- On Monday,?Lt. Governor Dan Patrick?announced Senate committee assignments to little fanfare or surprise. In the House, members finished turning in their committee preference cards. We expect to see House committee assignments announced later this week, likely on Thursday.
- Governor Greg Abbott?made his first public comments on the proposed state budget this week, notably calling the Senate’s plan to spend $15 billion for property tax relief “a good start.”
- The Texas House Water Caucus, a?newly formed?bipartisan group of House members, held its first meeting. And at a conference in Austin this week,?Sen. Charles Perry (R—Lubbock)?announced his support to spend $2 billion on water infrastructure.
- The state’s largest and primary trade association representing the oil and gas industry released its annual economic impact analysis where it highlighted the industry’s contribution of nearly $25 billion in state and local taxes and state royalties – a 54% increase over the previous high-water mark.
- Lt. Governor Dan Patrick?announced his intention to run for reelection in 2026, a seeming reversal to comments he made during his recent campaign. Meanwhile, a Texas Democratic Senator proposed term limits for Texans seeking to serve in the U.S. Senate in response to renewed calls by Senator Ted Cruz for term limits in Washington.
- Senate Bill 1 by?Sen. Joan Huffman (R—Houston), the Senate’s initial draft of the budget, was referred to the Senate Finance Committee this week with budget hearings in the Senate set to begin today. The Committee will hear testimony on several key agencies this week, including all health care agencies and the budgets for the Office of the Governor, the Comptroller of Public Accounts, and the Office of the Attorney General.?
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