List of Vote to Exclude Puberty Blocking Drugs from State Savings Program
Rep. Bryan Slaton (R-Royse City) attempted to tack on an amendment excluding puberty-blocking drugs from legislation that would establish a prescription drug savings program for uninsured patients.
A lengthy exchange occurred over the amendment with many House Democrats and bill author Rep. Tom Oliverson (R-Cypress) in opposition. In the unofficial final tally, 79 members voted against the amendment with 13 members absent, but 57 Republicans voted in favor of excluding puberty-blocking drugs from eligibility under the cost-savings program. Below is a list of those members.
- Trent Ashby (R-Lufkin)
- Cecil Bell (R-Magnolia)
- Keith Bell (R-Forney)
- Kyle Biedermann (R-Fredericksburg)
- Greg Bonnen (R-Friendswood)
- Brad Buckley (R-Killeen)
- DeWayne Burns (R-Cleburne)
- Dustin Burrows (R-Lubbock)
- Giovanni Capriglione (R-Southlake)
- Jeff Cason (R-Bedford)
- David Cook (R-Mansfield)
- Tom Craddick (R-Midland)
- Jay Dean (R-Longview)
- Jake Ellzey (R-Waxahachie)
- Gary Gates (R-Richmond)
- Craig Goldman (R-Fort Worth)
- Sam Harless (R-Spring)
- Cody Harris (R-Palestine)
- Cole Hefner (R-Mt. Pleasant)
- Justin Holland (R-Rockwall)
- Lacey Hull (R-Houston)
- Jacey Jetton (R-Richmond)
- Phil King (R-Weatherford)
- Stephanie Klick (R-Fort Worth)
- Matt Krause (R-Fort Worth)
- Brooks Landgraf (R-Odessa)
- Jeff Leach (R-Plano)
- Ben Leman (R-Leman)
- J.M. Lozano (R-Kingsville)
- Will Metcalf (R-Conroe)
- Mayes Middleton (R-Wallisville)
- Geanie Morrison (R-Victoria)
- Andrew Murr (R-Junction)
- Candy Noble (R-Lucas)
- Tan Parker (R-Flower Mound)
- Jared Patterson (R-Frisco)
- Dennis Paul (R-Houston)
- Four Price (R-Amarillo)
- Scott Sanford (R-McKinney)
- Matt Schaefer (R-Tyler)
- Mike Schofield (R-Katy)
- Matt Shaheen (R-Plano)
- Shelby Slawson (R-Stephenville)
- Reggie Smith (R-Sherman)
- John Smithee (R-Amarillo)
- David Spiller (R-Jacksboro)
- Phil Stephenson (R-Wharton)
- Lynn Stucky (R-Denton)
- Valoree Swanson (R-Spring)
- Ed Thompson (R-Pearland)
- Tony Tinderholt (R-Arlington)
- Steve Toth (R-The Woodlands)
- Gary VanDeaver (R-New Boston)
- Cody Vasut (R-Angleton)
- James White (R-Hillister)
- Terry Wilson (R-Marble Falls)
Four members corrected their floor record votes to yes in the House journal afterward. Two members were shown voting no but intended to vote yes:
- Charles “Doc” Anderson (R-Waco)
- Stan Lambert (R-Abilene)
And two members that were shown as absent in the record vote stated they intended to vote yes:
- Briscoe Cain (R-Deer Park)
- Kyle Kacal (R-College Station)
Texas House Budget Day Set
The countdown to the peak of fiscal debate in the Texas legislature has now started. Rep. Joe Moody (D-El Paso) announced on the House floor Wednesday that Senate Bill 1, the state budget, and the House’s supplemental appropriations bill will be heard next Thursday, April 22.
Each session “Budget Day” marks the House floor free-for-all during which members attempt to tack on amendments to revise the spending bill in their preferred manner. The spectacle can drag on into the dead of night.
The proposal this time around is a $250.7 billion budget with an $117.9 billion appropriation to the state’s general revenue fund. Included among the Senate’s blueprint is $3.1 billion in additional funding for school enrollment growth and $1 billion in continued property tax compression from last session.
Back in January, there was a roughly $30 million discrepancy between the total fiscal tag of the Senate and House versions.
Former White House Official Rejoins Conservative Think Tank
A familiar face is heading back to the Texas Public Policy Foundation (TPPF). Brooke Rollins, a past TPPF president who served as a domestic policy advisor in the Trump White House, is rejoining the conservative think tank as a senior advisor and on its board of directors.
“It is a tremendous honor to be coming back to TPPF,” said Rollins in a release. “Leading this great organization and redefining what a think tank can do is one of the greatest achievements of my life.”
TPPF Chairman of the Board Tim Lyles said of Rollins, “Brooke joined TPPF when it was just a handful of experts working on mostly educational issues and turned it into a tremendously influential player at the forefront of nearly every Texas and national policy issue.”
Rollins spearheaded TPPF for 15 years before heading to Washington D.C. and will steer the helm on “strategic direction” in her advisory role.
Accompanying the move is a further executive-level shift as now-former executive director Kevin Roberts has been elevated to chief executive officer. Greg Sindelar, TPPF’s chief operating officer, will now take on the executive director’s role as well.
Rollins focused heavily during her White House tenure on health care, education, and immigration policy.
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Brad Johnson
Brad Johnson is a senior reporter for The Texan and an Ohio native who graduated from the University of Cincinnati in 2017. He is an avid sports fan who most enjoys watching his favorite teams continue their title drought throughout his cognizant lifetime. In his free time, you may find Brad quoting Monty Python productions and trying to calculate the airspeed velocity of an unladen swallow.
