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AUSTIN — A controversial “ bathroom bill ” that was part of Gov. Greg Abbott’s agenda failed to pass during a special session but questions persist about whether it could return in a yet another called session .  A version of the proposal, which also foundered during the regular session, where it was a top priority for Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, sparked opposition from corporate leaders from dozens of Fortune 500 companies, and projections from the Keep Texas Open for Business coalition that passing a bathroom bill could cost some $5.6 billion in statewide revenue loss through 2026. So-called “privacy” bills governing transgender use of restrooms not only polarized Texas residents , but also Republican lawmakers in Austin. University of Houston political scientist Brandon Rottinghaus said that moderate House Republicans , led by Speaker Joe Straus , R-San Antonio, “needed some extra oomph” to fight a bathroom bill and that big-business opposition “gave them the coverage...

In the end, the controversial bathroom bill went quietly.  For more than a year, Republican Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick led the crusade for a state law to regulate bathroom use for transgender Texans — an initiative that resonated with social conservatives, including many pastors, who backed him up. Patrick for months stood firm in his pursuit for a bathroom bill even while similar campaigns in other states fizzled out.  He was met by loud opposition that only grew with time and eventually proved to be a considerable political force.  Transgender women, men and children from across Texas descended on the Capitol to testify about how the proposal — which would ban local policies that ensured transgender individuals ’ right to use public and school restrooms that match their gender identity — could endanger their lives. The business community rallied against the legislation too, giving House Speaker Joe Straus cover as he refused to negotiate with Patrick on bathroom restrictions.  That ...

Editor's note: This story has been updated throughout. The Texas Legislature appears to be at a stalemate on a “bathroom bill” that could push the legislative session into overtime. Refusing to go any further to regulate bathroom use for transgender Texans, House Speaker Joe Straus said Friday that the Senate can take or leave a proposed compromise it passed on Sunday — to which Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick later responded with a resounding no. With the clock ticking on the legislative session, Straus said on Friday that the House will not appoint members to negotiate with the Senate on its proposed compromise on a “bathroom bill.” The Texas Tribune thanks its sponsors. Become one. “For many of us — and especially for me — this was a compromise,” Straus said at a Friday news conference . “As far as I’m concerned, it was enough. We will go no further. This is the right thing to do in order to protect our economy from billions of dollars in losses and more importantly to protect the safety...

The Texas House of Representatives adjourned on Tuesday evening, effectively ending the special legislative session . While the Republican- controlled state legislature passed a handful of bills on Republican Gov . Greg Abbott’s conservative agenda, there was one item that did not make it to the governor’s desk: the “bathroom bill,” which would restrict the ability of transgender Texans to use the bathroom that corresponds with their gender identity. Republican lawmakers failed to gain the necessary support to pass the anti-trans legislation. One Democrat in the Texas Senate, Sen. Eddie Lucio Jr . (D-Brownsville), voted for the bill, but moderate Republicans blocked it in the house. JoDee Winterhof, senior vice president for policy and political affairs at the Human Rights Campaign , said in a statement that Texans can “breathe a temporary sigh of relief,” but warned that advocates will keep a “watchful eye” against further attacks on transgender people . Appreciate our work? Rewir...

A day before the Texas Legislature ended its special session this week, a session that included a high-profile fight over a bathroom bill that appeared almost certainly dead, David Welch had a message for Gov. Greg Abbott: call lawmakers back to Austin. Again. For years, Welch, executive director of the Texas Pastor Council , has worked to pass a bill that would ban local policies that ensured transgender individuals ’ right to use restrooms in public schools and government buildings that match their gender identity. The summer special session , which was quickly coming to a close, had been Welch and other social conservatives ’ second chance, an overtime round after the bill — denounced by critics as discriminatory and unnecessary — failed during the regular session that ended in May.   But with the Texas House unlikely to vote on a bathroom bill , Welch gathered with some of the most conservative Republicans in that chamber to make a final plea. The bill, they argued without any...

Celebration is in order in Texas and around the country, as an attempt to pass a transgender “bathroom” bill went down in flames in a special session. And wow, did we ever need a win at this time. As hate and ugliness envelop national politics , it’s something to feel proud about and to revel in. LGBTQ activists and allies rallied big business , from Amazon to Exxon Mobil, and brought pressure to bear. Hundreds of opponents of the bill descended on the state capitol again during the 30-day period in July and August. A bill limited to schools passed the Senate, but it stalled in the House.  It was a major embarrassment for the homophobic, transphobic GOP lieutenant governor , Dan Patrick, who zealously pushed for a broad bill. It was, perhaps more of an embarrassment for Texas Governor Greg Abbott , who bowed to Patrick in calling the special session primarily to pass the bathroom bill after similar bills failed in the regular session. It was a setback for religious conservatives who ...

