Governor Abbott Adds Quorum-Breaking Penalties to Special Session Agenda: The Brief Newsletter Update
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Stay informed with The Brief, a daily newsletter from The Texas Tribune that delivers the most important news from Texas. Governor Greg Abbott has added three new items to the special session agenda, focusing on penalties for lawmakers who leave the state to prevent the passage of legislation. The governor emphasized the need for new measures to prevent lawmakers from obstructing legislative business by intentionally absenting themselves during a session.
Following the passage of a new GOP congressional map by the Texas House, which prompted House Democrats to flee the state, Abbott called for the establishment of penalties for lawmakers who engage in such actions. The governor's push for consequences for quorum-breaking lawmakers comes in response to the recent efforts to end the quorum break initiated by House Democrats, which included seeking to vacate representatives' seats and authorizing civil arrests.
With the return of most Democrats who had fled the state, the House was able to resume business after being previously unable to conduct proceedings due to the lack of a quorum. Democrats cited breaking quorum as a constitutionally protected tool to delay the passage of the congressional map, given the Republican majority in both chambers. In addition to addressing the quorum issue, Abbott also proposed legislation to allow the purchase of ivermectin at pharmacies and to conduct a groundwater study of East Texas aquifers.
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