I hope you all had a very Merry Christmas and a safe and happy New Year. The new year brings a new legislative session, so I’ll be spending time in Austin working on your behalf over the next 140 days.

Here are five things happening around your state: 

1. Legislature convenes for 88th Legislative Session

The Texas Legislature is officially back in session! Both the Texas Senate and Texas House of Representatives gaveled their respective chambers into session on Tuesday, January 10, opening the 88th Legislative session. The entirety of all the House and Senate members were sworn in on opening day, as every member was elected in November following redistricting. Work now begins on a multitude of issues ranging from the state’s budget, education, transportation, and more.  

2. Senators draw lots for term lengths following redistricting

On the second day of session, each senator took part in a once-a-decade event. Every ten years, the US Census is released and states go through redistricting. As such, every member of the Senate must run for re-election regardless of when their four year term would end. When members are elected and sworn in, the Texas Constitution dictates that senators are divided by lot into two classes. Half the members will be given a two year term and the other half will serve a normal four year term. The members who have two year terms will, upon re-election, serve four year terms. This is to ensure that only half the senate membership is up for re-election in any given election year. I’m happy to report that I drew a four year term and am honored to continue to serve the people of East and Southeast Texas. 

3. Comptroller Hegar releases Biennial Revenue Estimate

Texas Comptroller Hegar released the Biennial Revenue Estimate earlier this month, which is a projection of how much money the state has to spend over the next two years. He said the state has $188.2 billion available to spend for the 2024-2025 biennium. The estimate includes a $32.7 billion surplus from the last two years, which is credited to economic growth, gas prices, inflation, and other economic elements. This is the largest budget projection legislators have ever received. However, the Legislature will only spend what is necessary after careful consideration. It is also more than the Texas Constitution will legally allow legislators to appropriate without bypassing the spending cap. Last session, we passed Senate Bill 1336 which limits increases of state expenditures by tying the cap to population growth and inflation. The legislature can only exceed the spending cap by adopting a resolution that identifies an emergency and is passed by 3/5th of the members.  Texas’ budget surplus comes at the same time that other states are battling severe budget deficits. California is facing a $22.5 billion deficit and will be forced to make cuts in the coming year. 

4. New laws took effect January 1

Starting January 1 of this year, several new laws that were passed during the 2021 legislative sessions took effect, including laws on property tax reform and reforms to the judicial branch, among others. The property tax bill, Senate Bill 12 authored by Sen. Bettencourt, provides school district tax rate reduction for homesteads owned by elderly or disabled persons. Texans statewide received a similar reduction after the 86th Legislature, but that effort inadvertently left out elderly or disabled homesteads. 

Another provision going into effect creates 10 district courts, five statutory county courts, one statutory probate court, and one criminal magistrate court. It revises jurisdiction of certain courts and the duties of other courts. Additionally, the law, House Bill 3774 authored by Rep. Jeff Leach, makes revisions to the Forensic Science Commission, specialty court programs, and the protective order registry.   

5. Legislature to take up redistricting again to ensure constitutionality 

As you may recall, the Legislature passed newly drawn district maps during a special session in 2021 based on the Census. However, the Texas Constitution states in Article 3 Section 28 that “the Legislature shall, at its first regular session after the publication of the each United States’ decennial census, apportion the state into senatorial and representative districts.” The Census was released later than usual in 2021 due to COVID-19. Therefore, the 88th legislative session is technically the first regular session after the publication of the census. So, out of an abundance of caution, the Senate has voted to take up redistricting once more to ensure the Legislature has met its constitutional requirements. 

I hope your Thanksgiving was filled with family, friends, and wonderful food. We all have much to be thankful for. Now, the holiday season is upon us!

Here are five things happening around your state:

1. Stephen F. Austin State University votes to join University of Texas System

During a special called Board of Regents meeting on Tuesday, November 29, the SFA Board of Regents voted to affiliate with the University of Texas System. The vote came after a months long process during which four university systems made proposals to SFA. Other systems that made offers included Texas A&M University System, Texas State University System, and Texas Tech University System. The system affiliation evaluation subcommittee met with each system, collected public comment, and reviewed written proposals from each system. The subcommittee focused on five areas while evaluating their options: SFA’s ability to remain autonomous, culture and fit, transition, financial impact, and intangibles. The UT System made a strong financial pitch, committing $80 million in Permanent University Fund (PUF) bond proceeds in year one to capital projects at SFA. UT System also committed to $1 million in annual student scholarship and $5.5 million to increase faculty salaries. Overall, UT System estimated it would provide $124 million in additional value over the first four years. One key aspect of affiliating with a system for SFA was maintaining their name, mascot, and colors. UT System has assured the Board of Regents that the university will maintain their identity, including the name, mascot, and colors.

