Lt. Governor Dan Patrick released 30 priority bills for the current legislative session Friday, conveniently mapped onto the numbering of Senate Bills 1-30. We published a similar list when Governor Abbott used the power of the governorship to shape the legislative agenda with his declaration of emergency items in February, prior to the most recent University of Texas / Texas Tribune Poll. The overlap between the Lt. Governor’s priorities and those previously announced by the governor means that several of the items below provide a useful update for that post, too. (To that end, we’ve included the questions from the February poll that were based on the Governor’s emergency items under SB 1.)
The items below reproduce the grouping in the Lt. Governor’s announcement (hence the quotation marks). You can search for specific items on this page using the bill number – we have data relevant to most but not all items. The bill numbers in each entry link to each bill history at the Texas Legislature Online site.
"Taxpayer Protections"
| category | Total |
|---|---|
| Property taxes | 23% |
| Public school funding | 21% |
| Increasing teacher salaries | 13% |
| Mental health services | 11% |
| Emergency preparedness | 11% |
| School safety | 12% |
| Don't know/No opinion | 8% |
| category | Democrat | Independent | Republican |
|---|---|---|---|
| Property taxes | 10% | 20% | 36% |
| Public school funding | 30% | 18% | 15% |
| Increasing teacher salaries | 17% | 7% | 11% |
| Mental health services | 16% | 12% | 7% |
| Emergency preparedness | 7% | 12% | 13% |
| School safety | 12% | 17% | 11% |
| Don't know/No opinion | 7% | 14% | 8% |
SB 2 – Property Tax Reform (Results: here, here, here, here, here, and here)
| category | Total |
|---|---|
| Too much | 58% |
| Too little | 6% |
| About the right amount | 23% |
| Don't know/no opinion | 14% |
| category | Democrat | Independent | Republican |
|---|---|---|---|
| Too much | 48% | 57% | 66% |
| Too little | 8% | 6% | 4% |
| About the right amount | 24% | 17% | 23% |
| Don't know/no opinion | 20% | 20% | 8% |
| category | Total |
|---|---|
| Strongly support | 51% |
| Somewhat support | 21% |
| Somewhat oppose | 6% |
| Strongly oppose | 5% |
| Don't know/No opinion | 17% |
| category | Democrat | Independent | Republican |
|---|---|---|---|
| Strongly support | 36% | 46% | 66% |
| Somewhat support | 26% | 21% | 18% |
| Somewhat oppose | 9% | 6% | 3% |
| Strongly oppose | 6% | 12% | 2% |
| Don't know/No opinion | 22% | 16% | 11% |
| category | Total |
|---|---|
| Yes | 52% |
| No | 29% |
| Don't know/No opinion | 19% |
| category | Democrat | Independent | Republican |
|---|---|---|---|
| Yes | 53% | 52% | 51% |
| No | 27% | 26% | 32% |
| Don't know/No opinion | 20% | 22% | 18% |
| category | Total |
|---|---|
| Yes | 69% |
| No | 14% |
| Don't know/No opinion | 17% |
| category | Democrat | Independent | Republican |
|---|---|---|---|
| Yes | 64% | 61% | 76% |
| No | 16% | 19% | 10% |
| Don't know/No opinion | 19% | 20% | 14% |
| category | Total |
|---|---|
| Yes | 23% |
| No | 55% |
| Don't know/No opinion | 22% |
| category | Democrat | Independent | Republican |
|---|---|---|---|
| Yes | 32% | 14% | 16% |
| No | 45% | 64% | 63% |
| Don't know/No opinion | 23% | 22% | 21% |
| category | Total |
|---|---|
| Yes | 21% |
| No | 54% |
| Don't know/No opinion | 24% |
| category | Democrat | Independent | Republican |
|---|---|---|---|
| Yes | 30% | 13% | 15% |
| No | 44% | 60% | 63% |
| Don't know/No opinion | 26% | 27% | 22% |
SB 5 – Increase the Homestead Exemption (Here)
| category | column-1 |
|---|---|
| Enough to make a difference to most Texas families | 29% |
| Not enough to make a difference | 56% |
| Don't know/No opinion | 14% |
| category | Democrat | Independent | Republican |
|---|---|---|---|
| Enough to make a difference to most Texas families | 25% | 20% | 35% |
| Not enough to make a difference | 63% | 47% | 53% |
| Don't know/No opinion | 12% | 33% | 12% |
SB 30 – Taxpayers Right to Know – Bond Transparency (Here)
| category | Total |
|---|---|
| Mostly careful with people's tax dollars OR | 42% |
| Mostly careless with people's tax dollars | 41% |
| Don't know | 17% |
| category | Democrat | Independent | Republican |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mostly careful with people's tax dollars OR | 43% | 28% | 45% |
| Mostly careless with people's tax dollars | 40% | 52% | 39% |
| Don't know | 17% | 20% | 16% |
"Life, Liberty and Conservative Texas Values"
SB 9 – Enhance Election Security (Results)
| category | Total |
|---|---|
| Never | 18% |
| Rarely | 22% |
| Sometimes | 23% |
| Frequently | 28% |
| Don't know/No opinion | 10% |
| category | Democrat | Independent | Republican |
|---|---|---|---|
| Never | 29% | 18% | 7% |
| Rarely | 39% | 12% | 9% |
| Sometimes | 14% | 28% | 29% |
| Frequently | 8% | 26% | 47% |
| Don't know/No opinion | 10% | 16% | 8% |
SB 13 – Ethics Reform (Results: here, here, and here)
