Rep. Cole Hefner

Maddy summarySB 23 increases the school district homestead tax exemption for elderly (65+) or disabled homeowners from $10,000 to $60,000 of their home's appraised value. This directly affects eligible homeowners who qualify for the exemption and school districts that may lose local tax revenue due to the change. The bill requires the state to provide additional aid to school districts to offset revenue losses from the higher exemption, starting with the 2025-2026 school year. The state aid calculation compares current revenue to what would have been collected under the previous exemption amount. The bill was signed into law on June 16, 2025, and is now effective.

Maddy summarySB 40 prohibits local governments (like cities or counties) from using public funds to pay bail bonds through nonprofit organizations that accept public donations. It directly affects local governments and nonprofits handling bail payments, banning the use of taxpayer money for this purpose. The bill allows taxpayers or residents to seek court orders to stop such spending and recover legal fees if they win a lawsuit. The law takes effect September 1, 2025.

Maddy summarySB 9 requires magistrates to document in writing within 24 hours if they determine no probable cause exists for an arrest. It mandates a detailed public safety report for bail decisions, including defendants' criminal history, pending charges, previous failures to appear, and violence-related offenses. The bill also regulates charitable bail organizations and updates procedures for setting bail conditions. These changes directly affect defendants, magistrates, and charitable bail organizations by standardizing information used in pretrial release decisions.

Maddy summaryThis Texas bill (SB 4) increases the homestead exemption for school district property taxes from $100,000 to $140,000 per homeowner, directly affecting residential property owners. School districts will receive additional state aid to offset revenue losses from this exemption increase, calculated as the difference between current local revenue and what would have been available before the change. The compensation mechanism applies starting with the 2023-2024 school year for the initial exemption increase and will extend to future changes proposed for 2025. This ensures school districts maintain funding stability despite reduced local tax revenue from larger homestead exemptions.

Maddy summaryHB 2464 limits city regulations on qualifying home-based businesses by prohibiting municipalities from banning these businesses or requiring licenses, permits, or rezoning for operations that meet "no-impact" criteria. It directly affects homeowners operating small-scale businesses from residential properties that do not exceed occupancy limits, generate traffic or noise, or visibly disrupt neighborhoods. Key provisions prevent cities from mandating fire sprinklers in single-family homes or multi-family units with two or fewer residences, while still requiring compliance with basic health, safety, and noise ordinances. The bill defines "no-impact" businesses as those with minimal employees/clients, no street parking impact, invisible operations, and no noise violations. This law became effective immediately upon the governor’s signature on June 12, 2025.

Maddy summaryHB 9 creates a property tax exemption for businesses owning tangible personal property (like equipment or inventory) used to generate income. It exempts $125,000 of the appraised value of such property at each location within a taxing unit, regardless of the property's individual value. The exemption applies to all businesses holding income-producing property at a single address, and related businesses operating under a unified enterprise must aggregate their property to calculate the exemption. Additionally, businesses leasing such property receive the full $125,000 exemption for all leased items, even if located across different taxing units.

Maddy summarySB 2308 establishes a Texas grant program to fund clinical trials of ibogaine with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for approval as a treatment for opioid use disorder, co-occurring substance use disorders, and other neurological or mental health conditions where ibogaine demonstrates efficacy. The program provides state funding to public-private partnerships conducting FDA drug development trials, targeting organizations with capacity to lead these trials and seek FDA approval. Eligible applicants must be for-profit, nonprofit, or public benefit entities capable of conducting the required trials and future research. This policy change directly supports the FDA approval process for ibogaine treatment, without authorizing its immediate use.

Maddy summarySJR 5 proposes a constitutional amendment that would allow judges to deny bail to individuals accused of certain violent or sexual offenses punishable as first-degree felonies, or continuous human trafficking. It directly affects people facing these specific charges by requiring judges to find, by clear and convincing evidence, that bail would not ensure court appearance or community safety. Key provisions include mandating written orders with specific findings for bail denials and requiring judges to consider standard bail factors under existing law. The amendment must be approved by voters in November 2025 to take effect, as it is a proposed constitutional change rather than an immediate law.

Maddy summaryHB 150 establishes the Texas Cyber Command as a new state agency under the Government Code, effective September 1, 2025. The bill transfers specific cybersecurity responsibilities from the Department of Information Resources to this new command, focusing on protecting critical infrastructure such as energy systems, water facilities, health care, and transportation networks. The command will handle cybersecurity incidents - including ransomware attacks and system breaches - by providing services to covered entities like local governments and private operators of critical infrastructure. This creates a dedicated state-level entity for coordinating cybersecurity efforts across vital systems, replacing the previous structure managed by the Department of Information Resources.

Maddy summaryThis resolution (HR 1496) suspends a House rule to allow a conference committee to remove duplicate language from House Bill 3642. The omitted text would have designated a section of U.S. Highway 67 in Dallas and Ellis Counties as the "Eddie Bernice Johnson Memorial Highway" with markers, but this is no longer needed because Senate Bill 2790 already covers the same highway designation. The bill itself does not create new policy - it streamlines the legislative process by eliminating redundant text.