2. TEA announces new facilities requirements for school safety, $400M in safety grants 

This month, the Texas Education Agency announced their new facilities standards to improve school safety. In conjunction, Governor Abbott announced an additional $400 million in grant funding to help school districts replace and upgrade doors, windows, fencing, communications, and other measures outlined in the facilities requirements. The new facilities standards included requirements that exterior doors, exterior classroom doors, and portable building doors must be closed, latched, and locked unless actively monitored or in a secured area. Any windowed doors on the ground level or windows adjacent to doors must be reinforced with entry-resistant film unless within a secured area. Campuses must have exterior door numbering, radio signal repeaters, and exterior secure master key lock boxes. Schools will also be required to conduct weekly exterior door sweeps and provide an exterior door numbering site plan to local law enforcement entities.
The $400 million in grant funding is allocated on a per-pupil basis, however small and rural districts will receive a base allocation of $200,000. The grant will allow for spending on security-related items, but schools must first spend on items necessary to comply with the new rules. Once those standards are met, remaining funds can be spent on other eligible security-related costs as defined by the grant program.

3. Bill filing for 88th Legislative Session begins 

Legislators are ready and gearing up for next session. As of November 14, bill filing for the 88th Legislative Session has begun. Over a thousand bills have already been filed with many more to come before the Legislature convenes on January 10 next year. I’ve filed two bills already, one regarding maternity leave for state employees and the other relating to continuing transportation funding. This is an important time of year for policymakers to begin to set the agenda for the next session and find out what our colleagues are interested in as well.

4. AT&T unveils new cell tower in Jasper to boost connectivity

This month, AT&T announced an expansion of its network in the Jasper area, boosting wireless connectivity. The new tower brings Band 14 spectrum to the area. Band 14 is nationwide, high-quality spectrum for FirstNet, which can be used to enhance public safety. AT&T has invested $5 million in Jasper over the past several years and $70 million in the Beaumont area. These investments enhance speed, performance, and coverage for our communities.

5. Over $300M grant approved for UT-Tyler Medical Education Building

Earlier this month, the University of Texas Board of Regents gave final authorization for UT-Tyler School of Medicine’s new Medical Education Building. The total project cost of the building is $308 million. The building will support interdisciplinary education for graduate medical students, resident training, and nursing training for students. It will also play a role in the medical education program expansion through the UT Health East Texas Health System. It will provide outpatient and specialty clinical services with exam rooms, specimen collection and processing, and imaging facilities. The project is expected to be completed in March 2025.

Early voting has begun! Be sure to check with your county clerk’s office to find out where polling locations are open near you. Early voting started October 24 and ends November 4. Election Day is November 8.   

Here are five things happening around your state:

1. Nichols completes meetings with district superintendents 

I spent the past several weeks traveling around the district meeting with school district leaders to discuss issues relating to education ahead of the next legislative session. My biennial superintendent tour takes me to most counties in the district to meet with most of the almost 100 superintendents in Senate District 3. Superintendents were encouraged to attend the meetings and bring whomever they wished to join the discussion. While each district is unique, there were common issues across districts that were discussed in most of the meetings. Some of those issues include school funding, school safety measures, issues with truancy and discipline, teacher shortages, and mental health supports for students. Superintendents also mentioned their concern over the growing push for a school voucher system. Education is the most important issue that the Legislature works on, and it’s imperative to get input from our school leaders on the education agenda. I would like to thank all of the superintendents and other staff who attended and participated in these meetings. You all do incredible work every day and we appreciate you! 

2. Stephen F. Austin State University receives responses from four university systems on affiliation 

This month, the SFA Board of Regents published responses from four university systems interested in potential affiliation between SFA and one of the systems. Texas A&M University System, Texas State University System, Texas Tech University System, and The University of Texas System all have made contact with the Board of Regents expressing a desire to have SFA join their systems. As part of the ongoing discussions, each of the four systems submitted responses to a list of questions developed by representative campus groups. These groups then evaluated each system’s response and submitted a report reflecting their perceptions of the strengths and weaknesses of each system. The Board of Regents Subcommittee tasked with evaluating affiliation is also reviewing the responses. The Board of Regents will hear presentations of these reports at a board meeting at the end of the month and anticipate making a decision about affiliation before the end of the fall semester. If you would like to read the responses from each system, they are available at https://www.sfasu.edu/about-sfa/board-of-regents/university-system. 

