HB 2637 Texas House · 89th Legislature (2025)

Relating to the practice and procedures for summoning prospective grand jurors and petit jurors and the exemption of certain persons from grand jury and petit jury service.

HB 2637 updates Texas law regarding grand jury qualifications and jury summons procedures. It sets specific eligibility requirements for grand jurors, including being a U.S. citizen, at least 18 years old, a county resident, and without certain criminal convictions (such as felony theft or a felony). The bill requires court clerks to send monthly lists of disqualified jurors to the secretary of state, voter registrar, and prosecuting attorney. This affects prospective grand jurors and streamlines the process for determining eligibility in Texas courts, taking effect September 1, 2025.
Bill status signed all 5 stages cleared
Introduction
Mar 2025
Committee Review
May 2025
House Passage
May 2025
Senate Passage
May 2025
Signed into Law
Jun 2025
Introduced Mar 18, 2025 Signed Jun 20, 2025
Maddy AI version diff · 2 comparisons

What changed between versions

Engrossed Enrolled · 6 edits · Jun 20, 2025
MODERATE
This bill updates jury service laws to align with accessibility standards (WCAG 2.1) and reorganizes the structure of grand jury and petit jury qualifications and exemptions. It clarifies disqualification criteria for convicted persons, adjusts age thresholds for elderly exemptions, and modifies how lists of disqualified persons are maintained and shared with state agencies.
Scope change
The bill expands the scope by adding new articles to the Code of Criminal Procedure and Government Code governing jury service, while removing outdated formatting and consolidating related sections.
REQUIREMENT

Added requirement that digital content on TLO must align with WCAG 2.1 accessibility standards.

Updated procedures for maintaining and distributing lists of disqualified persons to state agencies and voter registrars.

ELIGIBILITY

Reorganized and clarified grand juror qualifications, including age requirements, citizenship, residency, and disqualifications for convicted persons.

Adjusted permanent exemption criteria for elderly persons from 70 years of age to 75 years of age.

Revised petit jury service exemptions to include additional categories such as primary caretakers of dependent adults and military personnel deployed away from home station.

TIMELINE

Set the effective date of the Act to September 1, 2025.

Floor votes · House Apr 23, 2025

How they voted

This bill passed the Senate by voice vote (no roll call recorded).
Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions
57
Key actions
18
Committee
11
Amendments
8
Jun 20, 2025
Signed into law
Signed by the Governor
executive
May 31, 2025
Upper · Passed
Signed in the Senate
upper
May 30, 2025
Lower · Passed
Signed in the House
lower
May 28, 2025
Introduced
House concurs in Senate amendment(s)-reported
upper
May 28, 2025
Introduced
Text of Senate Amendment(s)
lower
May 28, 2025
Introduced
House concurs in Senate amendment(s)
lower
May 25, 2025
Introduced
Senate Amendments Analysis distributed
lower
May 25, 2025
Introduced
Senate Amendments distributed
lower
May 25, 2025
Lower · Passed
Senate passage as amended reported
lower
May 25, 2025
Upper · Passed
Passed
upper
May 21, 2025
Upper · Passed
Committee report printed and distributed
upper
May 21, 2025
Upper · Passed
Reported favorably as substituted
upper
May 20, 2025
Upper · Passed
Vote taken in committee
upper
May 20, 2025
Upper · Passed
Testimony taken in committee
upper
Apr 29, 2025
Committee
Referred to Criminal Justice
upper
Apr 29, 2025
Introduced
Read first time
upper
Apr 24, 2025
Introduced
Received from the House
upper
Apr 24, 2025
Lower · Passed
Passed
lower
Apr 23, 2025
Lower · Passed
Passed to engrossment as amended
lower
Apr 23, 2025
Lower · Passed
Amended
lower
Apr 23, 2025
House · Passed
House Vote: pass (138-7-1)
house
Apr 15, 2025
Lower · Passed
Committee report sent to Calendars
lower
Apr 14, 2025
Lower · Passed
Committee report distributed
lower
Apr 3, 2025
Lower · Passed
Reported favorably as substituted
lower
Mar 26, 2025
Lower · Passed
Left pending in committee
lower
Mar 26, 2025
Lower · Passed
Testimony taken/registration(s) recorded in committee
lower
Mar 18, 2025
Committee
Referred to Judiciary & Civil Jurisprudence
lower
Mar 18, 2025
Introduced
Read first time
lower
2 primary · 0 co-sponsors

Sponsors