81st session
Post-session Wrap-up: The Legislature and the Recovery Act
Legislators began the 81st Legislative Session with the knowledge that an unprecedented influx of federal money was coming, and Texas Impact was there from the beginning, urging the Legislature to take proactive steps that would increase the likelihood that this windfall would provide the maximum benefit to the state. 
At issue was how best to ensure that funds from the Recovery Act would be spent not just in a transparent manner, but in a way that was transformative as well. Now that the session has ended, we can summarize and assess the Legislature's response to the $15 billion in federal stimulus funds, not to mention the hundreds of billions in additional federal dollars that will be available in the form of nationwide competitive grants. In short, the Legislature failed to take proactive steps, opting to end the session without enacting any special measures to accommodate such an extraordinary amount of federal dollars and without passing a single piece of significant legislation related to implementing or tracking Recovery Act funds.
Continue reading for more about the Legislature's actions in full.
In the House, Speaker Straus facilitated the creation of a Select Committee to act as the House’s eyes and ears with regard to the federal stimulus funds. That committee, led by Representative Jim Dunnam, proved to be a valuable resource for keeping the entire body informed about Recovery Act details. Beyond that, however, little to no action was taken to adjust to the state’s new financial situation in the midst of the economic downturn. The Senate did even less, with any discussion of how to handle Recovery Act funds going on behind closed doors. Only one piece of significant legislation dealing specifically with implementing and tracking Recovery Act funds was filed during the session. That bill—HB 4263—passed out of committee before being rolled into HB 2942, which made structural changes to state government, and it went on to pass the House unanimously before dying in the Senate.
When it came time to make the state’s budget for the biennium, the Legislature’s plan for those funds became clearer. Coming into the session, legislators had planned on tapping the state’s Rainy Day Fund in order to cover a $4 billion budgetary gap, but they quickly saw the Recovery Act funds as a way to leave the RDF untouched in order to use it in 2011, when the structural deficits created in 2006 will be even worse than they are now. Wherever there was an opportunity to supplant state funds rather than supplement them with federal stimulus money, legislators chose to do so. So instead of local school districts receiving extra funds to avoid teacher layoffs and improve education, they will not see the increases that federal officials intended. This strategy of supplantation will save the state some money in the short term, but it will result in stagnant funding for education, Medicaid, and other vital services.
Certainly people across the state will see some tangible benefits from the Recovery Act. The Department of Housing and Community Affairs will scale up its Weatherization Assistance Program, for example, as it was granted more than $300 million to help homeowners increase efficiency. Texans will see tax breaks, extended unemployment benefits, and increased amounts in their food stamp accounts, just to name a few changes.
Those benefits will come with a host of missed opportunities, though. Texas Impact long supported the implementation of temporary measures that would have dealt specifically with the Recovery Act funds. The state could have benefited greatly from having some way to define goals, strategies, and performance measures that would have gone a long way towards ensuring that Texas’ share of these funds is used wisely. Just as important as the $15+ billion the state has already received will be the hundreds of billions of dollars in competitive grants for which state and local governments around the nation will be vying. While most of those other states have taken proactive steps in this regard, entities in Texas—especially those in rural and poor areas—will be at a distinct disadvantage thanks to a dearth of coordination, planning, and resources.
Texas Impact will continue to monitor the state’s handling of Recovery Act funds and work with legislators and state agencies as they look for best practices.
Legislative Wrap-up: Disaster-related Bills
Because of the active role played by faith communities during disaster situations, Texas Impact has been following disaster-related legislation throughout the 81st Legislative Session. And with the major weather events that have tested Texas over the last few years, disaster issues were clearly a priority as legislators debated a host of new policies that they hope will leave Texas better prepared to deal with future storms, floods, fires, and whatever else comes our way. Two of the first three bills to make it to Governor Perry's desk this session were related to disasters, and the Legislature can be proud of its passage of a significant amount of quality legislation. See below for a full wrap-up of disaster-related bills during this session.
Passed Bills: The 81st Legislative Session produced a number of big ticket items related to disaster preparation, response, and recovery. HB 4586, the supplemental appropriations bill, contained up to $100 million to finally fund the state's Disaster Contingency Fund. Also scattered through that bill and others were appropriations totaling hundreds of millions of dollars meant to help state agencies and universities recover from damages and expenditures related to recent disasters. The Legislature also reached a compromise on the rates and policies of TWIA, the Texas Windstorm Insurance Association, so the entity could continue operating. That measure was rolled into the other bill that became an omnibus disaster and emergency mangement bill, HB 4409. Representative Craig Eiland of Galveston deserves special recognition for his work on both the supplemental appropriations and TWIA measures.
Legislators were successful in addressing some smaller issues that will be important before, during, and after disasters strike. SB 75 by Senator Jane Nelson instructs the Department of State Health Services to initiate a public education campaign, which could be an integral step in mitigating the negative impact severe weather has on Texans. The bill passed when it was tacked onto HB 1831, which became an omnibus disaster and emergency management bill in the messy final days of the session. Among its many provisions, that bill included the creation of a communications coordination group that will direct the interaction of official entities on the state and local level. HB 2558 by Representative Sylvester Turner will also help Texans be prepared, as it will require nursing homes and other community support agencies to help clients get registered with 2-1-1 disaster assistance.
Once a disaster strikes, local governments will be aided by the provisions in HB 1998 by Representative Brian McCall, which allows the Governor to help local governments provide emergency shelter just as he can already do with temporary housing after a disaster. The operations and obligations of electric and water utilities after disasters are addressed by SB 681 and SB 361 by Senators Ogden and Patrick.
Finally, Legislators got creative and found ways to attach some endangered bills to other vehicles in the final days of the session. A bill that allows homeowners to use alternate documentation—such as utility bills and sworn affidavits—to prove they own the homes for which they are seeking aid for repairs now also includes the provisions of SB 2292,which creates a natural disaster housing reconstruction advisory committee comprised of public officials and private experts. The bill also mandates a pilot program to be implemented in order to assess the feasibility of the advisory committee's recommendations.
Missed Opportunities: Not every good bill that was filed will become law, of course. Bills to regulate disaster remediation contractors, institute sales tax holidays for disaster preparation materials, and require insurers to cover damage caused by storm surges all failed to pass.
One of the most exciting bills of the session failed to pass on its own and was subsequently stripped from another bill onto which it had been amended as a last ditch effort to gain passage. HB 2827, sponsored by Representative Turner and Senator Rodney Ellis, would have instructed the Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs to create an emergency housing and disaster recovery division that would have devised rapid response measures and developed long-term plans for restoring people to permanent housing. The division would also have worked to provide financial counseling, increased supply of rental housing, and opportunities for collaboration with nonprofit organizations and the public.
Overall, the Texas Legislature has clearly decided that disaster preparation and recovery are serious issues. There will need to be continued improvements in the areas of long-term mitigation and preparation in future sessions, but legislators made significant strides in 2009.
