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Texas Bills

Track legislation and stay informed about the bills that matter to you.

State Legislature US Congress

All 49,874 Active 2,428 In committee 28,785 Passed 17,440 Signed 5,309 Failed 583

signed · Texas · Senate May 19, 2025

SB 1062: Relating to the type of newspaper required for publication of public notices.

SB 1062 allows local governments in Texas to publish public notices in digital newspapers instead of traditional print newspapers, provided the digital option meets specific requirements. To qualify, a digital newspaper must have an audited paid-subscriber base, operate for at least three years, employ local staff, cover local events, provide general interest news, and update weekly. This change directly affects county and municipal governments that publish public notices, expanding their options beyond traditional print requirements. The bill amends existing law to include these digital standards and took effect immediately after being signed by the governor on May 19, 2025.

Topics ✓ Technology

signed · Texas · Senate May 19, 2025

SB 1106: Relating to publication of public improvement district service plans and assessments on certain public Internet websites.

This bill requires Texas municipalities and counties to post public improvement district service plans and assessment documents online within seven days of approval or updates. It directly affects local governments (which must post the information) and property owners in improvement districts (who can access these documents online). Key provisions mandate that service plans and assessment rolls be published on the government's official website, with specific formatting requirements for electronic submission to appraisal districts. The law aims to increase transparency by making this financial information publicly accessible without requiring physical mailings.

Topics ✓ Technology

signed · Texas · Senate May 16, 2025

SB 3045: Relating to the creation of the Hills of Walnut Creek Municipal Utility District of Parker County; granting a limited power of eminent domain; providing authority to issue bonds; providing authority to impose assessments, fees, and taxes.

SB 3045 creates the Hills of Walnut Creek Municipal Utility District in Parker County to provide essential utility services and infrastructure improvements. The district will have limited authority to acquire land through eminent domain, issue bonds for infrastructure projects, and impose assessments, fees, and taxes on properties within its boundaries. This bill directly affects residents and property owners in the designated district area by establishing a local government entity to manage water, sewer, road maintenance, and storm drainage systems. The district’s creation aligns with Texas constitutional provisions for municipal utility districts and requires municipal consent before implementation.

signed · Texas · Senate May 15, 2025

SB 2065: Relating to the Texas Emergency Services Retirement System.

SB 2065 amends Texas law to clarify how the Texas Emergency Services Retirement System (TESRS) manages its funding. It defines key terms like "legacy liability" (the unfunded pension debt as of August 2024) and creates new categories for tracking changes in the system's financial health, such as "liability gain layers" (reductions in debt) and "liability loss layers" (increases in debt). These changes standardize how the system's funding status is assessed and reported, requiring annual adjustments based on contributions and a 7% investment return assumption. The bill directly affects emergency service workers (like firefighters and EMTs) who rely on TESRS benefits, ensuring clearer accountability in managing the system's long-term financial obligations.

signed · Texas · Senate May 15, 2025

SCR 13: Urging the U.S. Department of State and the United States Section of the International Boundary and Water Commission to take appropriate action to ensure that Mexico complies with the 1944 Treaty regarding shared water resources.

This Senate Concurrent Resolution (SCR 13) urges the U.S. Department of State and the International Boundary and Water Commission to ensure Mexico complies with the 1944 Treaty on shared water resources. It specifically addresses Mexico's failure to deliver the required 350,000 acre-feet of water annually (averaged over five years), with a current deficit of 984,814 acre-feet. The resolution highlights how this shortfall harms Texas water users, including municipal, agricultural, and industrial sectors in the Rio Grande Valley, impacting reservoir levels and causing economic losses like the closure of Texas' only sugar mill. As a non-binding resolution, it formally requests U.S. federal agencies to take action but does not change legal obligations.

signed · Texas · Senate May 15, 2025

SB 599: Relating to the authority of a political subdivision to regulate a licensed, registered, or listed group day-care home or family home.

SB 599 prevents local governments in Texas from imposing stricter health and safety regulations on licensed child-care homes or registered family homes than those established by state law or the Texas Health and Human Services Commission. It directly affects day-care providers operating under state registration, ensuring they face only uniform standards statewide. The bill’s key provision prohibits cities or counties from creating additional local rules that exceed existing state requirements for these facilities. This aims to provide regulatory certainty for child-care providers while maintaining consistent safety standards across the state.

