Texas legislators to meet throughout summer on school safety

Two specialized committees of Texas lawmakers will meet throughout the summer to study proposals to prevent school shootings, though legislators have not yet agreed whether to hold an extraordinary session to take action on the matter.

Democratic lawmakers have already called for the convening of a special session, and Republican Governor Greg Abbott has indicated he is open to the idea. It is unclear whether the Republican leadership in the legislature will support a special session, given the potential for a gun control debate in Texas to split the Republican caucus.

Abbott’s 43-page School and Firearm Safety Action Plan was announced only two days ago. Some Republican legislators have publicly expressed support for the governor’s school safety plan while others have remained silent.

The earliest a special session could take place would be early August, according to the current timetable; a special senate committee does not plan to finish its study of the matter before then.

Unless a special session of the Texas legislature is called, the next legislative session will not begin until January 2019, leaving Governor Abbott’s recent legislative proposals on school safety in limbo for at least seven more months.

Committees from both the House and Senate have already been appointed and tasked with studying proposals to prevent mass shootings such as the one that took place in Santa Fe last month, in which ten people died. A first priority for the commitees is to hammer out a measure known colloquially as a ‘red flag law,’ according to lawmakers involved.

‘I’ll be working to build a consensus bill’

Joan Huffman, Republican Senator of Houston and a leader on one of the new committees, explains, “As Vice Chair of the new Senate Select Committee, I’ll be working to build a consensus bill regarding extreme risk protection orders (red flag laws) that keeps firearms out of the hands of dangerous individuals.”

Although it isn’t yet clear what exact process is envisaged by Texas lawmakers, the general idea of a ‘red flag law’ is to enable law enforcement to disarm persons deemed mentally unstable or threatening to others, stripping them of any guns in their possession, even if they had obtained such weapons legally.

House Speaker Joe Straus has instructed a special committee to study the same issue as the senate panel. The committee’s work will begin with a review of the existing penal code and then determine “whether existing protective order laws are sufficient or could be amended to include ‘red flag’ or mental health protective orders…”

Such protective orders could “allow law enforcement, a family member, a school employee, or a district attorney to file a petition seeking removal of firearms from a potentially dangerous person… while preserving the fundamental rights of the Second Amendment and ensuring due process,” according to Straus.

Additionally, Straus says he plans soon to expand the scope of the panel’s review beyond just the ‘red flag’ issue to include other measures designed to help prevent another school shooting.

August Deadline

The 9-member senate select group plans to meet weekly throughout the summer. “I can tell you that we’re going to be meeting every week for the next two months to come out with our report before school starts the first week of August,” said Senator Don Hufflines, Republican of Dallas, in a radio interview with WBAP on Thursday.

“We’re going to be studying the governor’s plan and also coming up with new ideas engaging all the experts,” he added.

For their part, Texas Democrats point out that last year they already introduced at least 16 bills to promote gun safety, of which only one became law. The Democratic House Caucus noted on Twitter that some of what Abbott is proposing is substantially similar to what they introduced last year.

“These are bills that can be discussed in a special session so we can have swift action to protect Texas kids,” the Caucus said.

Gina Hinojosa, Democratic representative for Austin, expressed her support for the governor’s proposed gun control measures. Yet she criticized other elements of the plan in a statement Thursday, describing the mental health funding as inadequate: “Years of state cuts to our public schools have left them desperate for resources… The modest amount outlined in the Governor’s Plan is a good step but much more is needed.”

She further questioned the wisdom of Abbott’s proposal to allow school marshals to carry guns in the classroom rather than keeping them in safes.

A number of Republican legislators have rallied behind Abbott. Ron Simmons, representing Carrollton, commended the governor’s plan without reservation. “Governor Abbott’s proposal would increase safety for students and staff at schools across Texas while not infringing upon the rights of responsible gun owners,” he said in a statement.

Does this mean that the legislature could convene to take action on the plan before January 2019? In the view of Hinojosa, this won’t happen without pushing from the governor’s mansion. “Consensus needed for action among lawmakers on these issues will not happen spontaneously — it will take leadership,” she said.

In remarks to media on Wednesday shortly after announcing his gun plan, Abbott had averred that he will not convene a special session of the legislature unless it’s fairly clear that there is some consensus beforehand. “A special session is not a debating society. A special session is for passing laws,” he said.