AUSTIN (Nexstar) — Gov. Greg Abbott held a ceremony Thursday afternoon to sign legislation he says will “protect women’s sports,” but LGBTQ+ advocates say it harms their community.

Senate Bill 15 bans collegiate-level transgender athletes from competing on sports teams that do not align with their biological sex assigned at birth. It expands on similar restrictions that were signed into law two years ago, applying to sports play for Texas public schools grades K-12.

During the regular legislative session, bill sponsor Rep. Valoree Swanson, R-Spring, said the bill is to ensure competition is fair for female athletes.

“This legislation is not about participation. This legislation is not about restricting anyone’s opportunities,” Swanson said in May. “It is not fair that young women are watching their records get broken, accolades taken and scholarships awarded, not to other women, but to biological men.”

During a May House floor debate, Rep. John Bucy, D-Austin, joined other Democrats and LGBTQ+ organizations who say the bill is harmful.

“There is no research or evidence to suggest this is affecting access or opportunity for Texas women,” he said. “We are wasting time on a made-up issue. When asked if they ever had a transgender athlete compete now or ever, [Texas colleges] said no. There are no transgender athletes in college sports. Not a one.”

SB 15 will require college athletes to join teams that align with their biological sex, regardless of the gender they may identify as. It also allows civilians to file lawsuits against a college or university if they believe the school is violating the law. Those who report any violations will be provided whistleblower protections, according to the bill.

This was one of several bills affecting LGBTQ+ Texans in the legislative session. According to the American Civil Liberties Union, Texas lawmakers introduced at least 53 bills aimed at LGBTQ people this session. That’s the most of any state.

The restrictions proposed and enacted over the past few years have pushed some Texans to look at options to leave the state.

At the end of this month, Paul Lewis plans to hand over the keys to his house in a Dallas suburb and start a long drive north, where he’ll become the latest LGBTQ+ Texan to leave the state in hopes of finding a friendlier place to call home.

“Part of me hates the fact that I’m leaving Texas, the home I’ve always known,” Lewis said, “but part of me is also excited by the fact that I get to start a new chapter.”

The lifelong Texan committed in January to begin looking for somewhere else to move.

He explained how two factors ultimately solidified that decision, pointing to the growing number of LGBTQ+ restrictions introduced this legislative session as well as the frequency of deadly mass shootings happening in the state. He noted his home in Carrollton is 20 minutes from the Allen Premium Outlets, where a gunman killed eight people in May. Plus, the governor recently signed a bill into law that would ban transgender minors from receiving certain health care options to help in their transition.

“I don’t feel like Texas is my home anymore,” Lewis said simply.

He ended up selling his home through a real estate service launched last summer by Dallas-based broker Bob McCranie, who sought to help LGBTQ+ people list their homes in Texas and then connect them with an agent in another state or even a different country where they’d like to go next. McCranie initially called it “Flee Texas,” but soon changed the name to reflect a broader group of people expressing interest in the service.

“What we discovered was we got so much response from other states that we decided to expand and become ‘Flee Red States,’” McCranie said Tuesday. “We’ve helped 27 groups of people so far get out.”

When someone goes to the website FleeRedStates.com, a message reads, “As LGBTQIA+ citizens in Red States, many of us feel at risk. Current laws are highly discriminatory against trans youth and their families. Our marriages, our families, and even our safety are at risk. If you feel the need to leave the jurisdiction of a Red State, let us help you sell your property here and connect with you an LGBTQIA+ or ally agent in a better location of your choice. We are licensed in Texas and we have affiliates in all 50 states and several countries.” People can share their contact information to create an account and start the process of connecting with a real estate expert.

“We’re calling it kind of the ‘rainbow Underground Railroad,’” McCranie said. “We’re trying to get people out quietly and get them to someplace where they feel safer.”

At Thursday’s bill signing event, Abbott responded to a question about what he would say to LGBTQ+ Texans who assert they no longer feel welcome here anymore.

“Texas of course is a very welcoming state, and we want everybody to be here,” Abbott said. “So much so because the policies we promote, Texas over the past decade has been the leading state in the United States of America people choose to move to for our policies, and we will continue to advance policies that protect children, that protect women in sports but protect all Texans and their freedoms.”

After working in Texas real estate for more than 20 years, McCranie called it a “sad thing” to change his business to now help people leave the state rather than put down roots here. However, he said he has no plans to stop it anytime soon because he still worries which LGBTQ+ restrictions the state’s Republican leaders will pursue next.

“What we all want as human beings is to feel a level of safety, and if your state is making you feel unsafe, there’s no reason to stay,” McCranie said. “I can’t believe somebody could look at, let’s say, California or New York versus Texas and Florida and say that LGBTQ people feel more welcome in Florida and Texas. Do you think that’s a reasonable presumption? Of course not.”

A woman who sold her home recently in the Austin area now resides in New Zealand, where she traveled to last week to reunite with her transgender son who’s in nursing school there. They decided to go somewhere overseas rather than another state because they’re concerned about a possible shift in the national political rhetoric against transgender rights.

When Lewis leaves the Dallas area at the end of the month, he’ll be bound for Michigan. He said it’s not only closer to some of his family, but state leaders there also worked to codify protections for the LGBTQ+ community. For example, earlier this year, Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer signed a law that expanded the state’s anti-discrimination policies to include sexual orientation, gender identity and gender expression. Under Texas state law, those remain unprotected classes despite efforts to change that by mostly Democratic state lawmakers and LGBTQ+ advocates.

As he spends the next two weeks packing up his belongings, Lewis shared what he hopes Texas leaders will take from hearing how their policies are making him and other LGBTQ+ people flee the state.

