Here’s a quick recap of what happened over the last week:
Another Poll Shows Cornyn Trailing by Big Margin
Another week and another poll proving that incumbent US Senator John Cornyn not only trails challenger Ken Paxton by a wide margin but is also widely unpopular among Republican primary voters. Several other polls recently have shown Cornyn trailing Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton by double digits, but this particular poll is even more devastating to Cornyn because it was conducted by the US Senate Leadership Fund (SLF), which is a Republican Party super PAC that is supporting Cornyn.
The SLF poll shows Cornyn trailing Paxton by a 56% to 40% margin in a head-to-head matchup. In a three-way contest that includes another potential candidate – US Congressman Wesley Hunt of Houston – Paxton still leads the pack with 44%, compared to 34% for Cornyn and 19% for Hunt.
Washington and Texas insiders have privately discussed the reality that Cornyn has no path to victory and are concerned that by him staying in the race, Paxton will be forced to spend campaign funds that should be reserved for the November election instead of a heated primary battle. Some also question Paxton’s electability against a well-funded Democratic challenger due to his past legal troubles. However, the Democrats have given no reason for anyone to believe they will field a candidate that has the ability to win a high-profile statewide race.
No Democrat has won a statewide election in Texas since 1998.
For his part, the Cornyn campaign touts his voting record with President Trump and says they believe the incumbent Senator can win the Republican primary.
House Reaches First Major Deadline
Yesterday marked the 122nd day of session, which was the deadline for all House bills to be considered in the House. Moving forward, the House can now only consider bills that have originated in the Senate. The House had a 30-page calendar going onto the floor on Thursday, with several hundred bills eligible for consideration. However, when the midnight deadline hit, the House reached only page 16, leaving most of the bills to die by procedure. In total, the House passed 1,137 of their own House bills this session.
The House and Senate can pass each other’s bills for the next 10 days, up until midnight on Wednesday, May 28th. After that, if your bill has not made it through both Houses, it is dead. The last 5 days of the session are reserved for each House to consider the amendments placed on bills in the opposite chamber, and then to consider conference committee reports for adoption.
House Passes Bill to Eliminate STAAR Test
House Bill 4, passed nearly unanimously by the Texas House this week, proposes eliminating the controversial STAAR exam and replacing it with a series of shorter assessments administered throughout the school year. The bill aims to reduce instructional time lost to “teaching to the test” and provide teachers with efficiently acquired data to guide instruction. The proposed new system potentially includes tests in October, January or February, and May, with results delivered within 24 hours of submitted tests. Supporters, which supersedes partisan relations, argue the change transforms testing from a high-stakes event into a practical instructional tool. The legislation also modifies the A-F school rating system by allowing stronger weights for nonacademic metrics such as extracurricular participation and workforce readiness programs.
While the House proposal has drawn support from educators and advocates of testing reform, critics caution that it may overlook persistent educational disparities. Concerns raised include the potential for inflated school ratings and a shift away from identifying and addressing various subcategory achievement gaps.
The Senate, which already passed a different version of accountability reform, favors a slower timeline for implementation and maintains the majority of control for the Texas Education Agency (TEA) over the accountability system. Unlike the House version, the Senate proposal would give TEA the sole authority to define performance standards and limit districts’ ability to challenge changes to the standards through the courts. The Senate’s plan delays implementation until 2028, while the House version seeks to roll out the new system as early as next school year.
Agreement on School Finance Legislation
Republican leaders in the Texas Senate have put forth a counterproposal to House Bill 2, the House’s $8 billion public school finance plan. The Senate Committee on Education K-16 held a public hearing yesterday on its proposal that lasted well into last night. While both chambers agree on the need for increased education funding, they must reconcile their differences about how to allocate it. The House plan raises the basic allotment by $395 per student, providing schools with more flexible funds and prioritizing across-the-board staff raises. In contrast, the Senate plan proposes a $55 increase and instead distributes funds into targeted initiatives like special education, educator certification programs, and performance-based teacher raises.
The Senate’s proposal includes $1.3 billion to overhaul special education funding and creates incentives for teacher preparation programs, including stipends for candidates and a new teacher preparation allotment. It also establishes a phased elimination process of uncertified teachers by 2030 and incorporates provisions from various education bills aimed at improving early literacy and school safety. Despite these investments, critics argue the Senate has delayed action on the bill by waiting to respond — nearly a month — since HB 2 was passed in the house. This criticism comes amidst a worsening public school funding crisis, with schools facing closures, layoffs, and budget deficits across the state.
Teacher compensation is another major point of contention. The House proposes tying 40% of increased funding to staff raises, while the Senate offers direct raises based on experience and district size which favors smaller districts with higher incentives. Both chambers want to expand the Teacher Incentive Allotment but disagree on whether national board-certified teachers should continue receiving automatic raises, with the Senate pushing for more localized standards. This point of contention comes alongside some Republicans arguing that the national certification focuses too much on diversity, equity, and inclusion.
As the end of the legislative session looms, lawmakers must reconcile these differences quickly. A conference committee is expected to work out a final version of HB 2 before the June 2 deadline. Until then, the question remains whether Texas will fully commit to supporting its 5.5 million public school students amid mounting financial pressures and teacher shortages.
