By Robert Nichols

One hundred and thirty-three years ago this month, the present Texas Capitol was formally dedicated. On May 16, 1888, the dedication ceremony was held with a service, parade and a celebration to mark its opening. More than 20,000 people attended the week of festivities. There were military displays, concerts, drill team competitions and fireworks. Sen. Temple Houston, Sam Houston’s youngest son, accepted the building on behalf of the state.

Here are five things happening around your state:

1. Texas launches mobile vaccine team

This week Gov. Greg Abbott, the Texas Division of Emergency Management and the Texas Military Department announced the launch of the State Mobile Vaccination Team Call Center.

The call center will allow businesses and civic organizations with 10 or more employees, visitors or members to schedule a visit from a state mobile vaccine team to vaccinate those who voluntarily choose to be vaccinated.

Homebound Texans also can call the hotline to request a vaccination team visit their home. These teams are made up of members from the Texas National Guard and coordinated by TDEM.

This innovative program will increase access to vaccines across the state, especially in underserved areas. The phone number for the hotline is (844) 90-TEXAS.

2. Governor signs House Bill 1195 exempting PPP loans from franchise tax

During the COVID-19 pandemic, the federal government provided loans through the Paycheck Protection Program to help small businesses whose operations were impacted by the pandemic to keep their workers on their payroll. These loans also were eligible for loan forgiveness under certain circumstances.

Normally, the businesses receiving PPP loans or grants would still be taxed on the amount of money received as part of its total revenue subject to the franchise tax. To remedy that, Sen. Kelly Hancock sponsored and Abbott signed House Bill 1195.

Under this bill, businesses who received these loans will not have to pay franchise tax on the funds they received. This bill reflects our commitment to the recovery and support of our small businesses.

3. Texas named best state for business by leading CEOs

The nation’s leading CEOs have once again named Texas the “Best State for Business.” This is the 17th year in a row that Texas has won the designation in a survey conducted by Chief Executive Magazine.

The rankings are determined by CEOs’ assessment of each states’ tax policy and regulatory climate, talent pool size and availability, and quality of life.

Coming in second was Florida, followed by Tennessee, North Carolina and Indiana. California was once again ranked at the bottom.

Texas has no corporate or personal income tax, which CEOs and business leaders look at carefully when deciding to start a business or move their company.

People know Texas is the best place to start or lead a business.

4. Turkey super stocking program seeks to boost East Texas turkey population

The Texas Parks & Wildlife Department created a program to reestablish the population of eastern wild turkeys in East Texas. According to TPWD, rapid changes in habitat and unregulated harvest of the eastern wild turkey near the turn of the 20th century led to such a severe depletion that the turkeys were eliminated from the area. In 1979, TPWD began releasing wild eastern turkeys they had trapped in other states to the area.

Now the agency has started “super stocking” the turkeys. The program began in 2014 and continues to this day. Super stocking means releasing a large number of birds in a specific area so they have a better chance of establishing a population.

The department said it has released close to 1,000 birds at 12 locations over the past seven years. The success in those areas has led to the expansion of the program, and this year they released more than 100 birds in three locations. The eastern turkey hunting season is only allowed in 13 East Texas counties.

5. Texas receives $15.8 billion in pandemic aid, more for counties and cities.

The most recent round of pandemic stimulus funding brought in billions of dollars for Texas and local governments, including cities and counties. This money comes with less restrictions on what it can be used for and some of it will go directly to smaller cities for the first time.

It can be used to fill holes in municipal budgets; hire government employees, including teachers, police officers and firefighters; and fund housing, mental health services and other government programs. It also can go toward some infrastructure projects, such as expanding broadband.

By Robert Nichols

We only have three weeks left in this year’s legislative session. These last three weeks are some of the most intense weeks, with long hours and lots of bills to read.

A number of deadlines begin to crop up during this time. For example, May 26 is the last day for the Senate to consider all bills and joint resolutions, whether they originated in the House or Senate. We adjourn Sine Die, the last day of session, on May 31.

Here are five things happening around your state:

1. Comptroller releases update to biennial revenue estimate

Texas Comptroller Glenn Hegar released an updated projection of the state funds available for the current biennium and the next biennium. Both estimates increased, with the current biennium finishing with an added $725 million and the next with an added $3 billion.

The $3 billion increase for the next biennium’s budget brings it to a total of $116 billion available. These estimates do not include any federal funds available to the state, including any of the federal coronavirus relief funds sent to Texas.

