ROUND ROCK, Texas — Republican leaders want Gov. Greg Abbott to call a special session for legislative action regarding his recent stance on child gender modification in Texas and parental rights in public schools. Multiple party leaders spoke Monday at a private event Round Rock.
Primary speakers and Republican gubernatorial candidates Allen West, Don Huffines and Chad Prather spoke on their "shared concern ... regarding our state’s children," according to a press release.
The move comes after Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, in his official capacity as the chief legal officer for the State, said that certain child gender modification procedures should be treated as abuse.
Following the release of his opinion, Gov. Abbott sent a letter to the Department of Family and Protective Services (DFPS) saying the agency should conduct investigations of any reported instances of children being "subjected to abusive gender-transitioning procedures."
Now, the gubernatorial candidates want Gov. Abbott to call for a special session to end sex change procedures before the primary election. They're also asking for Gov. Abbott to add the issue of parental rights in public education to that special session call, citing his pitch to make a "parent's bill of rights" an amendment to the Texas Constitution.
Paxton's opinion claims Texas law counts puberty blockers and other medical procedures to change a child’s sex as “abuse” under section 261.001 of the Texas Family Code.
DFPS said there are not currently any pending investigations of child abuse involving procedures. If such a case should arise, they said it will be investigated under existing policies of Child Protective Investigations.
Other attendees slated for Monday's event were:
- Trayce Bradford, Candidate for Lieutenant Governor
- Sid Miller, Texas Agriculture Commmissioner
- Weston Martinez, candidate for Texas Land Comissioner
- Jill Glover, Republican Party of Texas State Executive Committee Legislative Priorities Chair
- Jeremy Story, Republican Party of Texas State Chaplain
- Jeff Younger, Candidate for Texas House District 63 and father fighting for child against a court mandate that they be given gender transition therapy
- Fran Rhodes, President True Texas Project
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