Governor Calls Special Session No one who serves in the 85th Legislature was surprised by Governor Greg Abbott’s call for a special session to convene on Tuesday, July 18th. When the regular session adjourned on Memorial Day, most of the legislators knew that there were critical items which did not pass both houses that would bring… Read more

Sen. Bob Hall calls on Gov. Abbott to Prioritize Grid Security As Texas Legislature heads into a special session, threats to electrical grid security loom (AUSTIN, TX)– Sen. Bob Hall (R-Edgewood), today called on Gov. Greg Abbott to add electrical grid security to the agenda items for the legislative special session starting in July. “There… Read more

Education Public education is a core function of state government, and the authority to fund and implement a complete system to ensure an equitable education for all children is given to the Texas legislature by the Texas Constitution. A legislative session is like a 140-day open house at the Capitol. It is the time when… Read more

Crony Capitalism Has no Place in a Conservative State like Texas Crony capitalism has no place in a conservative state like Texas. There is no question that a key factor in Texas’ economic success has been our “free market” policies. Open competition, with minimal government interference, is the engine which drives companies to produce better… Read more

Senate Bill 1356, A Real Solution to “Texting While Driving” The Texas House has passed and the Senate has considered in committee legislation that would create a misdemeanor offense of using a hand held device to read, write, or send a text based communication while operating a moving vehicle that is not stopped. Regrettably, the… Read more

The End of Red Light Cameras? As Vice-Chairman of Senate Committee on Transportation, I am pleased to announce that  my Senate Bill 88 was passed out of the Senate Committee on Transportation, March 15, 2017 .  Senate Bill 88 prohibits any unmanned photographic traffic signal enforcement systems in the state of Texas, commonly known as… Read more

Evaluating and Clarifying SB 6 Misinformation has led good people to make fun of the Legislature’s attempt to keep men out of women’s restrooms, locker rooms, and showers. “Bathroom” jokes now abound. Unfortunately, this issue is not funny and it will have some very serious consequences for women and children if this legislation is not… Read more

Evaluating and Clarifying SB 2   The Texas Property Reform and Relief Act of 2017, will, at long last, provide Texas citizens a meaningful voice in limiting out of control property tax growth by requiring an election to approve an annual increase over 4%. It is the ultimate in local control by citizens. For far… Read more

On Tuesday, January 10th, my team and I hosted a number of guests from Senate District 2 in a reception we held to celebrate the opening day of the 85th Texas Legislative Session.   I also took the oath to “preserve, protect, and defend” the Constitution of Texas and the Constitution of the United States. (Article 16,… Read more

Capitol Hall Report – Uniform Non-Discrimination Bill, Senate Bill 92 Article I of the Texas Constitution sets out the state’s Bill of Rights, declaring the state to be a free and sovereign state and recognizing that “all free men, when they form a social compact, have equal rights” and “equality under the law shall not… Read more