HOUSTON – Former state Rep. Garnet F. Coleman, who represented Houston’s House District 147 for more than 30 years, died of natural causes Sept. 23, his family announced Thursday. He was 65.
Coleman served in the Texas House from 1991 until his retirement in 2022. During his tenure, he worked on legislation involving health care, mental health services, criminal justice and economic development.
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He was involved in creating Texas’ Children’s Medicaid and Children’s Health Insurance Program in 1999 and later worked to expand enrollment by addressing administrative barriers. Coleman also served as the House’s lead writer on the health and human services section of the state budget during four legislative sessions, helping direct additional funding to health coverage, mental health care and HIV/AIDS services.
His legislative work included support for the state’s Medicaid 1115 Transformation Waiver, which brought federal funding to Texas health care providers. He also participated in a group of state lawmakers selected by the Obama administration to work on national health reform.
Coleman’s criminal justice work included legislation requiring crisis intervention training for peace officers and the 2017 Sandra Bland Act. The law addressed officer de-escalation training, traffic-stop data, jail safety, investigations into jail deaths and efforts to connect people experiencing mental health issues with treatment.
He also backed mental health training for teachers and university staff, legislation extending state health coverage to foster children attending college, and a measure allowing rural hospitals to employ physicians.
In Houston, Coleman helped establish management districts in areas including Midtown, Downtown, East Downtown and Greater Southeast Houston. He also advocated for Texas Southern University, Prairie View A&M University and the University of Houston.
His work at TSU included helping preserve the university’s independence and securing civil rights funding for TSU and Prairie View A&M. At UH, he supported the creation of the Hobby School of Public Affairs and the College of Medicine, as well as funding efforts aimed at helping public universities achieve Tier One status.
Coleman previously chaired the Texas Legislative Study Group House Caucus and the Texas Legislative Black Caucus. He also served on the House Committee on Public Health for many years.
The family said details about funeral services and other arrangements will be announced later. Relatives have asked for privacy and said they hope Coleman will be remembered for his public service, commitment to his family and efforts to improve opportunities for Texans.
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