There is no process in Texas for a voter-driven statewide referendum. So, supporters are going city by city to build statewide momentum.

Thursday’s hearing marked the end of the Legislature’s three-day marathon of public hearings.

The panel of three lawmakers and two residents will also look at disaster preparedness.

Supporters of the amendment say it will protect farmers as the state’s largest cities continue to grow. Opponents suggest the amendment is too broad and ambiguous.

House Bill 2127 — dubbed the “Death Star” law by opponents — prevents local governments from creating rules that go further than what’s allowed under broad areas of state law. Houston’s suit says the new law violates the state’s constitution.

Lawmakers delivered Gov. Greg Abbott a long-sought bill to stop local governments from enacting local laws that exceed state law on a number of fronts.

Both chambers have said school safety is a priority this session after a gunman killed 19 children and two teachers at a Uvalde elementary school last year.

Gov. Greg Abbott and other supporters of the bill have long sought legislation to push back against local regulations that they say hamper business owners and harm the state’s economy.

Lawmakers have said school safety is a priority this session, but it is still unclear whether they’ll listen to Uvalde families who want to raise the minimum age to purchase semi-automatic guns from 18 to 21.

City officials say the full scope of the legislation advanced Tuesday is still unclear, but it would limit their ability to issue worker protections, water restrictions and more.

Trump became the first former U.S. president to face criminal charges, in his case over alleged hush money payments made to an adult film star. Many of his fellow Republicans in Texas lambasted the legal development.

Lawmakers say their bills are needed to provide small businesses with consistent regulations and that regulatory power should be returned to the state. Labor groups say the proposal could undo hard-fought measures to protect workers.

The radio ad, which criticizes Phelan for appointing Democratic committee chairs, prompted pushback from Republican colleagues in the House over why the state party would use resources to attack its own member.

Texas lawmakers on both sides of the aisle talked schools, abortion and guns in advance of next year’s session in a range of panels at The Texas Tribune Festival.

In this week’s TribCast, Matthew speaks with Dave about the Texas House committee report on the Uvalde shooting and with Eric about the Jan. 6 hearings.

Uvalde residents who lost loved ones at Robb Elementary say they want to know if officers will face repercussions.

Lt. Mariano Pargas was the acting city police chief the day of the shooting. Mayor Don McLaughlin said the city is investigating Pargas’ role in the delayed confrontation of the shooter.

Texas lawmakers investigating the Uvalde school massacre say it intends to show residents of the town surveillance video from the hallway at Robb Elementary School on the day of the May 24 attack.

Elected officials and law enforcement leaders criticized the leak of the video that was supposed to first be shown to victims’ families.

The chair of the House committee investigating the police response to the Robb Elementary School shooting said Uvalde police will cooperate with the investigation. A day prior, Republican State Rep. Dustin Burrows told reporters that cooperation was a question mark.

The state House committee investigating the police response to the mass murders at Robb Elementary School held its first session in Uvalde Thursday. All testimony given to the committee was done behind closed doors.

State Rep. Dustin Burrows, the chair of the investigating committee, said he couldn’t promise a timeline for the review and that witnesses will be questioned in private.

Phelan said it is an “outrage” that officials still do not have a clear picture of what happened during the shooting. The committee’s findings will inform the House’s legislative response.

The Texas House on Monday gave preliminary approval to a sweeping bill that would reform the governor’s emergency powers during a pandemic and involve the Legislature during such instances.

But the more tricky territory could be reforming the parameters of a state pandemic response. The emergency powers debate will unfold in the aftermath of Abbott’s decisions to lift the statewide mask mandate and allow businesses to reopen at 100% capacity. Ad“A great, conservative victory”As filed, House Bill 3 would carve out future pandemics from how the state responds to other disasters, such as hurricanes. The “Pandemic Liability Protection Act,” to be filed as Senate Bill 6, is also on the list of Senate priorities. “I think that’s important to always include the Legislature as much as possible,” said Sen. José Menéndez, D-San Antonio, noting how large and diverse a state Texas is.