Topics ✗ Labor & Employment

signed · Texas · Senate May 15, 2025

SB 1930: Relating to the use of proceeds from the sale of saltwater fishing stamps issued by the Parks and Wildlife Department.

SB 1930 directs all revenue from Texas saltwater fishing stamp sales (collected on or after September 1, 2025) to fund specific coastal fisheries programs. The bill requires these funds to be used exclusively for: repairing fish hatcheries and related facilities, restoring saltwater fish habitats, developing shoreline angler access projects, and purchasing licenses through designated buyback programs. It does not affect current stamp revenue collected before the effective date. The law ensures these funds directly support conservation, habitat management, and recreational access for saltwater fishing in Texas.

Topics ✓ Budget & Taxes ✓ Environment

signed · Texas · Senate May 15, 2025

SB 304: Relating to the jurisdiction of municipal courts over health and safety and nuisance abatement ordinances.

SB 304 allows Texas municipalities to expand municipal court authority to enforce existing health, safety, and nuisance abatement ordinances. It grants courts civil jurisdiction within city limits and on city-owned property in surrounding areas, plus power to issue search warrants for investigations and seizure warrants to secure or remove hazardous property. This directly affects cities and their municipal courts by altering enforcement mechanisms under current laws. The bill takes effect September 1, 2025.

signed · Texas · Senate May 15, 2025

SB 1738: Relating to the Judicial Retirement System Plan Two, including resuming service in the retirement system and contributions to the retirement system.

SB 1738 allows retired Texas judicial officers who return to full-time judicial service (not temporary assignments) to rejoin the Judicial Retirement System Plan Two under specific conditions. To qualify, they must have been separated from judicial service for at least six consecutive months before returning, notify the retirement system within 30 days of taking office, and restart member contributions. If they serve 24 months or more after returning, their retirement payments are recalculated to include higher salary history and additional service credit; if they serve less than 24 months, they receive a refund of their contributions and resumed annuity payments. The changes apply to current judicial retirees returning after the bill’s effective date (September 1, 2025, unless passed with a two-thirds vote) and require existing retirees to make their election by September 1, 2027.

signed · Texas · Senate May 15, 2025

SB 1215: Relating to the placement of a cultivated oyster in a natural oyster bed, a private oyster bed, or coastal waters.

SB 1215 creates a permitting system for placing cultivated (farmed) oysters in natural oyster beds, private oyster beds, or coastal waters in Texas. It requires written approval from the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department for such placements, replacing a previous blanket prohibition. The bill mandates the department to develop best management practices for reviewing these requests. This directly affects oyster farmers, shellfish businesses, and coastal resource managers who must now seek authorization before placing farmed oysters in designated waters. The law takes effect September 1, 2025.

signed · Texas · House May 15, 2025

HB 5673: Relating to the creation of La Cima Municipal Management District No. 1; providing authority to issue bonds; providing authority to impose assessments, fees, and taxes; granting a limited power of eminent domain.

HB 5673 would create La Cima Municipal Management District No. 1 in San Marcos, Texas, to promote economic development and community services within its boundaries. The district would have authority to issue bonds for infrastructure projects, impose assessments and fees on properties within its area, and use limited eminent domain to acquire land for public improvements. This special district is designed to supplement, not replace, existing city services like safety and transportation while focusing on job growth, tourism, and neighborhood revitalization. Property owners in the designated district area would be directly affected through potential assessments to fund these initiatives.

signed · Texas · Senate May 15, 2025

SB 1066: Relating to the requirement for performance and payment bonds from certain contractors of the Parks and Wildlife Department.

SB 1066 requires contractors working on public work contracts exceeding $150,000 with Texas Parks and Wildlife Department to provide both a performance bond (to ensure project completion) and a payment bond (to guarantee payment to subcontractors and suppliers). This applies only to new contracts advertised or solicited on or after September 1, 2025, directly affecting contractors bidding on large-scale department projects. Existing contracts solicited before this date remain governed by prior law. The bill amends Parks and Wildlife Code Section 11.0171 to implement these bond requirements for qualifying public work contracts.