator Lois Kolkhorst will be on the House floor. This bill amends the Thriving Texas Families Program by requiring the Health and Human Services Commission ensure that service providers are not associated with abortion service providers and do not provide, refer, advocate for, or promote abortion services. It excludes from TTF funding government entities, hospitals, and providers who primarily function as medical, behavioral health, or mental health providers. The TCCB supports this bill to reinforce the Thriving Texas Families Program as a pro-life, pro-woman, pro-family initiative. 

Prison air conditioning

We are grateful the Texas House of Representatives passed Rep. Terry Canales’ HB 3006 which requires the installation of air conditioning units in Texas prisons by the end of 2032. This bill ensures that those who are incarcerated are provided with humane living conditions. We are hopeful the Senate will pass this much needed legislation.  

Clarifying exceptions for the life of the mother in need

We expect that SB 31 authored by Senator Bryan Hughes and sponsored by Rep. Charlie Geren to be on the House floor this week. This bill clarifies the civil liability statutes to ensure medical professionals do not hesitate to provide appropriate care for mothers with pregnancy complications. The TCCB supports this bill to ensure that women receive the necessary care when facing life-threatening pregnancy compilations. 

Bills in committee, May 19 – 23

Senate Criminal Justice, Tuesday, 7 a.m.  

HB 1902 creates a criminal offense called "jugging" which is the targeting of a person withdrawing money and following that person with the intent to commit theft. The TCCB supports this bill to protect Texans from the often-violent crime of jugging.  

House Criminal Jurisprudence, Tuesday, 8 a.m.  

SB 456 by Senator Mayes Middleton requires the medical board to revoke the license of any physician who knowingly uses a human organ obtained in violation of the law. The TCCB supports this bill to provide for ethical organ transplants. 

House Public Education, Tuesday, 8 a.m.  

SB 784 by Senator Phil King requires a school district to transfer the student of a peace officer to another district at the parent's request and prohibits a school district from charging tuition to the transfer student. The TCCB supports this bill because it expands parental choice. 

SB 1207 by Senator Phil King requires public schools to include in the parenting and paternity awareness program in the health curriculum information related to adoption including the difference between private adoption and foster care adoption and adoption as an alternative to becoming a parent. The TCCB supports this bill to increase education about parenting and adoption.  

SB 2392 by Senator Phil King amends the Education Code to include investigations by school security officers for criminal sexual misconduct on the list of activities to be reported to law enforcement. The TCCB supports this bill to protect children from harm. 

Senate Business and Commerce, Tuesday, 8 a.m. 

HB 2067 by Rep. Dennis Paul would allow the insurance commissioner to make rules regarding the declination of insurance policies. The TCCB supports this bill as it may protect religious institutions from unfair declination of coverage. 

Senate Health and Human Services, Wednesday, 8 a.m.  

HB 1106 by Rep. Matt Shaheen ensures that it is not defined as abuse if a parent refuses to affirm the child's expressed sexual orientation or gender identity or use a child's preferred pronouns. The TCCB supports this bill to prevent inappropriate allegations of abuse for parents who do not accept gender ideology. 

HB 3284 by Rep. James Frank establishes the Texas Commission on Marriage and Family to study and develop strategies for promoting strong marriages and healthy families and make recommendations to the legislature to advance the goal of creating an environment favorable for marriage and raising children. The TCCB supports this bill to support strong marriages in Texas.