(The Center Square) – Texas Gov. Greg Abbott has signed more than 700 bills into law that were passed during the regular legislative session.
On Friday, he signed 306 bills, with two days left to sign or veto the remaining bills sent to him in accordance with constitutional guidelines.
“Texas is the blueprint for America’s future,” Abbott said. In his February State of the State Address, he instructed the legislature to “be the guardians of freedom.” The bills he has so far signed into law, he said, “fulfill that task and ensure that Texans continue to benefit from the liberties that define our state.”
So far, Abbott has signed 710 bills into law, which can be found here.
He previously signed several major bills into law at news conferences held across the state with lawmakers, business leaders, members of the public, teachers, parents and schoolchildren. Abbott already signed into law the creation of Texas’ first school choice program, property tax relief, record funding for public schools, bills to support the Texas oil and natural gas industry, small businesses and foster economic growth, record funding for water infrastructure among other priorities, The Center Square reported.
Of the 306 bills he signed into law on Friday, he said 15 were “critical.” They include:
Senate Bill 1035, which authorizes owners, operators, or lessees of agricultural operations to bring legal action against a political subdivision that violates “right to farm” protections.Senate Bill 2231, which establishes a Free College Application Week in the second week of October to allow potential future students to apply to state universities or colleges for free.Senate Bill 2570, which adds a section to the Texas Penal Code to protect law enforcement officers from frivolous litigation by allowing peace officers and correctional facility guards to use less-lethal force weapons.House Bill 11, which amends state law to recognize out-of-state occupational licenses to make it simpler to work in Texas.House Bill 12, which requires regular efficiency audits of state agencies.House Bill 29, which establishes water audit validation and mitigation requirements for municipally owned utilities that provided potable water to 150,000 service connections or more.House Bill 33, which enhances school safety by strengthening emergency operations planning, security reviews and safety audits, and training to help protect students and staff.House Bill 229, known as the “Women’s Bill of Rights,” it codifies gender and biological sex terminology, specifying there are only two biological sexes—male and female.House Bill 1393, requires the entire state to observe daylight saving time year-round once federal approval is granted. Standard time will be referred to as “Texas Time.”House Bill 1481, which requires public schools to adopt policies that prohibit student from using personal communication devices during the school day.House Bill 2294, which enables local workforce development boards to reimburse Texas Rising Star Program childcare providers at maximum reimbursement rates based on their rating level, provided that doing so doesn’t affect the target number of subsidized children who are served daily.House Bill 2306, which makes those convicted of human trafficking ineligible for parole when the victim is a child or disabled individual.House Bill 2674, which prevents the state from imposing regulatory burdens on homeschool programs.House Bill 5115, which makes counting invalid votes or refusing to count valid votes an election fraud offense and enhances the offense of all election fraud to a second-degree felony.House Bill 5629, which removes barriers to recognizing, and waiving fees for, occupational licenses for veterans and their spouses.
Abbott continues to review more than 1,200 bills the legislature sent to him for review. He has until the end of the day Sunday, June 22, to sign or veto bills, according to constitutional guidelines.