We’re currently hard at work hammering out the details of next biennium’s budget and shoring up the final touches on the current biennium’s budget. The comptroller’s initial estimate in January for this biennium had the state suffering a $1 billion shortfall due to the COVID-19 pandemic. So the updated estimates are welcome news.

2. Senate sends prescription drug price transparency bill to governor’s desk

The Texas Senate voted unanimously to pass House Bill 1033 this week. Sen. Kelly Hancock sponsored the legislation that would protect consumers from bad actors seeking to obscure prescription drug prices or increase prices for life-saving medication. This bill requires pharmaceutical companies to report the cost of prescription drugs, including the research and development costs, to the Texas Department of State Health Services annually. Manufacturers that do not comply will receive a penalty.

3. Senate resolution asking PUC to lower price caps passes Senate

This week the Texas Senate passed Sen. Charles Schwertner’s resolution that asks the Public Utility Commission to significantly reduce the high systemwide offer cap and evaluate changes to the market structure.

Many Texans received massive electricity bills after Winter Storm Uri hit. That was due to the PUC issuing an order directing ERCOT to start using the high systemwide offer cap that raised the cap for energy prices to $9,000 per megawatt hour. This was the highest price cap in the nation and it remained in place for four days. Utilities and retail electric providers were charged at that rate and face billions of dollars in charges after the storm.

In an effort to avoid future situations that may produce the same results, the Senate is urging the PUC to reduce the max rate that utilities and retail electric providers can be charged during a high systemwide offer cap.

4. Senate passes House Bill 139 to help military spouses, veterans

When active duty military and their families move to one of the many bases in Texas, their spouses can have a difficult time transitioning their occupational licenses from out of state. One such barrier is some licenses require the licensee to be a resident of the state of Texas.

House Bill 139 seeks to aid military spouses by expediting the process for them to acquire Texas residency for purposes of attaining an occupational license or educator certification.

This provision also will apply to any military veterans who have recently moved to Texas and need their residency expedited to get a license.

5. Senate Bill 1063 would allow students to take personal finance class

Currently, high school students are required to take an economics course, but that course doesn’t typically cover personal financial planning or financial literacy. This session Sen. Carol Alvarado introduced legislation that would change that.

Senate Bill 1063 would allow school districts to offer and high school students to take a hybrid course that would consist of both economics and personal financial literacy. Students taking this course would fulfill the existing economics credit requirement. This course would teach students about money, investing, securing wealth and navigating other important financial matters.

Many students graduate without an understanding of what investing means or what credit is or how it works. This class would give students the freedom financial literacy brings and empower them to be financially independent after graduation.

Senate Bill 1063 passed the Senate unanimously and is currently working its way through the House.

By Robert Nichols

Last week, the House passed its version of the state budget for the next two years. It differs in some significant ways from the budget the Senate passed.

In order to reconcile our differences, we’ll convene a conference committee with five members from each chamber to work out the details. I’m honored to once again serve as a conferee for the state budget.

Here are five things happening around your state:

1. Texas to gain two new congressional seats

The U.S. Census Bureau released preliminary data this week that outlined total population in the United States and in each state, and which states would be gaining or losing congressional seats.

Texas is set to gain two new seats in the Congress, the most of any state in the nation. That will bring Texas’ total congressional delegation to 38. Florida, Colorado, Montana, North Carolina and Oregon are each gaining one seat. Seven states will lose a seat, including California, Illinois, Michigan, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania and West Virginia.

This data reflects a population shift from northeastern areas to southern and western regions of the U.S.

Texas is now the second-most populous state and saw the largest population increase, gaining nearly 4 million people over the past 10 years.

The rest of the Census data will not be released until this fall, at which time the Legislature will start the process of redrawing congressional, state House, state Senate and State Board of Education districts.

2. Gov. Greg Abbott requests information from counties about financial impact of border crisis

This week, Abbott sent a letter to county judges across the state asking them to assess the financial impact the current border crisis has had on their counties, including costs they have incurred and those they anticipate to incur.

This information will be used to formally request the federal government reimburse these costs in full, since decisions at the federal level led to the humanitarian crisis at the border.

He also encouraged county judges to get a resolution of support for the State’s request from their commissioners court.

3. $11.2 billion in federal funds released to schools

This week, Abbott, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick and House Speaker Dade Phelan announced the release of $11.2 billion in federal funds for Texas public schools.

The funds are aimed at helping schools recover from the COVID-19 pandemic and address students’ learning loss. These funds will support the recovery effort over the next three years.

