Restrictions put on bills’ testimonies
Texans wishing to weigh in on bills being considered by the Legislature will have to appear in person, per new rules passed by both chambers this week.
Advocacy groups had pushed for lawmakers to allow testimony to be taken virtually to accommodate those with concerns about exposure to the coronavirus involved with traveling to Austin and being in a room full of people, especially those with heightened COVID-19 risk.
The rules approved Thursday in the House will allow videoconference testimony only for those invited by a committee chair. In the Senate, it will be allowed only during regional redistricting hearings.
“If you want somebody invited, go to the chair of the committee,” said state Rep. Todd Hunter, R-corpus Christi, who co-authored the rules. “It doesn’t strike you at all.”
House committee chairs are required to “make a reasonable effort to invite witnesses representing different viewpoints” but have no obligation to accept requests from committee members for certain witnesses to be called.
New this year, as a way to increase opportunities for public feedback for those with health concerns, House committees will be required to accept electronically submitted written comments.
Erin Zwiener, a Hays County Democrat, raised concerns Thursday about accessibility for the public and lamented the removal of an amendment that would have required committee chairs to accept requests to invite witnesses if a member received support from about a third of the committee. The rules approved Thursday do not compel the chair to accept such requests.
“I’m sorry we don’t have stronger access. We should. It’s 2021, and we’re in the middle of a pandemic. We have the technology, and we have the need,” Zwiener said in a tweet. “This is a loss. However, there are still options. Ev
ery committee chair will have the ability to invite virtual testimony. We need to make sure they do so fairly.”
Leaders of advocacy groups that frequently testify before House and Senate committees also expressed their disappointment with the rules.
“Anyone who wants to testify virtually during a pandemic should be allowed to do so,” said Texas State Teachers Association spokesman Clay Robison. “People with something to say about pending litigation should not have to risk their health to do so.”
The House and Senate will generally require masks, but they diverged over whether to require testing.
House members, staff and the public will be required to wear a mask in the chamber and committee hearing rooms but may remove them when speaking at a microphone. Members can also take off their masks when protected by barriers installed by the Committee on House Administration and socially distanced.
In the Senate, members have to wear masks except for when they’re alone at their desks or seated at the dais.
The Senate will require members and visitors to receive a negative COVID-19 test to enter the chamber or a committee hearing room each day, while House members and visitors will not.