Rep. Penny Morales Shaw

Maddy summaryHB 2688 amends Texas law governing public retirement systems for firefighters in large municipalities. It lowers the population threshold for municipalities to establish such a fund from 2 million to 1.6 million residents. The bill clarifies "normal retirement age" as either 20 years of service (for pre-2017 hires) or age 50 with 10 years of service (for post-2017 hires). It also updates terminology related to actuarial cost methods used to calculate pension funding requirements. The bill became law on September 1, 2025, affecting firefighters in qualifying Texas cities.

Maddy summaryHB 1584 requires Texas electric utilities to create and maintain a list of "priority facilities," including hospitals, police/fire stations, critical water/wastewater facilities, and certain correctional facilities. Utilities must provide an online tool for facilities to request inclusion (only if they qualify) and confirm within 14 days whether a facility is on the list. During declared emergencies, utilities must share this confidential list with Texas emergency management, and the list cannot be disclosed under public records laws. The law took effect September 1, 2025, directly impacting utilities and the named facilities.

Maddy summaryHB 46 modifies Texas' Compassionate-Use Program by requiring dispensing organizations to register certain personnel. The bill mandates that directors, owners, managers, and employees of these organizations must register with the state department, adding this as a requirement for licensing. It specifically amends the Health and Safety Code to include registration as a condition for operating a dispensing organization under the program. The law, signed by the governor on June 20, 2025, takes effect September 1, 2025.

Maddy summaryHB 3923 requires Texas state agencies to review and adjust job requirements to reduce reliance on bachelor's degrees for employment. Specifically, it directs classification officers to identify positions where educational requirements could be lowered, reduce the number of roles mandating a bachelor's degree, and explore career advancement paths for employees without one. The bill mandates agencies to report their findings to the governor's budget office and Legislative Budget Board by specified deadlines. This directly affects state hiring practices and employees who lack bachelor's degrees but possess relevant skills or experience. The policy change takes effect September 1, 2025, aiming to broaden state employment opportunities.

Maddy summaryHB 148 requires members of appraisal district boards of directors in Texas to complete annual training before each anniversary of their appointment. The training covers key topics like the roles of appraisal officials, ethics standards, budgeting, conflict-of-interest laws, and public service principles, with tax-related districts needing at least eight hours of instruction. This bill directly affects local government board members who oversee property tax appraisals and assessments. The training must be provided by accredited educational institutions, and members must submit a certificate of completion to their appraisal district.

Maddy summaryHB 114 transfers responsibility for certain veteran mental health programs from the Texas Health and Safety Code to the Texas Veterans Commission under the Government Code. The bill requires the Commission to administer a program including peer-to-peer counseling, suicide prevention training, veteran jail diversion services, and specialized initiatives for women veterans and rural veterans. Key provisions mandate training for peer service coordinators, coordination of mental health first aid, and access to licensed mental health professionals. This law directly affects Texas veterans seeking mental health support and takes effect September 1, 2025.

Maddy summaryHB 4848 requires Texas public university systems to offer competency-based bachelor's degree programs in high-demand fields at one or more campuses within each system. It caps program costs at no more than half the average tuition for students, with annual inflation adjustments based on the Consumer Price Index. The Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board determines which fields are "high demand" and sets cost rules. This directly affects public universities and students seeking affordable, skill-focused degrees in priority areas starting in the 2026-2027 academic year.

Maddy summaryHB 3151 creates a streamlined process for Medicaid managed care organizations to quickly approve (expedite) credentialing for providers at federally qualified health centers (FQHCs) and their established provider groups. It requires these providers to already have a contract with a Medicaid managed care organization, be enrolled in Medicaid, and submit necessary documentation. The law directly affects FQHCs and their contracted health care providers seeking faster inclusion in Medicaid provider networks. This change takes effect September 1, 2025, without altering Medicaid benefits or funding.

Maddy summaryHB 3000 creates a state grant program to provide financial assistance to qualified rural ambulance service providers in counties with populations of 68,750 or less. Counties may apply for grants of up to $500,000 (for counties under 10,000 people) or $350,000 (for counties between 10,000-68,750 people) to purchase ambulances, with funds restricted solely to ambulance procurement. Grants require counties to maintain ambulance service budgets in the following fiscal year and prioritize counties with greater distance to trauma facilities or limited funding capacity. The program, now law after being signed by the governor on June 20, 2025, aims to ensure adequate ground ambulance services in underserved rural areas.

Maddy summaryHB 1522 requires governmental bodies (like city councils or school boards) holding meetings to discuss or adopt a budget to include two specific items in their public notice: (1) a physical copy of the proposed budget (or a clear link to it online), and (2) a simple comparison showing how property taxes for a typical home would change if the budget passes. This applies to most local government budget meetings but excludes university governing boards covered by separate rules. The law, effective September 1, 2025, aims to make budget discussions more transparent for residents by providing clear tax impact information upfront. It modifies Texas' open meetings law to add these notice requirements for budget-related meetings.