Week of April 26, 2021
With less than 40 days to go, the House Calendars Committee’s full powers come into focus as the gatekeeper that determines which bills make it to the House floor for consideration by the entire chamber. Right now, the Calendars Committee is deciding whether this is going to be a session about addressing the real issues of Texas’s electrical market failures and racial disparity in policing, or restricting the right to vote and bullying LGBTQ children.
Call the House Calendars Committee
| Chair | Rep. Burrows, Dustin | (877) 203-6192 |
| Vice Chair | Rep. Moody, Joe | (877) 503-5072 |
| Rep. Craddick, Tom | (877) 533-4215 | |
| Rep. Harris, Cody | (877) 455-6147 | |
| Rep. Hefner, Cole | (877) 495-5085 | |
| Rep. Hernandez, Ana | (877) 512-2166 | |
| Rep. Leman, Ben | (877) 827-1951 | |
| Rep. Patterson, Jared | (877) 293-4957 | |
| Rep. Rose, Toni | (877) 831-7122 | |
| Rep. Slawson, Shelby | (877) 237-5792 | |
| Rep. Talarico, James | (877) 511-3814 |
Oppose HB 1399 by Rep. Krause
HB 1399 would prohibit the doctors from performing gender transitioning or gender reassignment medical procedures and treatments, and those taking medications would immediately lose access.
Oppose HB 1725 by Rep. Paul
HB 1725 would prohibit the hand delivery of a mail-in ballot and increase the rejection rates of otherwise valid votes that would arrive after the ballot receipt deadline.
Oppose HB 2321 by Rep. Jetton
HB 2321 would require signature verification committees to look at signatures the Department of Public Safety obtained through driver’s license data, which would increase the rates of rejection by looking at decades-old signature data. Signatures are known to change over time due to age, medical conditions, and medication.
Oppose HB 2546 by Rep. Jetton
HB 2546 would make clerical errors made by a county clerk in the maintenance of the county’s voter rolls a felony offense.
Oppose HB 4331 by Rep. Jetton
HB 4331 would make it a felony to distribute applications for ballots by mail and take a position on a ballot measure—something many nonprofits, including churches, routinely do.
Support HB 829 by Rep. Senfronia Thompson
HB 829 would establish a progressive disciplinary matrix for police officer misconduct in certain municipalities.
Support HB 830 by Rep. Senfronia Thompson
HB 830 would not permit an arrest for a fine only, class C misdemeanor.
Support HB 831 by Rep. Senfronia Thompson
HB 831 would place limits on the use of uses of force when making an arrest.
Support HB 834 by Rep. Senfronia Thompson
HB 834 would require the corroboration of eyewitness testimony in drug cases.
Support HB 1272 by Rep. Crockett
HB 1272 would regulate the use of “no-knock warrants.”
Support HB 1019 by Rep. Meza
HB 1019 would simplify the requirements for seniors under the supplemental nutrition assistance program (SNAP).
Support HB 1382 by Rep. Bucy
HB 1382 would establish an online tracking system for mail-in applications & ballots.
Call the House Elections Committee
Support SB 1018 by Senator Zaffirini
SB 1018 would enfranchise voters by providing an opportunity to cure mistakes made on a mail-in ballot, which would increase security by reducing the number of suspect ballots.
Oppose SB 1340 by Sen. Buckingham
SB 1340 would centralize voter registration with the Secretary of State, require frequent voting purges, and enact many of the database sharing procedures that led to the botched purge of 2019 in which 100,000 eligible voters were nearly knocked off the voter rolls, erroneously, as noncitizens.
| Chair | Rep. Cain, Briscoe | (877) 355-0549 |
| Vice Chair | Rep. Gonzalez, Jessica | (877) 317-4168 |
| Rep. Beckley, Michelle | (877) 378-0537 | |
| Rep. Bucy III, John | (877) 814-0516 | |
| Rep. Clardy, Travis | (877) 406-6922 | |
| Rep. Fierro, Art | (877) 411-3516 | |
| Rep. Jetton, Jacey | (877) 471-5783 | |
| Rep. Schofield, Mike | (877) 369-0013 | |
| Rep. Swanson, Valoree | (877) 421-0554 |
Bills that Attack Renewable Energy
Oppose SB 3 by Sen. Schwertner & SB 1278 by Sen. Hancock
SB 1278 would instruct the PUC to assign a cost and charge renewable energy producers for when the wind is not blowing to subsidize the oil and gas industry — the folks actually responsible for the winter blackouts due to their failure to winterize.
Call the House State Affairs Committee and instruct them to pull the anti-renewables provision out of SB 3 and do not pass SB 1278.
| Chair | Rep. Paddie, Chris | (877) 257-1147 |
| Vice Chair | Rep. Hernandez, Ana | (877) 512-2166 |
| Rep. Deshotel, Joe | (877) 741-2061 | |
| Rep. Harless, E. Sam | (877) 455-6141 | |
| Rep. Howard, Donna | (877) 211-3251 | |
| Rep. Hunter, Todd | (877) 281-8912 | |
| Rep. King, Phil | (877) 415-5501 | |
| Rep. Lucio III, Eddie | (877) 231-0081 | |
| Rep. Metcalf, Will | (877) 382-1102 | |
| Rep. Raymond, Richard | (877) 516-1087 | |
| Rep. Shaheen, Matt | (877) 208-0117 | |
| Rep. Slawson, Shelby | (877) 237-5792 | |
| Rep. Smithee, John | (877) 369-8518 |
TAKE ACTION!
NOTE: We have set up toll-free numbers for all members of the Texas House and Senate. We ask that you use those numbers and save them in your phones. Dialing this number allows us to track the volume of calls to each office. If the number stops working, please let us know so we can set up a new number.
Find toll free numbers at https://texasimpact.org/texas-legislative-contact-information-2021/
Find your elected officials via the “Who Represents Me” page at http://www.fyi.legis.state.tx.us/Home.aspx
Weekly Witness Action Alert Sample Script
See the list of toll free numbers (https://texasimpact.org/texas-legislative-contact-information-2021/) for each member of the Texas Legislature and save the number. Using the toll free number allows Texas Impact staff to track how many calls are going in to each office.
Sample Script
Hello, my name is _________________and I live in ___________. I am calling to thank Representative/Senator _____________________for his/her service this Legislative Session.
As a person of faith (or clergy) I want to be constructive in working with Representative/Senator _______________ and hope they will support/oppose Bill number.
Feel free to use any of the bullet points in the Action Alert above. If your congregation has a special connection to the issue area you are referencing, feel free to briefly reference that connection. Don’t forget to thank the staff member you are talking to at the end of the call, even if you disagree with their boss on the issue or bill—they are working hard and appreciate being appreciated!
In the past, legislative offices occasionally have blocked our toll free number because of high call volume from people of faith. If you call twice and receive busy signals, email engagement@texasimpact.org and we will update the number.
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