SAN ANTONIO - As the Tuesday start of the special session draws near, concerns over the effects of the so-called "bathroom bill" are picking up again in the Alamo City. Supporters of the original bill, Senate Bill 6, were unable to pass it through the legislature during the regular session. Now, passing such a bill is on Gov. Greg Abbot's list of priorities for the special session. The original bill would have required people to use bathrooms in public schools and public buildings that correspond to the sex on their birth certificate and not how they identify their gender. It would have also prohibited political subdivisions , such as municipalities, from creating their own policies on bathroom or locker room access . Opponents of the bill said it discriminated against transgender people. While an identical version to SB 6 has not been filed for the special session, Rep. Ron Simmons, R-Carrollton, has filed two bills that appear to touch on the issue. The bills, House B...

'Bathroom Bill' on agenda for Special Session in Texas. AUSTIN, Texas -- Just down the street from the Texas Capitol building , at the Austin Club, the Texas Tribune hosted a moderated discussion on the so called 'bathroom bill.' State Representative Ron Simmons and Senator Sylvia Garcia sat down with a Texas Tribune moderator to discuss the so called bathroom bill . Simmons proposed the House's version, which doesn't allow cities or schools to create a "protected class" over and above what state or federal law permits "It's about an expectation of privacy," said Simmons. "We don't want to have forced upon our school aged children , to be able to have to use these same intimate facilities together, when they do have biological differences." He said his bill would address the problems of public safety and local control, saying these types of decisions should be made at the state level. "What I'm saying is time ...

Abbott did not respond to requests for comment on the dueling news conferences . His spokesman, John Wittman, said that despite tensions, the regular session is not over.  "The taxpayers deserve to have the Legislature finish their work on time," he said in a written statement. "Only the Governor can determine when or if there is a special session, and if so, what issues are addressed." Straus said he had not spoken with the governor about the House's bill, adding that the chamber on Saturday would take up the issue of property tax legislation , one of Abbott's and Patrick's other priority items. Nick Morrow, spokesman for  Human Rights Campaign , a  national LGBT rights organization , praised Straus for drawing a line in the sand. "Thousands of Texans oppose anti -transgender legislation," Morrow said. "We are glad to see Speaker Straus agrees that we need to stop wasting taxpayers ' time and money to pursue discrimination."

There's some good news out of Texas today: Legislation intended to limit transgender people 's access to bathrooms in schools and other public buildings in Texas died on Tuesday, when the state House of Representatives concluded a special session without voting on the measure. Though Texas's "bathroom bill"—or, more accurately, a series of bills meant to limit the rights of transgender individuals and require them to use the restrooms, showers, and locker rooms in public facilities that coordinate with the sex on their birth certificate—had the support of Governor Greg Abbott and many Republican state representatives , plenty of business leaders and civil rights groups fought to keep the bill from making its way into law. While the special session of the Texas House was scheduled to conclude on Wednesday, House Speaker Joe Strauss , a probusiness Republican, concluded the assembly a day early, effectively blocking the bills from making their way to a vote. Thoug...

By Jon Herskovitz AUSTIN, Texas, Aug 14 (Reuters) - Texas measures to restrict access for transgender people to bathrooms in schools and public buildings appear doomed after moderate Republican powerbrokers blocked the bills and hundreds of businesses opposed them. The so-called " bathroom bills " have caused rifts among Republicans who control the state's legislature, leaving no likely path to passage before a 30- day special session wraps on Wednesday, analysts and lawmakers said on Monday. "The bathroom bill in this session is dead and buried with dirt over its coffin," said Mark Jones, a political science professor at Rice University in Houston. Enactment in Texas, the most populous Republican -dominated state, could give momentum to other socially conservative states for additional action on an issue that has become a flashpoint in the U.S. culture wars. But House Speaker Joe Straus , a pro- business Republican who controls the agenda in the body, has s...

Less than two months after failing to pass a “bathroom bill” restricting access for transgender people , Texas lawmakers are trying again amid fierce opposition from Democrats, civil rights groups and leading businesses. A special legislative session will start on Tuesday in Austin. Among the main items on the agenda is a measure to limit transgender access to restrooms and changing facilities. The issue is the latest battleground in the conflict in Texas between moderate, pragmatic Republicans and far-right, ideologically driven conservatives emboldened by the rise of Donald Trump. That clash is embodied by antipathy between two of the state’s most important politicians: Joe Straus, speaker of the House and a relative moderate, and Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick , a Christian conservative who was the state chairman of Trump’s presidential campaign. Passing a bathroom bill is a top priority for Patrick. In a sign of the pressure being placed on moderates as Texas politics lurche...