Honoring Our TCDD Legislative Champions
As we approach the end of the year, the Texas Council for Developmental Disabilities (TCDD) has recognized a group of lawmakers as TCDD Legislative Champions for their efforts during the 89th Texas Legislature. Their work helped better ensure that people with disabilities are fully included in their communities and can exercise control over their own lives.
Legislative Champion Lawmakers
Eleven lawmakers were honored for their work on measures to improve inclusion, remove barriers, and promote an increased quality of life for Texans with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD).
Rep. Alma Allen (House District 131, Houston) has been particularly active on school discipline issues and filed legislation that would have cracked down on school-initiated undocumented early pick-ups. She also filed a bill that would have required public school social studies curricula to include instruction on the history of people with disabilities.
Rep. John Bucy III (House District 136, Austin) authored and passed a bill establishing the Building Better Futures Program to increase postsecondary educational opportunities for students with IDD. He also filed legislation on topics such as student discipline and voting accessibility.
Rep. Mary González (House District 75, El Paso) authored numerous pieces of disability-related legislation, including inclusive child care and a co-navigator services program for individuals who are deaf-blind. She also sponsored successful bills on emergency preparedness for students with disabilities and a report on enrollment and success of postsecondary students with disabilities.
Rep. Ana Hernandez (House District 143, Houston) filed two bills that came directly from interactions with TCDD: one that would have made fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD) a qualifying condition for special education services, and another that would have phased out the use of 14c waivers in Texas, eliminating the payment of subminimum wage to workers with disabilities. She also filed legislation related to interactions between law enforcement and people with disabilities during vehicular stops.
Rep. Suleman Lalani (House District 76, Sugar Land) authored a variety of disability-related bills, including a measure that would have established a base wage of $15 per hour for community attendants and one that would have created an advisory committee regarding services for individuals with IDD. He also authored a bill that would have allowed school districts to develop policies to address eloping behavior by students with autism or IDD.
Rep. Christian Manuel (House District 22, Beaumont) authored successful legislation that now requires schools to refer special education students to a local intellectual and developmental disability authority (LIDDA) for additional services and public benefits.
Rep. Claudia Ordaz (House District 79, El Paso) was the author of legislation that requires the development of a strategic plan for the improvement and expansion of early learning and educational opportunities for young children with disabilities. The bill was developed in close collaboration with Texans Care for Children and TCDD staff; her office was helpful and responsive throughout the process.
Rep. Toni Rose (House District 110, Dallas) authored legislation that would have established a statewide IDD Coordinating Committee, as well as a bill relating to the prohibition of the use of the death penalty against those with severe mental illness.
Sen. José Menéndez (Senate District 26, San Antonio) authored successful legislation requiring a report by the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board regarding enrollment and success in higher education for students with disabilities. He was the Senate sponsor of the bill establishing the Building Better Futures Program.
He also filed a number of other disability-related bills, including a proposal on transportation accessibility and a measure that would have directed the Texas Education Agency to adopt standards relating to the use of assistive technology as needed for individualized special education programs and 504 plans.
Sen. Tan Parker (Senate District 12, Flower Mound) was the Senate sponsor for the legislation requiring the development of a strategic plan for the improvement and expansion of early learning and educational opportunities for young children with disabilities. He authored a measure that would have required the Texas Department of Criminal Justice to develop and implement reentry and reintegration plans for offenders with intellectual disabilities.
Another of his bills would have required the Texas Health and Human Services Commission’s executive council membership to include a parent or guardian of a child who is a Medicaid recipient, including a recipient of services under a Medicaid waiver program.
Sen. Judith Zaffirini (Senate District 21, Laredo) authored numerous disability-related proposals, including legislation to better ensure public schools have safety plans and accommodations for students with disabilities during safety drills and disasters or emergencies. She authored a bill requiring a study on authorizing supported decision-making agreements to include assistance in legal proceedings. She also served as the Senate sponsor of the LIDDA referral bill and a measure that bans paid caregivers from serving as life insurance beneficiaries for those under their care.
Five of this year’s honorees — Reps. Allen, González, and Rose; Sens. Menéndez and Zaffirini — were recognized by the Council in previous legislative sessions.
TCDD is grateful for the crucial contributions of these Legislative Champions in helping to create a safer and more accessible Texas for all. We hope that additional lawmakers will follow their lead in the future. Our agency is ready to serve as a resource to offices on the issues faced by Texans with developmental disabilities and how legislation might impact them.
Stay Informed
Texas lawmakers convene for legislative sessions every two years. TCDD monitors legislative activities that could impact disability-related programs and services. To learn more about legislation and disability issues, visit our website.
Stay up to date on disability policymaking activity by connecting with us on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn.
