AUSTIN — Yesterday the Texas legislature ended its special session after having passed nine of the 20 items requested by Gov. Greg Abbott when he called the session. Increased abortion reporting for minors and a ban on insurance coverage for abortion care were among the laws passed, while the controversial “bathroom bill” was not.
“While I’m relieved the special session has adjourned without targeting transgender Texans for discrimination and abuse, this legislature has otherwise done a great deal of damage this year,” said Terri Burke, executive director of the ACLU of Texas. “This has been the most vindictive legislative session of my lifetime. Our lawmakers have singled out our vibrant Latino communities with the most anti-immigrant law in the nation. They have made it harder for LGBT couples to welcome children into their loving homes. And they have abandoned even the pretense of protecting women’s health with their additional restrictions to abortion access. There is no rest for us at the ACLU, or for any Texan who cherishes civil liberties, at the end of this session. The work ahead will be more challenging than at any other time any of us can recall.”