Due to federal requirements, only two-thirds of the funds are available immediately. The last third will be distributed when the U.S. Department of Education approves it.

4. Battleship Texas restoration continues

Last session, the Legislature passed Senate Bill 1511, a bill I authored that would pledge state resources toward saving the historic Battleship Texas. The battleship is the last of the dreadnoughts that fought in both World War I and World War II.

Since its heyday, the ship has fallen into disrepair, with salt water corroding the steel hull. There is also a system of pumps constantly pushing water out of the hull, which is the only thing keeping the ship upright in the Houston Ship Channel.

That pump system at one time was pumping 2,000 gallons of water an hour out of the ship. After repairs began, including filling the lower part of the hull with foam, those pumps only pump 3 gallons out an hour.

In accordance with the bill, the ship will soon be floated to a dry dock in Galveston for further repairs. Meanwhile, an extensive restoration effort has been undertaken by volunteers in Pasadena.

These volunteers are restoring the ship’s artifacts like anti-aircraft guns and spotlights. Years of wear and tear left these precious artifacts with chipped paint and rust.

I’d like to thank all of the volunteers who have worked countless hours to restore the Battleship Texas to her former glory.

5. More than 1.7 million doses of COVID-19 vaccine coming to Texas

The Department of State Health Services announced that more than 1.7 million COVID-19 vaccines are headed to Texas next week.

More than 700,000 of those doses are the first dose of the two-dose Moderna and Pfizer vaccines and were allocated to almost 1,000 providers in 129 counties.

Those providers also will get more than 570,000 second doses.

The final 470,000 doses are first and second doses and were allocated to pharmacies, federally qualified health centers and dialysis centers.

So far, more than 23.4 million doses have been distributed in Texas and more than 36% of Texans have received at least one dose.

By Robert Nichols

We have less than 50 days left in the 87th legislative session and the pace is picking up rapidly. Just this week, the Senate unanimously passed the Texas Consumer Privacy Act Phase 1, a bill I authored to ensure the data the state has on private citizens is protected.

Protecting consumer privacy is a priority for the Senate this session and I was proud to author this bill and see it pass unanimously through the Senate. Now, on to the House.

Here are five things happening around your state:

1. Vehicle title and registration waiver ends

This week the Texas Department of Motor Vehicles is reminding Texans that the temporary waiver for certain vehicle title and registration requirements ended April 14.

If you’re overdue for your vehicle registration or title, it’s time to renew. The requirements were waived last year by Gov. Greg Abbott due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

There are three ways to renew your vehicle registration. You can renew online at TxDMV.gov or Texas.gov, this is the quickest and least expensive way to renew. You can renew by mail by sending the bottom portion of your registration renewal form, payment and other required information to your county tax assessor-collector.

Finally, you can renew in person by visiting your county tax assessor-collector’s office. Before renewing your registration, Texans will need to obtain a passing vehicle inspection.

2. Texas sues Biden administration to reinstate “remain in Mexico” policy

Attorney General Ken Paxton filed suit against the Biden administration in an attempt to restore a Trump administration policy that required migrants who passed through Mexico on their way to the United States to remain in Mexico while their claims were processed.

Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt joined Paxton in the suit. The program, known as the Migrant Protection Protocols program, was first implemented in January 2019. After President Joe Biden took office, the Department of Homeland Security announced an end to the policy and program. In the months since, the border region has seen a large increase of migrants, so much so that the federal government’s migrant housing facilities are overwhelmed and overcrowded.

Paxton’s suit aims to get the court to reinstate the policy, arguing it was an “arbitrary and capricious decision.”

3. Texas Senate passes bill preventing cities from defunding police

The Texas Senate passed Senate Bill 23 this week, which would prevent local governments from cutting police budgets without voter approval. The bill, authored by Sen. Joan Huffman, would require cities or counties to hold an election before reducing police funding from the previous year, lower the number of officers or reduce funds per officer for training and recruitment.

If a municipality has a tough fiscal year, they won’t be penalized or required to hold an election as long as the percentage of the municipality’s budget spent on law enforcement doesn’t change.

The bill passed the Senate on a bipartisan vote of 28-2.

4. Baylor men’s basketball team honored in the chamber

This week, the Senate had the honor of hosting the Baylor men’s basketball team on the floor to congratulate them on their national championship win.

The Baylor Bears entered the March Madness tournament as the No. 1 seed for the South Regional. They dominated in their side of the bracket and led in the final game against Gonzaga from start to finish.

It was Baylor’s first men’s basketball national championship win in university history. The team and coach Scott Drew came to the Capitol on April 13 and were recognized on the Senate floor and on the House floor for their accomplishments.

