Leading casualties of the regular session included the omnibus elections bill, bail reform, and the George Floyd Act. But Gov. Greg Abbott has promised special sessions that could revive some GOP priorities.
In 2019, then state Rep. Dade Phelan, R-Beaumont, turned heads with his comments saying he did not want to continue attacking the gay community. As House speaker, however, some say he has not been forceful enough in defending transgender Texans from similar attacks. Credit: Miguel Gutierrez Jr./The Texas Tribune
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Dade Phelan, a Republican state representative from conservative southeast Texas, turned heads in 2019 when he said publicly that he was “done talking about bashing on the gay community” in the Legislature, session after session.
May 24 Their daughter is only 11, but they are already well acquainted with the legislative process. Four years ago, Libby Gonzales and her family traveled from Dallas to Austin to speak out against a failed piece of legislation that would have dictated where transgender Texans may use the bathroom. Libby made headlines for testimony she prepared for lawmakers as they considered the so-called .
Gender-affirming medical care would be considered child abuse under Texas Senate bill
Megan Munce, The Texas Tribune
April 28, 2021
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The Texas Senate tentatively approved a bill Monday in an 18-13 vote
that would classify providing gender affirming health care to transgender minors as child abuse just one of the Legislature’s many attempts to prevent transgender children from transitioning before their 18th birthday.
Senate Bill 1646 is among several other bills that advocacy groups say erode the rights of transgender Texans. Authored by Lubbock Republican Sen. Charles Perry, it amends the definition of abuse under Texas Family Code to include administering or consenting to a child’s use of puberty suppression treatment, hormones or surgery for the purpose of gender transitioning.