Strategic Partnerships, Inc.
Strategic Partnerships, Inc.
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Today is Legislative Day 123 and here is a box score of bills (exclusive of resolutions) through yesterday. Of the 3592 bills filed in the House, 35 have now passed in both chambers and 5 of those have been signed by the governor. Of the 1891 bills filed in the Senate, 82 have now passed in both chambers and 37 of those have been signed by the governor. Of the bills already signed by the governor, 28 were effectively immediately.
Last week's Lens on the Legislature suggested that, based on previous legislative sessions, 1500 would be a reasonable estimate for the number of bills that would become laws. That would mean we are less than 10% of the way there! The next few weeks will be busy times at the state capitol.
The April 8th Lens on the Legislature explained the actions the governor could take on any individual bill and had a number of links where the interested reader could follow matters like bills signed, bills vetoed and bills that would be effective immediately.
Another matter that will likely get a lot of attention in the next few weeks is the fifth round of the (federal) Base Realignment and Closure Project (BRAC). Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld is forwarding DOD's recommendations to the BRAC Commission today. The nine member commission, which was sworn in last week, must send to the President by September 8th its "findings and conclusions based on a review and analysis of the Secretary's recommendations." The President then has until September 23rd to accept or reject the commission's recommendations in their entirety.
Editors Note: An article elsewhere in this Insider summarizes this morning's announcement.
The four previous BRAC rounds -- in 1988, 1991, 1993 and 1995 -- brought about 97 major closures, 55 major realignments and 235 minor actions, according to DoD figures. The major closings have included Naval Station Galveston, Bergstrom AFB (Austin), Carswell AFB (Ft. Worth), Naval Air Station Chase Field (Beeville), Naval Air Station Dallas, Kelly AFB (San Antonio), and Reese AFB (Lubbock).
The military and defense industry have a $77 billion economic impact on our state according to the governor. 230,000 Texans are on defense payrolls. Needless to say, the BRAC project will be very important to our state.
Here are some handy links for understanding the BRAC process:
Finally, the appropriations bill (SB1) must be passed in the next 18 days. Several sunset bills must also be passed. There is a strong desire to pass major legislation dealing with schools, taxes, water and workers' compensation. Therefore, whether you look at major legislation or at the bill statistics generally, the inescapable conclusion is that it will be a very busy rest of May.
