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Good morning,

Deadlines are rapidly approaching for the passage of conservative reforms in the Texas House. This week's One Click Survey asks if you think lawmakers will get your priorities across the finish line.

This is the Texas Minute for Monday, May 5, 2025.

– Michael Quinn Sullivan 

Legislation Targeting Explicit Library Materials in Schools Clears House and Senate

• Legislation cracking down on explicit sexual content in Texas school libraries is on its way to the governor’s desk, marking the first Republican Party of Texas priority bill this session to clear both chambers. Brandon Waltens has the details.
      
• Senate Bill 412, authored by Mayes Middleton (R–Galveston), removes broad exemptions in Texas law that currently shield school officials, librarians, and others from prosecution for distributing material deemed harmful to minors, so long as it is for an “educational purpose.” 
      
• The legislation stems from concerns raised by parents and Republican lawmakers over sexually explicit books found in Texas public and school libraries. Its passage marks progress for GOP lawmakers who have prioritized removing such content as part of broader efforts to protect minors.
       

• During the debate, House Democrats opposed the legislation and accused supporters of attacking school librarians. The measure passed the House in a bipartisan 99-31 vote.
        

• "Teachers and librarians that intentionally, knowingly, or recklessly expose children to harmful content should be in fear in the State of Texas." – State Rep. Mitch Little (R-Frisco)

RELATED SCHOOL NEWS

Abbott Signs School Choice Bill During Celebration at Governor’s Mansion

• Up to 100,000 students will be able to participate in the program beginning in the 2026–2027 school year.

‘Gulf of America’ Law Heads to Texas House

• Luca Cacciatore reports legislation officially naming the Gulf of America in state law passed the Senate and is now awaiting action in the Texas House.
      
• The measure, authored by State Sen. Mayes Middleton (R–Galveston), strikes references to the “Gulf of Mexico” throughout state code and replaces them with “Gulf of America.” It follows President Donald Trump’s January 20 executive order titled “Restoring Names That Honor American Greatness.”
       
• It passed out of the Senate by a vote of 20 to 11, with the opposition coming from the chamber's Democrats.

Texas A&M's DEI Practices Referred to Trump Administration

• A member of the Texas House has asked the Trump administration to hold Texas A&M and other state universities accountable for their DEI practices. Robert Montoya has story.
     
• State Rep. Brian Harrison (R-Midlothian), an alumnus of Texas A&M University, wrote in a letter on Friday to federal officials that Texas A&M president Mark Welsh admitted to him the university was still engaged in promoting DEI. Harrison believes the persistent problem of DEI is not isolated to TAMU.
     
• In a letter to the acting general counsel of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Harrison explained that practices at A&M and elsewhere violate the 2023 U.S. Supreme Court decision in Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard.

Was the Rigging of a $95M Jackpot Legal? No.

• Various national media outlets began reporting on the Texas lottery last week, and included an oft-repeated misnomer about the legality of the scheme to rig the jackpot: Cribbing the Wall Street Journal, the New York Post claimed it was "perfectly legal." Yet, as Daniel Greer explains, numerous laws appear to have been broken leading up to the April 2023 "win."
     
• For example, Texas law does not permit the purchase of lottery tickets over the phone or online—which was a critical component in how the foreign syndicate was able to rig that lottery jackpot.
     
• Similarly, Texas lottery tickets are supposed to be sold in storefronts where commerce is occurring. In at least two of the locations where millions of tickets were printed, no commerce was taking place. The locations had been set up explicitly to facilitate the one-time jackpot rigging scheme. The location where the winning ticket was "sold" reportedly had beer koozies on fold-out tables for sale—but that’s as thin a defense as it sounds.
      
• Lastly, children were used to help facilitate the purchasing of those tickets—something which is also forbidden by law.
      
• Texas lawmakers, like State Sen. Paul Bettencourt (R-Houston), have suggested that in the case of the 2023 jackpot, there was a "clear case of money laundering" taking place.

Waco ISD Teachers Arrested for Abusing Special Needs Children

• Ian Camacho reports that two Waco Independent School District teachers were recently arrested for abusing special needs students.
    
• One now-former teacher, Amber Escamilla, faces up to ten years in prison for allegedly using an electronic “dog whistle” on her 6-year-old autistic student. 
     
• Meanwhile, Randi Lynne Fowler has been arrested for body-slamming and slapping a 7-year-old special needs student in her classroom’s “safe area.” Some of the incidents were caught on video.

MORE CRIME NEWS

Alleged Child Predator Arrested Again While Out on Bond in Galveston

After being arrested for recording minors in dressing rooms, Taylor Roy was released on bond—only to face a second round of charges related to invasive recordings of minors.

Houston Raises First-Year Police Officer Salaries to $81K

• Mayor John Whitmire has finalized a contract agreement with the Houston Police Officers’ Union to raise the salary of first-year police officers to $81,000. Joseph Trimmer reports the agreement will make Houston’s 5,200 police officers the highest-paid in Texas.
      
• The agreement includes a 10 percent raise in July 2025, an eight percent raise in 2026, followed by raises of approximately six percent in each of the next three years.
       
• "If we do not improve public service, nothing else matters," said Whitmire.

Quote-Unquote

"If you serve a child a rotten hamburger in America, federal, state and local agencies will investigate you, summon you, close you down, whatever. But if you provide a child with a rotten education, nothing happens, except that you're liable to be given more money to do it with. Well, we've discovered that money alone isn't the answer."

– Ronald Reagan​

Today In History

On May 5, 1862, Mexican forces under the command of Texas-born General Ignacio Seguín Zaragoza defeated the French military at the Battle of Puebla, Mexico.

One Click Survey

Conservative lawmakers are worried the grassroots’ priorities won’t get a vote in the Texas House. The last day for the House to consider its own legislation is May 15.

Do you think conservative priorities will pass out of the GOP-dominated House like they have the Senate?

Once you’ve clicked an answer, reply to this email with any thoughts you’d like to share!