The Bears are the first men’s basketball team from Texas to win a national championship since 1966.

Congratulations to Baylor men’s basketball for a great season and a legendary win.

5. Trinity Valley Community College cheerleaders win national title

The Trinity Valley Community College cheerleaders won the national title at the National Cheerleaders Association College National Championship in Daytona Beach, Florida, this month.

This is the team’s 12th national title, the most of any athletic program at TVCC. They beat their rivals Navarro Junior College of Netflix’s “Cheer” fame in the final round.

The competition was canceled last year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, so the team worked diligently in the offseason to prepare for this year’s championship.

Their hard work paid off and they’re taking home yet another trophy to add to their cheer legacy. Congratulations on a great win to the TVCC Cardinals.

By Robert Nichols

This week the Senate passed Senate Bill 1, the Senate’s version of the budget for this year. The budget includes over $11 billion for children and teacher public education support, $8 billion for mental health support, including an almost $20 million increase for children’s mental health programs, and over $25 billion for highway improvements and new construction. The budget is a reflection of our priorities this session and took over six weeks to put together.

Here are five things happening around your state:

1. Governor issues executive order prohibiting vaccine passports

This week Governor Abbott issued an executive order prohibiting government-mandated vaccine passports, including for the COVID-19 vaccine. This order applies to state agencies and political subdivisions in Texas. It prevents those agencies from requiring proof of vaccination to receive services.

It also prohibits entities that receive public funds, including private entities, from requiring documentation of vaccine status to receive any service or enter any place. Texans’ vaccination status is a private health matter, and as such should be protected from any forced disclosure. Currently, the COVID-19 vaccine is not mandatory.

2. Texas Senate passes election security bill

The Texas Senate passed Senate Bill 7 last week, which is aimed at protecting election integrity. It sets the early voting hours to start at 6 am and finish at 9 pm. It requires voting to occur inside a building with certain regulations. Voters would have to enter the building unless unable to because it was a risk to their health.

The bill also prevents local officials from sending out mail-in ballot applications to all voters, whether they’re eligible to vote-by-mail or not. Voters have to request a mail-in ballot on their own volition. Elections officials are allowed to post instructions on how to vote by mail on their website. There are several other provisions in the bill that strengthens election security and integrity for all our future elections.

3. Texas receives 2.5 million doses of vaccine this week

The Texas Department of State Health Services announced that Texas received 2.5 million doses of the COVID-19 vaccine this week. That marks the most Texas has received in a single week thus far. Texas has now administered more than 11.8 million doses.

Nearly 7.8 million people have received at least one dose, and more than 4.3 million Texans are fully vaccinated. Almost 20 percent of Texans are fully vaccinated. This comes as hospitalization rates for Texans have fallen dramatically. East Texas hospitals are seeing numbers as low as they’ve been since last spring.

East Texas hospital leaders credit increasing vaccination rates and lasting immunity for the drop in COVID-19 hospitalizations. With those rates decreasing, the CDC has also released new guidance about travelling within the United States for fully vaccinated people. Those who are fully vaccinated can travel safely within the US and no longer need to get tested or quarantine before or after travel, unless a destination requires it.

4. First day of STAAR cancelled due to disruptions

Texas students were preparing to take the STAAR test starting this week but were hampered by widespread technical glitches that forced many students offline or prevented them from logging in. The Texas Education Agency advised districts to stop online testing for the day while the vendor tried to resolve the problem.

At least three tests were effected by the glitch, including the fourth grade writing exam and the seventh grade writing and English I exams. TEA has waived grade promotion requirements for students in fifth and eighth grades, so the assessment is aimed at finding a benchmark for where students are. COVID-19 has led to an extensive disruption in student learning and assessing where students are is the first step to correcting that disruption. However, that becomes difficult when online STAAR testing is interrupted. TEA worked to get the students back online by the next day.

5. East Texas 5th grader raises money for slain DPS Trooper’s family

A Houston County 5th grader donated all of her winnings from showing her hog at the Houston County Youth Fair and Livestock show to the family of fallen DPS Trooper Chad Walker. Last month, Trooper Walker was shot multiple times after stopping to aid a driver near Mexia. He later died of his injuries at an area hospital.

Latexo ISD student Aubrey Waits heard about the tragedy and decided to donate her winnings to the family. Other donations began to come in on top of Aubrey’s and the fifth grader ended up raising about $10,000 for the family. I offer my condolences to the family of Trooper Walker.