State Representative Jeff Barry has been preparing for his first session of the Texas Legislature in the months since Election Day.
In order to be ready to take the oath of office last Tuesday on the floor of the Texas House of Representatives with his family by his side, the Pearland freshman lawmaker spent hours drafting his own legislation, attending Republican caucus meetings and legislative work groups, and calling on current and former lawmakers for advice. As he recited the lines, Barry claimed to feel grateful, impressed, and gratified.
He was then flung into the flames.
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Following a heated speaker’s contest that split the Republican caucus between more conventional members and hardline conservatives who had become disenchanted with the previous GOP leadership, Barry’s first vote was to elect Dustin Burrows as Speaker of the House.
According to Barry, I would be lying if I didn’t admit that I felt a lot of pressure to vote a certain way.
Barry stated that when determining what leadership traits would be most beneficial to the House, he relied on his experience as a member of the Pearland ISD Board of Trustees, as well as his experience managing his own insurance brokerage business in Pearland and serving on the Pearland City Council. In the midst of the spectacle of the opening day of the session, his predecessor, Ed Thompson, also served as a mentor and gave advice on how the election would proceed: “This is what’s going to happen,” he said, and, sure enough, that’s exactly what happened.
Simultaneously, state senator Molly Cook, a Democrat from Houston, took the oath of office on the opposite side of the Capitol before her first full session after being elected in May to serve the remaining portion of John Whitmire’s term when he left to become mayor of Houston.
Cook said she became upset while saying the lines on the Senate floor with her family by her side, even though she had previously been sworn in once in May in Senate District 15.
“There’s just something very material about the Senate,” Cook stated. The dais, the green carpet, and you seated yourself at a desk that has been occupied for more than 150 years.
Freshman class
The five lawmakers in the region starting their first sessions are Cook, Barry, state Representative Lauren Ashley Simmons, D-Houston, Rep. Matt Morgan, R-Richmod, and Rep. Charlene Ward Johnson, D-Houston. They are among the three new senators and thirty-one new members of the House that took office last week.
Requests for comment from Ward Johnson for this piece were not answered.
Although freshmen members often don’t play major roles in their first sessions, Barry, Cook, and Simmons stated that they think they can contribute to future discussions about water, the rising cost of insurance, high property taxes, strengthening the state’s power infrastructure, and vouchers for private schools.
Simmons remarked, “I joke about being the normal person in the body of 150.” I’m from the grassroots world; I’m not an entrepreneur or an attorney. I like to remind (the members) that I can offer them the viewpoint of an ordinary person, not that I’m the only one there.
After years of fighting against the governmental takeover of Houston ISD, the labor organizer made his political debut. Simmons said the Harris County Democratic delegation, especially House Dean Sen. Fronia Thompson, has given her a lot of advice while she gets her bearings, even though the leap into the legislature has been as intense as drinking from a fire hydrant.
Hearing the senior members remark, “This is my fourth session, my eighth session, and my tenth session, and I learn something new every time,” has been incredibly comforting, Simmons added.
The 140-day session of the Texas Legislature, which only convenes every two years, can frequently be hectic as lawmakers work to pass the state budget and discuss thousands of proposals.
The session is being keenly watched by the city of Houston, and Whitmire hopes to utilize his fifty years of legislative expertise to mend a strained relationship between the city and state authorities.
Legislative priorities
Houston’s legislative principles, which serve as a roadmap for the city’s lobbying team in Austin, were approved by the city council on Wednesday. According to the document’s general language, the city would give financing for a variety of services and public safety projects top priority. If the city cannot make up the $160 million shortfall by the fiscal year’s end in June, it will face a budget crisis. Whitmire has already stated that he would seek help from the state.
Whitmire assured council last Wednesday that Houston would have improved representation and coverage in Austin, not only from its legislative delegation between the Senate and House, but also from city voices.
While Democrats play defense, it is anticipated that the GOP-led House and Senate will pass a number of conservative initiatives during the session. Republican Governor Greg Abbott has made private school vouchers his top priority after the legislature failed to approve a program in 2023, despite Abbott convening two more special sessions to try to get a law to his desk for his signature.
Abbott supported Republican primary challenges against 15 lawmakers who opposed the voucher measures, defeating 11 of them with candidates who supported them.
Measures pertaining to gender identity on official documents and restroom usage are among the bills that have been submitted to further police the lives of transgender Texans. As President-elect Donald Trump assumes office and starts carrying out his campaign pledges to deport large numbers of illegal immigrants, the border will be a top focus for Republicans. There have also been proposals to limit access to abortion drugs in an effort to further restrict abortion in the state.
According to Barry, his top concerns are still dinner table topics like reducing property taxes, insurance premiums, and making sure Texas’s drought-prone regions have enough water for the future. He has so far written two proposals, one requiring backup generators in assisted care institutions and another attempting to limit increases in property appraisal values.
“I’m hoping to gain a lot of knowledge from this session and be even more productive when we meet again,” Barry added. Building trust in my district and being more and more effective are my goals, session in and session out.
Cook stated that she intends to use her background as an ER nurse to support her nurse-first agenda in the Senate, which aims to stop emergencies before they start. One of her measures would prohibit the sale of specific weight-loss medications to minors, while three others aim to address issues brought to light by Hurricane Beryl’s severe power outages in July.
When Simmons drafted her first bills, she also drew on her professional background, including one that would permit state employees to engage in collective bargaining and strike.
Prior to entering politics, Simmons and Cook were grassroots organizers, and they stated that if they could boost community involvement in their respective districts’ legislative process, they would consider the session a success.
Prior to taking office, Simmons acknowledged that she may be a pain in the ass to many members, but she added that arranging time would be her top priority as she learns the ropes and tries to engage her constituents.
Simmons stated, “There’s a reason we’re being a pain in the ass, and that’s because we weren’t being heard when we were politely asking.” Therefore, a lot of the work we undertake will be influenced by that experience.
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Cook said she cried on the sidewalk in front of the Capitol when waiting to greet a bus full of constituents that had traveled from Houston to Austin.
Cook described it as a “watershed moment.” Two years ago, I was on that bus pulling up and being greeted by somebody . To be able to use that experience and those skills to bring people in, to make it easier for them, has been a really cool, full circle moment.
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