![]() “Whether you had to leave the state or whether you had to worry about your kid not being around.” “We did have a lot of folks come out of that session with honest PTSD symptoms, knowing that … your life, your world can completely change,” she said. Rachel Hill, government affairs director with Equality Texas, says that’s already had an impact on trans youth and their families in Texas. Greg Abbott directed the Texas Department of Family Protective Services to open investigations into some families with transgender children. During the last session, Republican legislators tried and failed to pass laws that would ban such care.ĭespite broad agreement in the medical community of its efficacy, Attorney General Ken Paxton issued a nonbinding opinion earlier this year defining gender-affirming care as "child abuse." Soon after, Gov. One of those issues Rottinghaus expects to come up is gender-affirming health care for transgender youth. That means that you're seeing a new crop of legislators who are more inclined to push social issues over the kind of committed policy issues Republicans traditionally have favored.” “Moderates have either left the legislature or they've lost. ![]() “There's been a lot of turnover in the Republican Party,” Rottinghaus says. “They realized that they could not … govern the state from one central location, such as Austin, Texas, and that it was critically important that they let the elected officials in their own little areas handle local issues.”īut beyond "bread and butter" issues like taxes and infrastructure, Patrick's reelection could produce another socially conservative legislative session when lawmakers return to Austin in 2023, according to University of Houston political science professor Brandon Rottinghaus. “I believe that when our forefathers set up Texas, they realized how big of a state we were,” Whitely said. In an interview prior to the election, Whitley said that power should be in the hands of local officials. Patrick helped pass Senate Bill 2 in 2019, which limits how much local governments can raise property taxes without first holding an election. Other Patrick priorities have been teacher pay and property tax cuts - the latter of which the incumbent played up in his bid for reelection, and which caused at least one Republican to break ranks with the party to endorse Collier.įormer Tarrant County Judge Glen Whitley has been critical of the lieutenant governor for what he said was Patrick’s infringement on local sovereignty when it comes to collecting property taxes. “Renewables are great, but we have to have enough dispatchable power that we can always count on, so we don’t have to worry about if the winds not always blowing or the sun’s not out.” “We need more natural gas plants - deliverable, dispatchable power that we know we can count on,” Patrick said. In an interview with WFAA after the race was called Tuesday night, Patrick said his legislative priorities next year include criminal justice reform and continued improvements to the Texas power grid. With his victory, Patrick retains his hold on one of the most powerful positions in Texas: The lieutenant governor not only presides over the Texas Senate, but also helps shape the state’s legislative agenda, and oversees the budget and redistricting. Collier conceded the race on Twitter Tuesday night, thanking his family, team and voters who supported him. The lieutenant governor’s race was a contentious one - pitting GOP incumbent Dan Patrick against moderate-Democrat Mike Collier. Republicans swept statewide elections Tuesday night, leaving the office of governor, attorney general and lieutenant governor in conservative hands.
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