(ConservativeHub.com) – On May 16, Texas Senators passed a wide-reaching bill that would pull authority away from cities. The bill now only needs to be signed by the governor before it becomes law.
According to a report from The Hill, the bill removes a number of issues from municipal control, including payday lending laws, rest break regulations for construction employees, and even some discrimination laws involving women. The legislation would take a lot of the control from the state’s Democratic-run cities and bring it back under the Republican-controlled legislature.
Gov. Greg Abbott (R) has expressed support for this bill. However, The Hill reports that progressive critics have claimed that the legislation would mark a change in the conservative state legislatures’ campaign to remove the power from Democratic municipalities. The bill has also reportedly been opposed by civil society groups like the AFL-CIO and other representatives in more populated areas of Texas.
Sen. Sarah Eckhardt (D) told the Senate on the day the bill passed that the local government is responsible for covering the areas in which the state has not taken action, helping benefit “our shared constituents.” She added that they should allow people to do their job and not try to micromanage them.
The bill is sponsored by state Sen. Brandon Creighton (R), who has argued that it is necessary in order to protect “job creators.” The legislation is backed not only by its sponsors but also by the principal trade group that backed it.
The bill passed the state Senate 18-13 in a close to party-line vote. The bill passed through the House in April with only eight out of the 65 Democrats supporting it.
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