By KERA News & Wire Services
Austin, TX – Concealed handgun license holders could carry weapons into Texas public college classrooms and dorms under a bill given preliminary approval Tuesday by the state Senate.
Supporters say the bill reinforces the constitutional right to bear arms and could prevent mass murders such as the 2007 shootings at Virginia Tech.
Opponents say it would make campuses more dangerous - adding the potential for typical college disputes over grades, romances and fraternity rivalries to become deadly - and also could lead to more suicides.
Sen. Jeff Wentworth, R-San Antonio, said similar dire warnings were made in 1995 when Texas passed its concealed weapons law.
"Opponents predicted it would be the wild, wild west; there would be blood on the streets," Wentworth said. "None of that has happened."
The bill still faces significant hurdles to become law before the June 1 end of the legislative session. It still needs a final Senate vote - which could come as early as Wednesday - before it goes to the House. A similar House bill died when it ran up against a legislative deadline.
According to a legislative analysis, 23 states with concealed weapons permits do not ban license holders from carrying weapons on campus. Even so, only 12 colleges and universities allow them.
The Texas bill allows private schools to ban weapons from campus. But the Senate rejected several attempts to make the ban optional for public schools and to create gun-free dorm rooms.
A ban on taking weapons to college sports events would not change.
SMOKING BAN SNUFFED
Supporters of a proposed statewide ban on smoking in most indoor public places, including bars and restaurants, have given up for this legislative session and declared the issue dead Tuesday.
Sen. Rodney Ellis, D-Houston, author of the Senate version of the ban, said he doesn't have the votes to get it passed before the June 1 end of the session.
"I'll have to go back to the smoke-filled rooms to work on it," for the 2011 session, Ellis said. "We put up a good fight." Supporters of the measure, including the Lance Armstrong Foundation and the American Cancer Society and multiple medical groups, had argued that a ban is needed to protect public health. But the ban ran into strong opposition from civil libertarians and business owners.
STATE SCHOOLS LAWSUIT
A woman whose mentally disabled son was beaten so badly while living in a state institution that he could no longer walk or perform basic functions is a step closer to being able to sue the state of Texas and the facility where her son lived.
The Texas House unanimously approved a resolution Tuesday giving Farhat Chishty the right to sue over the 2002 beating of her son Haseeb.
A care worker at the Denton State School - one of Texas' 13 large institutions for the mentally disabled - repeatedly kicked and punched Haseeb Chishty in the stomach and groin. Chishty nearly died after the beating and is now confined to a wheelchair and unable to feed himself or use the bathroom.
The worker went to prison and Chishty's mother filed a lawsuit against the facility, but initially it went nowhere. In Texas, government entities are all but immune from lawsuits.
The resolution approved Tuesday would bypass those immunities and allow the suit.
"The original culprit is doing prison time, but the Chishty family is financially devastated and needs their day in court," said Rep. Lon Burnam, D-Fort Worth. Burnam was behind the measure in the House.
A similar measure granting Farhat Chishty the right to sue was approved by the House in 2007 but died in the Senate.
"I'm happy ... but last time, the same thing happened but we lost in the Senate. At least 50 percent of my stress is gone away. But now I am trying to get energy to start again for the Senate," she said.
The measure is moving with only two weeks before the session ends June 1. The prospective Senate author, Dallas Republican Sen. John Carona, said if the proposal gets to the Senate fast enough, he believes he can gather the support to pass it in time.
The House vote came just before the House finally approved legislation to increase security and oversight at state schools across Texas. Legislators have been working on reforms this session in the wake of widespread reports of abuse and neglect.
BIKE PASSING BILL
Bikers and pedestrians would get some space under a bill approved Tuesday by the Texas House. The proposal requires that passenger cars give "vulnerable road users" at least three feet of space when passing on a four-lane road. Commercial vehicles would be required to give six feet of space when passing.
Vulnerable road users include people on bicycles, motorcycles or on foot. The proposal contains other safety measures, including strictures against harassing or throwing things at cyclists and pedestrians.
The measure has been approved by the Senate, but must return there for senators to sign off on changes made by the House before it can go to the governor.
STEM CELL RESEARCH
A ban on state money being spent on stem cell research was removed from the state budget Tuesday. House and Senate negotiators could not reach an agreement on the provision in their budget negotiations, so the prohibition was removed.
Democratic critics expressed concern that the measure would damage science and economic development in Texas.
Joe Brown, president of Texans for Advancement of Medical Research, said: "Legislators heard the message loud and clear from a public that supports this cutting-edge research and does not want to lose the benefits of having all forms of stem cell research being vigorously pursued in Texas."
SALES TAX HOLIDAY
Attention Texas shoppers: There's a sales tax holiday this weekend on energy efficient appliances.
Sen. Rodney Ellis, D-Houston, and Rep. Lon Burnam, D-Fort Worth, joined the Texas Retailers Association and the Sierra Club at a Capitol news conference Tuesday to remind the public of the sales tax holiday on Memorial Day weekend, from Saturday through Monday.
The two legislators worked to pass the law during the 2007 legislative session. The law cancels sales tax for the three-day weekend on clothes washers, dehumidifiers, dishwashers, energy efficient light bulbs, programmable thermostats, refrigerators up to $2,000 and air conditioners up to $6,000.
STEM CELLS
A measure to prohibit state money from being spent on stem cell research has been removed from the state budget.
House and Senate negotiators could not reach an agreement on the provision Tuesday, so the prohibition on stem cell research was removed. Democratic critics have expressed concern that the measure would damage science and economic development in Texas.
"Legislators heard the message loud and clear from a public that supports this cutting edge research, and does not want to lose the benefits of having all forms of stem cell research being vigorously pursued in Texas," said Joe Brown, president of Texans for Advancement of Medical Research. "They know that research today often translates into lifesaving treatments in the years ahead."
DOCTOR LOAN REPAYMENT FUND
The Texas Association of Business has jumped into the broadcast fray in support of a bill that would use a modified tobacco tax to fund an incentive program to draw physicians to areas of the state without enough doctors.
"We are facing a health care shortage across the state, an issue paramount to the employers and business community of Texas," said TAB President Bill Hammond.
TAB announced Tuesday that they were launching radio ads in favor of a measure that would use money from a modified tax on chewing tobacco to fund a medical school loan repayment program for doctors who work in underserved areas for one to four years.
Supporters say medical school graduates are drawn to higher paying areas and specialties in order to pay off hefty school loans, leaving especially rural and border areas short of doctors.
The bill would change the smokeless tobacco tax from a tax based on the percentage of the list price to a weight based tax. Additional revenue from the tax change would go to the loan repayment fund.
The measure has been approved by the House and is awaiting consideration in the Senate. Hammond said the TAB campaign will run in media markets where the association believes it can be most effective.
DIVORCE CHANGE
The Texas Senate approved legislation Tuesday granting two exemptions to the 60-day waiting period that's required before married couples can divorce. The bill is designed to allow victims of domestic violence a way to end a marriage immediately.
The exemptions would let people who want to divorce to avoid the waiting period when the partner has been convicted of domestic violence or has been hit with a court restraining order.
The legislation changed slightly from the original House version and must be approved by that chamber again before it can be sent to the governor, records show.