Saturday Evening Quick Hits
By Vince Leibowitz on Dec 16, 2006 in Texas Legislature
Lots of things to round up on this Saurday Evening.
We’ll start with this story I missed earlier this week on what kind of a firestorm Governor Perry’s idea that TRS invest a portion of its funds in businesses supported by the Emerging Technology Fund. Read more here.
Retiring State Sen. Ken Ambrister (R-Victoria) is going to be Rick Perry’s new Legislative Director.
On the legislative front, Byron Cook (R-Corsicana) has introduced HB 396 which would standardize the computation of high school students’ grade point averages. I have a sneaking suspicion that this may have something to do with the “Top Ten Percent” rule.
Also by Cook, HB 397 would restrict cell phone use by bus drivers and in school zones by all motorists. Sen Wentworth has a similar bill in that chamber.
Burt Solomons (R-Denton) has filed HB 222 to impose more strict regulations concerning property owners’ associations.
State Rep. Veronica Gonzales (R-McAllen) has filed HB 271 to amend the required disclosures made when selling property to include if a property was used as a meth lab.
State Rep. Lon Burnam (D-Fort Worth) has filed HB 395 which requires the Public Utility Commission to investigate re-regulation of Texas’ electric power industry.
State Sen. Elliot Shapleigh (D-El Paso) has a pair of bills related to immigration status. SB 150 provides that a peace officer may neither detain a person based only upon their immigration status or nationality nor inquire as to a person’s immigration status or nationality except as necessary to establish probable cause for an arrest or to investigate a criminal offense.
SB 151, allso by Shapleigh, prohobits hospital employees and medical staff from inquiring as to the immigration status or nationality of a person who needs or receives emergency services unless that information is necessary to provide those services to the person. By the same token, EMS personnel including physicians, ER admissions personnel, etc. my not inquire into an individual’s immigration status or nationality unless it is necessary to provide treatment.
Further, if that information is required for treatment, it is deemed confidential just as other information is in the Health and Safety Code.
While we may like to forget about it, Armbrister is D-Victoria (though it’s not a whole lot of a stretch, now especially, to change the lettering).