| category | Total |
|---|---|
| Political corruption/leadership | 15% |
| Border security | 13% |
| Immigration | 12% |
| Health care | 8% |
| Federal spending/national debt | 5% |
| Moral decline | 5% |
| category | Total |
|---|---|
| Border security | 20% |
| Immigration | 16% |
| Health care | 8% |
| Political corruption/leadership | 7% |
| Education | 7% |
| Gun control/gun violence | 5% |
| category | column-1 |
|---|---|
| Such a law is appropriate because it allows people to judge potential conflicts of interest | 58% |
| Such a law is an invasion of privacy that goes too far | 23% |
| Haven't thought about it enough to have an opinion | 20% |
SB 17 – Protecting Religious Liberties (Results)
| category | Total |
|---|---|
| Agree | 30% |
| Disagree | 51% |
| Don't know/no opinion | 19% |
| category | Democrat | Independent | Republican |
|---|---|---|---|
| Agree | 14% | 26% | 45% |
| Disagree | 68% | 48% | 34% |
| Don't know/no opinion | 18% | 26% | 20% |
| category | Extremely important | Somewhat important | Not very important | Not at all important |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Agree | 45% | 26% | 22% | 8% |
| Disagree | 32% | 49% | 68% | 83% |
| Don't know/no opinion | 23% | 25% | 10% | 9% |
SB 19 – Protecting Second Amendment Rights (Results)
| category | Total |
|---|---|
| More strict | 49% |
| Less strict | 17% |
| Left as they are now | 30% |
| Don't know/no opinion | 4% |
| category | Democrat | Independent | Republican |
|---|---|---|---|
| More strict | 83% | 45% | 19% |
| Less strict | 3% | 23% | 29% |
| Left as they are now | 11% | 29% | 48% |
| Don't know/no opinion | 3% | 3% | 4% |
SB 22 – Defund Abortion Providers; SB 23 – Texas Born-Alive Infant Protection Act; SB 24 – Alternatives to Abortion Information Act (Results: here and here)
| category | Total |
|---|---|
| More strict | 41% |
| Less strict | 32% |
| Left as they are now | 20% |
| Don't know/No opinion | 8% |
| category | Democrat | Independent | Republican |
|---|---|---|---|
| More strict | 15% | 31% | 66% |
| Less strict | 58% | 30% | 9% |
| Left as they are now | 18% | 30% | 19% |
| Don't know/No opinion | 8% | 9% | 6% |
| category | Total |
|---|---|
| Never permitted | 15% |
| Only in cases of rape/incest/danger | 29% |
| Must clearly establish need | 12% |
| Should be personal choice | 39% |
| Don't know | 5% |
| category | Democrat | Independent | Republican |
|---|---|---|---|
| Never permitted | 6% | 3% | 25% |
| Only in cases of rape/incest/danger | 16% | 17% | 43% |
| Must clearly establish need | 10% | 13% | 14% |
| Should be personal choice | 64% | 61% | 15% |
| Don't know | 4% | 6% | 4% |
"Protecting Texas’ Future"
SB 3 – Across-the-Board Pay Raise for Teachers; SB 4 – School Finance Reform (Here)
| category | Total |
|---|---|
| Low teacher pay | 17% |
| Public school system funding | 17% |
| Public education financing | 9% |
| Unequal resources among schools | 9% |
| School accountability | 8% |
| Quality of teachers | 8% |
| category | Democrat | Independent | Republican |
|---|---|---|---|
| Low teacher pay | 22% | 19% | 12% |
| Public school system funding | 24% | 12% | 11% |
| Public education financing | 10% | 5% | 9% |
| Unequal resources among schools | 13% | 5% | 5% |
| School accountability | 2% | 12% | 13% |
| Quality of teachers | 4% | 10% | 11% |
SB 6 – Disaster Response Act; SB 7 – Flood Disaster Plan – Matching Fund; SB 8 – Statewide Flood Plan (Results: here and here)
| category | Total |
|---|---|
| Approve strongly | 29% |
| Approve somewhat | 31% |
| Neither approve nor disapprove | 17% |
| Disapprove somewhat | 10% |
| Disapprove strongly | 5% |
| Don't know | 8% |
| category | Total |
|---|---|
| Yes | 45% |
| No | 42% |
| Don't know/no opinion | 13% |
| category | Democrat | Independent | Republican |
|---|---|---|---|
| Yes | 80% | 37% | 16% |
| No | 8% | 46% | 72% |
| Don't know/no opinion | 13% | 17% | 12% |
SB 10 – Student Targeted Mental Health; SB 11 – School Safety Act (Here)
| category | Total |
|---|---|
| Insufficient restrictions | 17% |
| Poor enforcement | 6% |
| Insufficient school security | 8% |
| Insufficient mental health resources | 14% |
| Poor parenting | 18% |
| Media attention | 6% |
| Drug use | 1% |
| Violence in popular culture | 7% |
| Failure to identify potential shooters | 8% |
| School building design | 1% |
| Bullying | 13% |
| category | Democrat | Independent | Republican |
|---|---|---|---|
| Insufficient restrictions | 34% | 9% | 2% |
| Poor enforcement | 9% | 3% | 3% |
| Insufficient school security | 5% | 4% | 10% |
| Insufficient mental health resources | 17% | 12% | 12% |
| Poor parenting | 10% | 21% | 26% |
| Media attention | 5% | 5% | 8% |
| Drug use | 1% | 0% | 2% |
| Violence in popular culture | 3% | 12% | 10% |
| Failure to identify potential shooters | 5% | 9% | 12% |
| School building design | 1% | 2% | 2% |
| Bullying | 10% | 23% | 14% |