84th Texas Legislature Regular Session update, February 23, 2015

Last week, Governor Abbott laid out his priorities for the legislative session (early childhood education, higher education research funding, transportation, border security, and ethics–but not the environment), allowing the priorities to be considered by both houses in the first 60 days of the session. This week’s bills of environmental note relate to cutting down trees, ad valorem tax determinations, oil and gas wells, electric utilities, recycling, shark fins, flouide in drinking water, farmers markets, lightbulbs, groundwater conservation districts, the highway fund, public nuisances, community service, a coastal barrier system, agri- and eco-tourism, energy efficiency, wind power, the recreational use of rivers, and dedicated funds.