Earlier this year, Gov. Greg Abbott tasked lawmakers with prioritizing seven emergency items during the legislative session. So far, only one has passed, but there are still many other things that need to be resolved with just six weeks left until the end of the session.

What You Need To Know

  • Gov. Greg Abbott has emphasized multiple emergency items for the Texas Legislature to address with just six weeks remaining

  • One of Abbott’s priorities is expanding access to vocational programs

  • Property tax relief, investment in water, increasing teacher pay, bail reform and setting up a Texas Cyber Command are five other policy areas Abbott is focused on

One of Abbott’s priorities is expanding access to programs like the ones at the Universal Technical Institute. This school prepares its students to work in industries desperate to hire through hands-on learning.

“A four-year college isn’t for everyone, and there are a skilled trade where there are just training for in-demand careers, where there is a talent gap and we’re giving the technical skills to fill that gap. So it’s also going to help with workforce development,” said Julie Mueller, the president of the Universal Technical Institute Austin campus.

A Texas House bill to triple public school funding for similar technical and vocational programs is awaiting a hearing before a state Senate committee.

Property tax relief, investment in water, increasing teacher pay, bail reform and setting up a Texas Cyber Command are five other policy areas Abbott is focused on. All of those proposals have left their chamber of origin but have several steps left until they are finally passed.

Early last Thursday, the Texas House voted for the first time in decades to approve Abbott’s long-standing priority to pass school vouchers, allowing $1 billion in public funds to go to private schools. The governor is now promoting another priority he wants passed this year — stiffening the state’s bail laws.

“Bail is in the Constitution itself, and what we’re seeking to do is to amend the Constitution,” said Abbott.

Abbott supports proposals to allow judges to deny bail for violent offenders and restrict judges from offering bail to undocumented immigrants charged with a felony. The slate of bills has been referred to the Texas House Committee on Criminal Jurisprudence. State Rep. Wes Virdell, R-Brady, sits on this committee and expects the bills to pass.

“You have DAs and judges who are letting violent criminals back out on the street, and I think that’s why this bill exists,” said Virdell.

Because two of the bills are constitutional amendments, they need two-thirds of each chamber to vote for them in order to move forward. While all three bail bills cleared the Senate in a bipartisan vote, House Democrats will not be so agreeable. Rep. Jolanda Jones, D-Houston, is also on the committee alongside Virdell, and she calls the bills racist.

“It destroys the presumption of innocence, which is a core foundation of why this country was founded,” said Jones.

Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick has threatened to ask the governor for a special session if bail reform isn’t passed. The only thing they are constitutionally bound to pass is the budget, which awaits a conference committee hearing.