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Thursday, July 27, 2023

Good morning!

Here is the Texas Minute for Thursday, July 27, 2023.

– Michael Quinn Sullivan

During an interview on the Chris Salcedo Show, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott said yesterday the secretary of Homeland Security should be removed from office. Brandon Waltens has the story.
Abbott was asked about Alejandro Mayorkas’ opposition to Texas’ new buoy barriers placed in the Rio Grande to combat illegal crossings between ports of entry. Earlier this week, the Department of Justice filed a lawsuit in federal court against the border barriers.
“He’s in charge of homeland security and he’s made the homeland more insecure than any Homeland Security secretary ever. He needs to be removed,” said Abbott.
The governor also took aim at the Biden administration’s lack of transparency regarding who is coming across the southern border.

Without the typical pomp and circumstance associated with major legislation, Gov. Greg Abbott signed into law elements of the property tax relief plan passed during the second special session of 2023. The muted signing reflects just how contentious the atmosphere had become in getting the measure passed.
The elements requiring Abbott's signature – Senate Bill 2 and Senate Bill 3 – increase the homestead exemption to $100,000 and use around $7 billion to additionally buy down—or “compress”—local school property taxes. The measures also create a three-year pilot program capping appraisals on non-homesteaded properties under $5 million in value. Lastly, the exemption from the state's business franchise tax is increased from $1 million to $2.47 million.
The third element – a constitutional amendment – bypasses the governor and will be on the ballot on Nov. 7, 2023.
Texas GOP Chairman Matt Rinaldi has said he is “happy to see that homeowners were prioritized in the final property tax relief package thanks to the efforts of Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick and the Senate.”
Tim Hardin, the president of Texans for Fiscal Responsibility, criticized the plan's emphasis on the homestead exemption. He noted that the compromise represented "far less than what was proposed in the regular session [and] offered no path to elimination" of the school property tax, as Abbott had originally requested.

Following the example of Keller Independent School District, Carroll ISD is the latest to adopt policies keeping boys out of girls’ restroom facilities. Emily Medeiros has the details.
Opponents claimed the new policies would "create a hostile environment for our LGBTQ students."
The Carroll trustees rejected that argument, voting unanimously to adopt rules requiring students to use the bathroom facilities that correspond to the biological sex listed on their birth certificate. They also enacted a prohibition on teachers being compelled to use “preferred pronouns.”

The sexually charged "Drag Queen Christmas" will be touring Texas later this year but with a notable change. Soli Rice reports the program will now be restricted to adults.
Marketed to families with children, the performances featured simulated sex, partial nudity, inappropriate costumes, and explicit songs and dialogue between performers and audience members.
This year, the Texas Legislature passed Senate Bill 12 to ban sexual performances, including drag shows, for children. Gov. Greg Abbott signed the measure into law in June, and it will take effect on September 1, 2023.