AUSTIN, Texas — Texas lawmakers are back at work this week, but, first things first, they have to pass rules for the session.
They say all is fair in love and war, but when it comes to Texas politics, the game can be far from fair. The majority party can change, and that means so can the rules that govern the upper chamber.
Lawmakers work on their bills for months – and spend countless hours in committee hearings – but in the end, in order to bring those bills to the Senate floor for a vote, you have to have the numbers.
And we all know numbers can change.
The Senate long required a two-thirds majority to bring items up for a vote – that's 21 out of the 31 members. The idea was that lawmakers would have to work across the aisle to pass legislation.
However, in 2015, Dan Patrick's first session as lieutenant governor, there were 20 Republicans. So he pushed – and successfully changed – the rule to three-fifths majority, or 19 senators.
Now, after the latest election, there are fewer Republicans in the Senate – 18.
So, this week, Lt. Gov. Patrick pushed and got the rules changed again, requiring just 18 ayes to bring a bill to the floor – or five-ninths – giving the majority party in the Senate the power to dictate the 2021 agenda.
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