The Texas state legislature ended its 89th regular session on June 9, and two area elected officials held a town hall on June 7 to recap key pieces of legislation affecting residents of the Katy-Cypress area.

The meeting at the Weekley Community Center, 8440 Greenhouse Road in Cypress, attracted about 50 residents who gathered to hear from Texas State Representative for District 135 Jon Rosenthal and Harris County Precinct 4 Commissioner Lesley Briones.

Briones spoke first, focusing on four key measures affecting residents of Harris County. HB5177 and SB 2722, which would have given the City of Houston 30 percent of the revenue from the Harris County Toll Road Authority, were defeated, in a victory for the county. HB 2068, taking local authority away from the Harris County Flood Control District and giving oversight to a centralized board appointed by the governor, was killed. SB 2878, creating five new civil district courts and one new county court of law, was passed in a victory for the county. The five new civil courts will speed up the processing of court cases, Briones said, pointing to the results achieved since the creation of six new criminal courts last year. Three of the new civil courts will be created in October 2025 and the other two in October 2026, Briones said. The passage of SB1 allocated $115 million for Harris County Flood Control District projects.

Briones focused much of her time on Precinct 4’s disaster preparedness plans, noting CenterPoint’s donation of a portable generator to the Weekly Community Center earlier that day, and describing the distribution of 150 portable air conditioning units to Precinct 4 residents in need, as well as the precinct’s upcoming disaster preparedness workshops scheduled for June. Briones also cited new regulations requiring assisted living centers to have backup generators and encouraged residents to register for the State of Texas Emergency Assistance Registry (STEAR) which would help first responders get to disabled and elderly residents quickly should a disaster occur. She also announced that the Places 4 People initiative, through which Precinct 4 works with local municipalities, MUDS and other entities to jointly fund infrastructure improvement projects, has just opened the application process for next year in a proactive call for partnerships.

Rosenthal summarized his achievements during the 89th session, filing 44 bills, sending ten bills to committee, passing three bills through the House, passing one bill through a Senate committee and having one bill sent to the governor for signature. Awaiting the governor’s signature is the “Riley’s Rule Update” bill, which provides a form for excused absences from public schools for students with severe or life-threatening illnesses.

According to billtrack50.com, this bill – HB367 -- aims to simplify the absence verification process for families of students with serious health challenges. It modifies the Texas Education Code to provide clearer guidelines for excusing students with severe or life-threatening illnesses from school attendance. Specifically, the bill requires school districts to adopt a standardized form for documenting medical absences and limits the documentation school districts can request from students or parents. Under the

new provisions, physicians must provide a certification that includes four key pieces of information: the specific illness, a statement that the illness is serious or life-threatening, the anticipated period of absence, and a statement explaining why the student's attendance is not feasible during that period. The bill restricts school districts from demanding additional documentation beyond the adopted form, thus simplifying the process for families dealing with serious medical conditions. The new requirements will take effect for the 2025-2026 school year.

Rosenthal also summarized some “good legislation” and “bad legislation” passed during the 89th session, listing as “good” HB31 (the “life of the mother” bill), HB107 creating a sickle cell registry, SB$ and SJR2 increasing the homestead exemption on property taxes, and HB5509 which aims to reduce human trafficking by going after hotels where victims of human trafficking are held. “Bad” legislation, according to Rosenthal, included the school voucher program, restrictions on the hemp industry, the “alien land law” restricting property ownership by foreign nationals and the requirement to display the Ten Commandments in classrooms, which he called a violation of the policy of separation of church and state.

During a question-answer period following the presentations, many constituents asked about disaster planning in light of recent moves by the federal government to limit or eliminate the role of FEMA in responding to local needs in the aftermath of a major storm. Residents also pressed for more specifics on local flood control efforts. Briones replied that she is working with the Army Corps of Engineers to improve both the Addicks and Barker dams, which she said were two of the six most dangerous dams in the country.