3. Three East Texas schools receive school safety grant 

Diboll ISD, Westwood ISD, and White Oak ISD have all received a total of over $920,000 to improve school safety measures. The funding stems from the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, which was passed by Congress and signed into law earlier this year. The law allocated $100 million to the Department of Justice grant program for school districts to invest in security programs and technology. The aid in the bill goes toward investments in children and family mental health services, protections for victims of domestic violence, funding for school-based mental health and supportive services, and telehealth investments meant to increase access to mental and behavioral health services. The bill also allocated an additional $200 million to help schools with training for students and faculty and other violence-prevention efforts. 

4. T.L.L. Temple Foundation awards $2 million grant to Texas Association of Community Colleges 

The Texas Association of Community Colleges’ Texas Success Center is the beneficiary of The T.L.L. Temple Foundation’s $200 million grant to help align education to workforce needs in East Texas. The grant will be distributed over five years and will enable TACC to strengthen, scale, and expand guided pathways into a regional talent pipeline for postsecondary degrees and credentials in high demand, high wage career fields. This grant funding will increase alignment between industry needs and educational opportunities, as well as access to educational opportunities for rural East Texans. 

5. Texas Parks and Wildlife Department announces new executive director 

The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department recently named David Yoskowitz as the new Executive Director. He previously served as the senior executive director and Endowed Chair for Socioeconomics at the Harte Research Institute for Gulf of Mexico Studies at Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi. Yoskowitz spent much of his career as a leader at Texas A&M-Corpus Christi, but his research also took him to other places in North and Central America, including Cuba, Nicaragua, Belize, El Salvador, and Mexico. He earned a Ph.D. in Economics and an M.A. in Economics from Texas Tech University and a B.S. in Economics and Finance from Bentley College. 

It is back-to-school season and fall is right around the corner. I hope all of our students, teachers, administrators, and parents had a safe and rewarding return to school.

Here are five things happening around your state:

1. NASA High School Aerospace Scholars program recruitment open

Recruitment has opened for NASA’s High School Aerospace Scholars program. The program is a STEM learning experience for Texas high school juniors to engage with NASA. The year-long program begins in the fall with an online learning experience centered on space exploration, Earth science, technology, and aeronautics. The top students are then invited to a five-day virtual summer experience. The summer experience is mentored by NASA scientists and engineers and students work in teams to plan a mission to the Moon and Mars. High achieving teams are then invited to a two-day residential experience at the Johnson Space Center in Houston. Applications open August 29 and close October 20. Students can earn elective credit for school through the program. For more information and to apply please visit www.nasa.gov/has.

2. T.L.L. Temple Foundation award $2.2 million to Texas Success Center

The T.L.L. Temple Foundation awarded $2.2 million over the next five years to the Texas Success Center, a subsidiary of the Texas Association of Community Colleges, to improve postsecondary and employment outcomes in rural East Texas. The grant is part of the foundation’s Talent Strong East Texas initiative which aims to upskill East Texans by strengthening, scaling, and expanding  guided pathways into postsecondary degrees or credentials that lead to high-demand, high-wage jobs for the region. These grants will ensure that more East Texans have access and opportunity to succeed in a postsecondary setting. Upskilling the workforce of East Texas is critical to maintaining  a healthy, vibrant economy. I applaud the Temple Foundation for their generosity and the Texas Success Center for their important work.

3. ALERRT Travel Assistance, bullet-resistant shield grant program announced

This month, Governor Abbott announced that the Governor’s Public Safety Office is accepting applications from law enforcement agencies for Advanced Law Enforcement Rapid Response Training (ALERRT) travel assistance and the Bullet-Resistant Shield Grant Program. In June of this year, $3 million was set aside for law enforcement agencies to offset travel expenses to attend ALERRT training and another $50 million was transferred for bullet-resistant shields. ALERRT is considered the gold standard for active shooter training and easing the burden for departments to send officers to training ensures the state has more highly-trained officers on duty. This summer alone ALERRT trained over 3,000 officers, delivered dozens of classes, and has scheduled more than 100 additional classes for this fall. Applications for travel assistance are open to ISDs, institutes of higher education, local governments, and other education institutions that employ peace officers. Applications should be submitted after registration for an ALERRT course is confirmed. Applications close August 31.

Applications for grant funding to equip law enforcement officers with bullet-resistant shields are also now open. Applications may be submitted by ISDs, local governments, the Texas Department of Public Safety, and other education institutions that employ peace officers. The deadline for priority consideration is September 16. All officers that receive these grant-funded shields must have received ALERRT training within the past two years or have committed to attend ALERRT training within in the next two years.