House Expands Uses for Medical Marijuana
The Texas House has advanced House Bill 46, a proposal to significantly expand the state’s restrictive medical marijuana program. The bill would broaden the list of qualifying conditions to include chronic pain, Crohn’s disease, traumatic brain injury, and degenerative disc disease, expanding on the current list that includes PTSD, cancer, and epilepsy. Military veterans would receive special treatment under the bill, with their physicians allowed to prescribe low-dose THC even for conditions not officially listed. The legislation also aims to diversify the types of medical cannabis products available, introducing options such as vaporizers, patches, suppositories, and potentially prescribed smokable products.
One of the bill’s most significant structural reforms is its proposal to decentralize cannabis distribution. Currently, all dispensary operations must be housed under one roof, which limits access and drives up costs due to logistical constraints. HB 46 would permit licensed dispensaries to open remote locations and store inventory off-site which would ease distribution burdens. The bill also seeks to change the current 1% THC cap by weight per-package limit, which would also allow more flexibility in medical cannabis formulations.
Supporters argue that the bill provides a necessary alternative to opioids for those who often lack access to existing dispensaries concentrated in Central Texas. They also note that the current dominance of unregulated hemp products, which are generally cheaper and easier to access, threatens to render the medical marijuana program irrelevant unless reforms are made.
The House approved HB 46 on Tuesday morning 122-21, with all opposition coming from Republicans. The legislation will now head to the Senate, which has approved a narrower version that does not expand qualifying conditions but does allow off-site storage and more dispensaries. The differences between the two versions will need to be reconciled in conference before the bill goes to the governor’s desk for final approval.
House Votes to Require Insurance Coverage for Trans Detransitioning
After a nearly 7-hour debate, the Texas House has passed Senate Bill 1257, sending it to Gov. Greg Abbott’s desk for final approval. The legislation mandates that health insurers offering gender-affirming care must also cover any adverse effects, reversal procedures, and related treatments, even if the patient is no longer enrolled in the plan. Supporters argue the bill ensures those who suffer complications from gender transition procedures receive continued care. However, critics argue it’s an attempt to restrict access to gender-affirming care for adults by overburdening insurers with potentially unlimited liability. Opponents also warn that SB 1257 could lead to higher premiums or cause insurers to stop covering gender-affirming care altogether.
On a related topic, House Bill 229 advanced and would limit state recognition of gender to strictly male or female. The bill establishes rigid biological definitions for sex and outlines distinctions between men and women in areas such as sports, shelters, and public facilities. Significantly, opponents likened its language to invoking “separate but equal” historic segregation-era rhetoric and warned it could lead to increased misdiagnoses, mental health challenges, and systemic discrimination.
House Votes to Decriminalize Gay Sex
The Texas House gave initial approval yesterday to repeal the state’s ban on gay sex. The bill brought forth by Rep. Venton Jones of Dallas was passed by a slim margin with all House Democrats voting for the measure along with a handful of Republicans. The bill simply struck the long-standing law on the books that criminalized “homosexual conduct”. The bill faces a procedural final vote today, where the fate of the legislation is uncertain due to the closeness of the vote and the large number of Republicans that refused to vote on the measure yesterday. The vote yesterday was 72-55 in favor, with 23 Republicans not registering a position. Even if the bill does pass the House today, the more conservative Senate is unlikely to consider the proposal.
Political Notes
The Tarrant County Republican Party has voted to censure freshman Republican state Rep. John McQueeney of Fort Worth. The party has claimed McQueeney has violated party platform principles and legislative priorities including his vote at the beginning of session to appoint Democrats as chairs of House committees. The censure resolution will now go the State Republican Executive Committee for review and action. If the resolution is upheld by 3/5th of the SREC, then the Tarrant County Republican Chairman can refuse McQueeney’s application for reelection in the 2026 Republican primary.
With incumbent state Rep. Dennis Paul of Webster announcing his run for Texas Senate District 11 next year, Clear Creek ISD trustee Scott Bowen has announced he will seek Paul’s House seat in the 2026 Republican primary. Paul decided to seek the Senate seat after current Senator Mayes Middleton announced he is seeking the Republican nomination for Texas Attorney General in 2026.
The Texas House has approved a measure that will limit campaign contributions from out-of-state donors to statewide and legislative races in Texas. Currently, there are no limits on the amounts of contributions that can be accepted. The proposal caps out-of-state contributions from individuals at $5,000 for statewide races and $2,500 for legislative races. However, out of state PACs would still be able to make unlimited contributions in state races.
The measure is sponsored by Rep. Dade Phelan of Beaumont, who served as Speaker of the House until this session. He survived a bruising primary battle in 2024 that saw his opponent receive substantial financial assistance from donors outside of Texas.
What’s Next??
The House and Senate are both in session today but will take off the weekend and reconvene on Monday.
Next week, the House will debate some major issues. On Monday, bail reform is on the House floor. Also next week – but not yet scheduled – the House will consider a measure requiring proof of citizenship to register to vote and a measure regarding the regulation of hemp products.
A listing of all committee hearings for next week can be found here: https://www.legis.state.tx.us
On Monday when both Houses reconvene, there will be 15 days left in the session.