The eyes of LGBTQ Texans are upon Dade Phelan and the House
Spurred by a groundswell of far-right support, the Texas Senate has passed all of Lt. Gov. Dan Patrickโs priority LGBTQ bills โ and then some. What the House does next will impact queer Texansโ lives and could determine Speaker Phelanโs future.
Expanded access to medical marijuana gains traction as Texas House passes bill
The bipartisan legislation is an expansion on the stateโs 2015 โCompassionate Useโ law, which has allowed a growing number of patients to legally use cannabis to treat debilitating symptoms of conditions such as epilepsy, autism, cancer and PTSD.
Texas far-right conservatives spent millions to oust House GOP leaders, to little avail
In the Texas House, the biggest intraparty attack on Republican leadership came from the Defend Texas Liberty PAC, led by former state Rep. Jonathan Stickland, R-Bedford. Backed by hard-right donors like Tim Dunn and Farris Wilks, West Texas oil tycoons, the group spent at least $5.2 million from January onward.
Dan Patrick again blocking effort to expand Texasโ medical marijuana program, advocates say
House Bill 1535 would expand the stateโs medical cannabis program to include those with chronic pain, all cancer patients and Texans with post-traumatic stress disorder. But it hasnโt yet been referred to a Senate committee.