With eleven days left to go in the legislative session, lawmakers have a lot of half-finished projects on the table. The degenerating political situations in both chambers are increasing the risk that substantive bills with broad public support will fall victim to legislative deadlines.
Please take a minute to call your legislators and urge them to focus on completing work on the bills in this action alert and the many other important bills in danger of expiring by May 28.
Ready for some good news from the Lege? Read all the way to the end of this message for news about legislative commendations for criminal justice reform advocates and their accomplishments this session.
Renewable Energy
Action Needed: Urge members of the conference committee on SB 483 to report the bill out with all the House amendments intact, especially the Strama amendment.
The House has overwhelmingly approved several bills to increase renewable energy
production, diversify renewable sources, use renewable development to create jobs in communities throughout Texas, and make sure Texas' renewable market is number one in the nation.
Senate Bill 483 by Fraser has passed the House and Senate and has been sitting in conference committee since May 2. SB 483 deals with electric utility industry issues and consumer protection; the House added a number of amendments to SB 483 designed to strengthen and diversify Texas’ renewable energy industry.
Texas Impact particularly supports the amendment to SB 483 by Rep. Strama that would preserve the right of congregations and their members to purchase renewable power as part of their environmental stewardship.
If the Strama amendment does not become law, congregations and their members—as well as other utility customers—will lose their ability to clear the air or reduce global warming through programs like Austin Energy’s GreenChoice or Green Mountain Energy.
Conference Committee on SB 483
Sen. Troy Fraser (512) 463-0124
Sen. Kip Averitt (512) 463-0122
Sen. Chris Harris (512) 463-0109
Sen. Kevin Eltife (512) 463-0101
Sen. Kyle Janek (512) 463-0117
Rep. Phil King (512) 463-0738
Rep. Wayne Christian (512) 463-0556
Rep. Aaron Pena (512) 463-0426
Rep. Todd Smith (512) 463-0522
Rep. David Swinford (512) 463-0470
Energy Efficiency: Keep Up the Momentum
Action Needed: Urge members of the Senate Committee on Business and Commerce to send HB 3693 to the Senate floor quickly and with no amendments, and urge your senator to vote YES on HB 3693.
Environmental and consumer advocates were elated when HB 3693 by Straus, the omnibus energy efficiency bill, passed the House unanimously. The bill has moved over to the Senate and has been referred to the Senate Committee on Business and Commerce.
Please take a minute to let the Senate committee members know that HB 3693 is a great and timely piece of legislation that will save energy consumers money, clear Texas’ air and reduce global warming emissions.
Sen. Troy Fraser
Sen. Chris Harris
Sen. Kip Averitt
Sen. Kevin Eltife
Sen. Craig Estes
Sen. Kyle Janek
Sen. Eddie Lucio, Jr.
Sen. Leticia Van de Putte
Sen. Kirk Watson
State Parks Funding
Action Needed: Contact Lt. Governor David Dewhurst and urge him to take action to lift the cap on the sporting goods tax revenue dedicated to parks and to assure that the appropriations bill includes money needed for parkland acquisition and state park operations.
Legislative leaders in the Texas Senate have not yet agreed to full funding for the state park system, especially money for acquisition and park operations.
For full background on the issue, visit
http://www.texas.sierraclub.org/press/scr.asp
CHIP
Action Needed: Urge Lt. Governor Dewhurst and the Senate to bring the CHIP restoration issue to a conclusion by passing House Bill 109 by Turner.
Despite repeated media reports that CHIP has “turned a corner” in the Senate and that the Lt. Governor has changed his position regarding 12-month eligibility, there has been no discernible progress on CHIP restoration since HB 109 left the House in April with overwhelming bipartisan legislative and public support. The Lt. Governor’s staff has maintained a consistent position since the week the bill arrived in the Senate: support for 12-month eligibility with periodic administrative reviews for families near the income-eligibility threshold.
And One Bill NOT to Move On
Action Needed: Urge the House Calendars Committee NOT to bring SB 407 to the House floor, and urge your representative to vote NO on SB 407 if it does come to the floor.
SB 407 by Senator Eltife would allow cities and counties to swap an increase in their local sales tax rates for a cut in local property taxes. Cities and counties would each be allowed to raise sales taxes by 1/4 percent. For communities that chose to make the swap, the combined state/local sales tax would total as much as 8.75 percent.
Replacing property taxes with sales taxes results in a higher net tax burden for 80 percent of families. Only households with annual incomes above $110,000 benefit from the switch. SB 407 represents a continuing shift away from taxes based on wealth onto taxes linked to consumption, which inherently puts a greater burden on lower- and middle-income working families.
Lawmakers will tell their constituents that SB 407 increases “local control,” but don’t be fooled: SB 407 is a strategy to turn neighbor against neighbor and undermine the fabric of local communities. Cutting taxes for the few at the expense of the many is a priority for some state elected officials—tell your representative if they want to increase sales taxes, they will have to do it themselves.
Criminal Justice: Kudos!
Last week saw some much-deserved praise for criminal justice advocates inside and outside the Capitol, who have been working tirelessly all session to reform troubled systems and restore Texas communities. Texas Impact salutes our colleagues for their hard work and dedication to justice!
The House of Representatives honored Rep. Sylvester Turner’s legislative director Alison Brock for her role in exposing and resolving ongoing abuse at the Texas Youth Commission. http://www.legis.state.tx.us/tlodocs/80R/billtext/html/HR01482H.htm
The House of Representatives honored Ana Yanez-Correa of the Texas Criminal Justice Reform Coalition and Marc Levin of the Texas Public Policy Foundation for their work in developing policy proposals in the areas of sentencing, probation, and parole. http://www.legis.state.tx.us/tlodocs/80R/billtext/html/HC00251I.htm
The Texas nonprofit community will miss ACLU executive director Will Harrell but congratulates him on his new position as ombudsman at the restructured Texas Youth Commission. http://realcostofprisons.org/blog/archives/2007/05/tx_will_harrell.html
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