Board Members Abel Vega and Rev. Jessica Cain confer about legislative priorities
Texas Impact’s board of directors unanimously approved a legislative agenda for 2025-2026 following its biennial legislative retreat. The more than 40 members of the board represents more than 2 dozen denominational bodies and other regional religious institutions in Texas.
The agenda follows Texas Impact’s four major policy themes: Economic Justice; Climate Justice: Human Rights; and Civic Participation. The agenda reflects the shared social concerns of Texas Impact’s member faith traditions.
“Our efforts are invested in the flourishing of all people for the good of everyone in our state,” commented Rev. Arlene Turner of the South Central Conference of the United Church of Christ.
Highlights of the agenda include:
- Support for increasing per-pupil public ed spending
- Support for increased childcare funding
- A call for ending the possibility of civil and criminal penalties for health professionals and institutions that provide abortions they judge to meet the state’s abortion ban exceptions
- Support for budget transparency and accountability for “Operation Lone Star”
- Support for policies to encourage responsible gun ownership
- Support for a suite of climate-related policies including air conditioning Texas prisons and expanding distributed energy generation
- Continued opposition to school vouchers
Rabbi Nancy Kasten of Faith Commons said, “This ambitious agenda matches the urgency of work that needs to be done in the upcoming legislative session to protect the health, safety and liberty of all Texans.”