Focus Report, Volume 84, Number 3, March 2015 Page: 1
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HOUSE
RESEARCH
ORGANIZATION
Texas House of Representatives
ocus
RE PORTMarch 4, 2015
Committee authority
Analysis before
committee action
House standing
committees
Committee meetings
Committee action
Reporting legislation
Procedural issues
Senate committee
procedures
End-of-session
deadlinesHouse Committee Procedures:
84th Legislature
Art. 3, sec. 37 of the Texas Constitution prohibits legislation from being
considered unless it has been referred to and reported by a committee in both
houses of the Legislature. Committees serve as the preliminary screeners for
legislation and give the public the opportunity to testify about their views on
legislative proposals. Legislation may be examined closely and revised in
committee before advancing to the next stage of consideration.
Most introduced legislation dies in committee. During the 2013 regular
session, for example, 4,080 House bills and joint resolutions were introduced, and
1,767, or 43 percent, were reported favorably from House committees. The odds
of favorable committee action improve when legislation passed by one chamber
is sent to the other. Of the 964 bills and joint resolutions the House received
from the Senate during the last regular session, 852, or 88 percent, were reported
favorably from House committees. Senate committees favorably reported 773 of
1,005, or 77 percent, of House-passed bills and joint resolutions.
House committees must follow the requirements of the Texas House Rules
(HR 4 by Smithee, 84th Legislature), particularly Rule 4, which deals with
committee procedures. Subject to this, each committee may also establish
additional internal operating procedures and practices (Rule 4, sec. 13(a)).
Committees are not required to consider legislation referred to them. If
a committee does act, available motions include leaving legislation pending;
referring it to subcommittee and either reporting it or leaving it pending; reporting
it favorably without amendment, as amended, or as substituted; or reporting it
unfavorably or on minority report.
This report reviews the procedures used in House committees and includes
citations to House rules. For additional information on the legislativeprocess, see House Research Organization Focus Report
This report reviews the Number 84-2, How a Bill Becomes Law: 84th Legislature.
rules and procedures used in the
committees of the Texas House of
Representatives.Number 84-3
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Texas. Legislature. House of Representatives. Research Organization. Focus Report, Volume 84, Number 3, March 2015, periodical, March 4, 2014; Austin, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth640038/m1/1/: accessed April 18, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting UNT Libraries Government Documents Department.