4. Stephen F. Austin State University exploring joining a university system

The Board of Regents at SFA is considering whether the university should formally join one of several university systems in the state. Four different systems across the state have expressed an interest in acquiring the university including University of Texas System, Texas A&M University System, Texas Tech University System, and Texas State University System. SFA is one of the last unaffiliated universities in the state. If they join a larger university system, only Texas Southern will be left unaffiliated. SFA has developed an online portal for community input and plan to make a decision ahead of the next legislative session beginning in January. Legislative action would be required for SFA to join a university system.

5. Four East Texas teachers inducted in Agriculture Teachers Hall of Fame

Four East Texas teachers have been honored by the Agriculture Teachers Association of Texas for their exemplary careers and achievements over their many years of service. Larry Poe, George Stephenson, Perry Fenley and the late Hayne Daniel were all inducted into the Agriculture Teachers Association of Texas Hall of Fame. We thank them for their outstanding influence and impact on East Texas students over their careers!

Sixty-four years ago this month, President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed the National Aeronautics and Space Act, which established NASA and emphasized our commitment to space exploration and manned space flight. NASA later elected to build a new flight-control center outside of Houston, making Texas an essential piece of the space race. 

Here are five things happening around your state: 

1. ALERRT and House Committee release reports on shooting in Uvalde 

This month, both the Advance Law Enforcement Rapid Response Training Center and the House Investigative Committee on the Robb Elementary Shooting released reports on their assessment of the tragic shooting in Uvalde. Each report highlighted different parts of the overall response. The ALERRT center covered the timeline, a physical assessment, and a tactical assessment. The tactical assessment spoke to their expertise on strategies used during the shooting and different strategies that could have been used in this situation. Their expertise lies in responder training and their report reflected deficiencies in training and execution of that training. To read the report, visit https://alerrt.org/. 

The House Investigative Committee on the Robb Elementary Shooting released their report a few weeks after the ALERRT Center’s report. The House report detailed an extensive timeline of the events leading up to the shooting, during the shooting, and after the shooting. They delved into the attacker’s family life and background, the school’s security and facilities, the law enforcement response, and drew several factual conclusions. I commend my colleagues for their important work on this issue and look forward to working with other House and Senate members to develop recommendations moving forward. To read the full report, go to https://house.texas.gov/_media/pdf/committees/reports/87interim/Robb-Elementary-Investigative-Committee-Report.pdf. 

2. Suicide hotline number changes to 988

This month, the Federal Communications Commission implemented a change to the national suicide hotline number. Instead of the old 11-digit number, the new number is just three digits and easier to remember. Now, calling 988 will give you resources for immediate mental health emergencies, such as people at risk of suicide and other crises. The hope is that calling 988 for a mental health crisis will become just as instinctive as calling 911 in an emergency. Those who call the hotline will connect directly with a crisis center staffed by trained professionals that offer free and immediate help at any time. The line offers communication options in several languages and is now available. People in distress can also chat with a trained counselor by visiting www.988lifeline.org.  

3. Universal Service Fund rates will increase on some phone lines

Beginning August 1, telephone customers will see an increase in monthly bills due to a court ruling that state regulators must fully fund the Universal Service Fund (USF). The USF was created to ensure that Texans in rural areas have access to phone services, which is legally a public necessity. Each telephone customer’s bill has a line item for the USF which has charged a 3.3 percent fee of the cost for intrastate voice service. That percentage is now going up to 24 percent. For many single-line customers, that charge was as low as 30 cents a month. That cost could rise to about $2 per month or more. This change comes after the Public Utility Commission, which oversees the USF, rejected a more modest increase in 2020, which would’ve brought the assessment to 6.4 percent. In 2021, Governor Abbott vetoed a measure aimed at addressing the issue, as well. 

4. Tax free weekend for back-to-school approaching 

This year’s sales tax holiday weekend for back-to-school is Friday, August 5 through Sunday, August 7. Texans can save money on tax-free purchases of most clothing, footwear, school supplies, and backpacks during the annual Tax-Free weekend. Qualifying items can be purchased in-store or online. The exemption applies to each eligible item sold for less than $100 and there is no limit to the number of qualifying items Texans can buy.  

5. Texas Parks and Wildlife accepting drawn hunt permit applications

Texas Parks and Wildlife opened applications for drawn hunt permits for the 2022-2023 hunting season in July. There are almost 10,000 permits in 62 hunt categories. The permits allow drawn hunts on public and private land, including hunts for white-tailed and mule deer, pronghorn, turkey, alligator, dove, and some exotic species. An online interactive map shows all drawn hunt opportunities by category or area. All applications, fees, and permit issuances are handled online. Permits are open to resident and non-resident hunters. The first application deadlines are in August. For more information, visit: https://tpwd.texas.gov/huntwild/hunt/public/public_hunt_drawing/.