(This legislative update is produced by the UH System Office of Governmental Relations and the UH Division of University Advancement as a service to the UH System community, our alumni, and our friends.)
Editor's Note: Legislative news available through local print and broadcast media may supersede the news in this update, which was written on Tuesday, June 2. We will have another update as soon as possible in the next day or so.
PRELIMINARY WRAP-UP OF THE 78TH LEGISLATIVE SESSION—It is difficult to summarize this session, but everyone involved agrees that it was unusual. So many major issues were undecided in the final days that rumors of an immediate special session lingered even after the final gavel Monday night.
In the end, both houses passed the budget, tuition deregulation, insurance reform, tort and medical malpractice.
However, almost every one of these items required “corrective” resolutions—an unusual technical maneuver which in the past has been rarely used. It allows bills to be amended after they have passed both houses, but before they are sent to the Governor. Before a bill is sent to the Governor, it is “enrolled” in the house of origin. Typically, these enrolled bills arrive on the Governor’s desk within a day of adjournment.
With hundreds of corrections to be made, it will probably be days before we see final documents and have access to the text that was ultimately adopted.
Gov. Rick Perry has until June 22 to sign or veto bills that he received in the last ten days of the session. Ultimately, of the 3636 House bills filed, 825 passed. Of the 1956 Senate bills filed, 557 passed. That said, we will provide a more detailed report on legislation in a few weeks so that we can review all of the pertinent resolutions along with the bills.
The appropriations bill first goes to Comptroller Carole Keeton Strayhorn, who will determine if state revenues are sufficient to cover the costs of the bill. Once—and if—she certifies it, it will be sent to the Governor. At the outset, higher education faced a 12.5 % cut in appropriations. Fortunately, an infusion of federal dollars allowed the conference committee to put $500 million into higher education, with $300 million going into general academic institutions. A detailed report on the bill will be included in our final report.
Beside the budget, the UH System’s top legislative priority was resolving the inequities in the research excellence funds. We are quite pleased to report that HB 3526 is on its way to the Governor. It creates a single Research Development Fund distributed on common criteria. Last session, HB 1839 was dubbed “the bill from hell” by the sponsors of the bill. While not as rancorous, HB 3526 had an equally rocky ride. It was filed on the last day for filing bills. In both the House and the Senate, it came out of committee on the last possible day. It passed on one of the last calendars in the House, and the same held true for the Senate. And the House concurred in the Senate amendments just before the deadline. We thank the entire UH System community—faculty, staff, students, alumni, and supporters—for their advocacy.
While insurance companies and lawyers may say that they dealt with the most controversial issues of the session, many legislators will confirm that the most rancorous discussions occurred on tuition deregulation. It is no coincidence that the House did not pass the appropriations bill until the Senate adopted the tuition bill.
Finally, we would like to thank all of you in the UH System community who analyzed hundreds of bills throughout the session and those of you who wrote letters and visited with your legislators. We applaud you and our very supportive Senators and Representatives.
NEWS ARTICLES ON BUDGET ISSUES AFFECTING HIGHER EDUCATION AVAILABLE ONLINE—Dozens of articles from across the nation on the topic of budget cuts for higher education are now available here.
REMEMBER TO THANK YOUR LEGISLATOR(S)—Now that the session is over, it’s a good time to thank those legislators who supported the UH System legislative priorities and higher education in general. Here are guidelines to contact your legislator(s).
If you are a member of the faculty or staff (a state employee) wishing to contact your legislator, it’s equally important to follow certain guidelines when you write or fax letters. Go to http://www.uhsa.uh.edu/gov/process/letter_writing.html for letter-writing guidelines.
For information on governmental relations policies, go to http://www.uhsa.uh.edu/gov/policies/lobbying.html.
To find the names and addresses of your Texas Senators and Representatives, as well as U.S. Senators and Representatives, go to http://www.capitol.state.tx.us/fyi/fyi.htm.
"UH SYSTEM DAY IN AUSTIN" PHOTO GALLERY ONLINE—Visit the "UH System Day in Austin" Photo Gallery for a look at all the activities related to the visit by some 400 students, faculty, staff, alumni, and friends to the state capitol building on February 18, including images of the bus trip, the pep rally at Sholz Garten, the visit to the Senate Chamber and legislators offices, and the evening reception for legislators.