Texas Governor Emergency Powers: A GOP Lawmaker Wants a Special Session to Rein Them In Before Hinojosa Takes Office
State Rep. Brian Harrison is urging Gov. Greg Abbott to call lawmakers back to Austin to restrict the emergency powers Gov.-elect Gina Hinojosa would inherit in January. Abbott has not said he will — and a former House speaker says the votes, and even a quorum, may not be there.
AUSTIN — The first legislative fight of the Hinojosa era may happen before Gina Hinojosa takes the oath. State Rep. Brian Harrison, a Midlothian Republican, sent Gov. Greg Abbott a letter on November 4 — the day after Hinojosa defeated Abbott to become the first Democrat elected governor of Texas since 1990 — urging him to convene a special session to restrict the governor's emergency powers before she is sworn in, USA TODAY reported. Harrison has since taken the campaign public, with a petition and a blunt statement of purpose.
"We still have total power in Texas, and we must act like it by using the remaining ten weeks to restore separation of powers and limit the emergency powers that Governor-Elect Hinojosa is set to inherit," Harrison wrote in the post reported by Fox News. His model is House Bill 911, the bill he first filed in December 2022 for the 2023 session: it would restrict a governor's ability to suspend statutes during emergencies and require legislative approval for disaster declarations to run beyond 30 days. The bill was referred to the House State Affairs Committee in March 2023 and never became law.
The powers at issue are broad. Under the Texas Disaster Act of 1975 and Chapter 418 and Section 433.002 of the Texas Government Code, a governor's emergency orders carry the force of law, and the governor may issue, amend or rescind emergency directives during a declared disaster — authority Abbott used repeatedly, most visibly on border security. Harrison's argument, made since 2022, is that the authority is excessive in any governor's hands; the timing of his renewed push, one day after his party lost the office, is what has drawn the fight.
Whether it goes anywhere is an open question. Abbott — who said in his concession remarks that he would assist Hinojosa's transition — has not publicly answered Harrison's demand, and the Houston Chronicle reported he has not indicated he plans to call the session. Former House Speaker Dade Phelan poured cold water on the mechanics, telling the Chronicle that a special session still needs a quorum to operate, and that Democrats are unlikely to show up at the Capitol to limit their own governor's power. Hinojosa, who won with 52.78 percent to Abbott's 45.66 percent in Decision Desk HQ's count, is expected to take office on January 19, a week after the regular session gavels in on January 12.
