On Sunday, in an unexpected move, the Texas Senate elected to adjourn until Tuesday, foregoing any discussions on House Bill (HB) 4, the controversial immigration bill that had been on its itinerary. This action suggests that the legislation will remain unpassed as the current special session draws to a close, and will have to be revived in the future when the new session begins. More on this event can be found here.
Since obtaining majority endorsement from the Texas House on October 26 and journeying to the Senate, the proposed bill has had to weather considerable criticism. The provisions laid out in HB 4 primarily aspire to impose strenuous penalties on immigrants who enter Texas without proper authorization from a different nation. If enacted, the intrusion would be codified as a Class B misdemeanor, carrying with it a sentence of confinement of up to 180 days. Should the infringing immigrant have a criminal past involving unlawful entry, their sentence could potentially be extended. The language in the content of HB 4 provides further details about these clauses.
On November 1, the Texas Senate Committee on Border Security convened to deliberate on the substitutions suggested by Senator Brian Birdwell. Among the notable modifications made in the Senate’s revised version of HB 4 include a requirement for officers to possess probable cause prior to initiating an arrest. It also discards the portion permitting an officer to return the infiltrator to the border without observing the legally required steps such as fingerprinting, executing a background examination, and photographing the individual. More on these substitutions proposed in the Senate’s amended version can be seen here.
The now nearly-concluded special session was the third of its kind to be initiated by Governor Greg Abbott since the culmination of the 88th Regular Legislative Session earlier this year. Worth mentioning is that border security forms one of the key agenda items listed when the special session was announced.