“You should honestly be ashamed with the amount of injustice that you’re bringing into the state of Texas because that’s not my Texas. That’s not the Texas I grew up in,” Lewis said. “My Texas was you are proud to be from here. You helped your neighbor. You were loving and kind, and you’re turning into something else because my Texas doesn’t feel that way anymore. I feel more hate brewing in the state than I have my entire life, and your decisions are making it worse.”

Veto threat heightens divisions between Abbott, Patrick

In the past week, Abbott held several media events to highlight legislation that he signed into law. But he’s also making news for what he’s not signing.

Abbott said he could veto large numbers of bills passed in the regular session. That message comes as he puts pressure on lawmakers to reach an agreement on property tax relief.

At a bill signing event Wednesday, a reporter asked whether the Governor was holding back some legislation to encourage lawmakers to reach a deal.

“My last day to sign or veto bills is this Sunday, as we get closer and closer to the Sunday, all of these bills that have yet to be signed, face the possibility, if not the probability, that they’re going to be vetoed,” Abbott said in response.

Lt. Governor Dan Patrick criticized the governor’s veto threat, calling it “an affront to the legislative process.”

“I cannot believe the governor would use his veto pen to veto dozens and dozens of bills, maybe a hundred bills or more,” Patrick said at a news conference Thursday.

“The veto is to be used for bad policy. When the DA of Dallas says I want to stop a criminal gang from stealing gasoline, that’s good policy,” said Patrick, referring to Senate Bill 467, which Gov. Abbott vetoed the previous day.

“When the city of Amarillo, the people there say we want a bill to protect us from government going around our votes, that’s good public policy,” added Patrick, referencing Senate Bill 2035, which the governor vetoed on Tuesday.

“I would ask the Governor to rethink that. It’s not a very good image,” Patrick said.

This comes amid division over how to provide tax relief to Texans. Lawmakers agreed to allocate $17.6 billion to cut property taxes. But Abbott and Patrick have different views on the best way to get that relief to Texans.

Abbott backs a plan to lower school district property tax rates by having the state “buy down” tax rates by 26 cents for every hundred dollars of a home’s valuation. State leaders and policy wonks refer to this as “tax rate compression.”

Patrick and the Senate back an alternative plan that spends the same $17.6 billion and dedicates about 70 percent of it to tax rate compression — but it also increases the homestead exemption by two and a half times. Texans can currently deduct $40,000 of their home’s value from taxation. Patrick wants to increase that to $100,000.

Supporters of the Senate plan point out it does more than the House plan to help average homeowners in Texas. Backers of the House plan believe it does a better job of getting tax relief to businesses and renters.

TxTag, lawmakers resolve some tolling problems

Following the “TxTag Troubles” investigative project, many drivers who reached out to KXAN got their issues resolved, and a new state law will soon address one of the top complaints about Texas’ tolling systems.

In response to more than 700 complaints sent to KXAN in a month, the Texas Department of Transportation set up a dedicated phone line in its customer service outreach center specifically to resolve these drivers’ issues through the end of May.

That dedicated phone line has now closed, and TxDOT said it resolved 90% of complaints from people who used it and is currently working to resolve the rest.

“I’m one of the people that had trouble with their TxTag, and it’s just amazing how fast it was all fixed,” said one person in a voicemail left for KXAN, regarding the impact our investigation had on the agency’s response time.

The overwhelming majority of complaints KXAN received dealt with billing issues, particularly for toll customers with auto-pay accounts.

“Essentially, their system failed and they did not bill my credit card (which was set up on auto-pay) for almost all of 2022. In August, we started to receive bills … back-billing us for a year’s worth of charges for their tolls — obviously at higher rates than what we should have paid,” one viewer told KXAN.

On June 10, Abbott signed House Bill 2170 into law to prevent further issues similar to that complaint.

“There is a lack of transparency and adequate communication between some toll entities andcustomers. Customers are not always adequately notified that there is a problem processing their payment,” according to the bill’s statement of intent.

HB 2170, authored by Rep. Bobby Guerra, D-McAllen, and sponsored by Sen. Carol Alvarado, D-Houston, aims to improve Texas’ tollway billing and collections practices. It requires tolling entities to immediately notify customers if there is a problem processing toll charges through the electronic payment method associated with their accounts.

Alvarado said she hopes this bill will bring accountability for toll systems and awareness for customers.

“I can only imagine what it feels like to get hit with a big bill at the end because maybe you didn’t know that something happened with your credit card — it was declined or didn’t process,” Alvarado said.

As part of our earlier investigation, KXAN spoke to Terri Hall with Texans for Toll-free Highways, a non-profit advocacy group working to educate the public on these issues.

“The number one way drivers get caught up in mounting toll bills that become unpayable is the failure of toll agencies to immediately notify them of any problems with their payment card,” said Hall in response to HB 2170 becoming law.

The new law will take effect Sept. 1.

New law to end paper license plates in Texas

Say goodbye to paper license plates — just not yet.

Abbott signed a bill into law Monday that puts the brakes on Texas’ paper license plate problem by tearing up the current system. The new law replaces all paper tags with metal ones. It goes into effect July 1, 2025.

“Feel relieved and, no, didn’t feel this day would come,” said Rep. Craig Goldman, R-Fort Worth, who introduced HB 718, which will eliminate all paper license plates in the state. “Bills this big, that make fundamental change in this state, don’t normally pass the very first session that you file them. So, huge relief.”

The move caps more than six years of KXAN’s “Risky Rides” investigations, and an equally-long fight spearheaded by law enforcement in Central Texas to stop what has ballooned into a $200 million black market impacting all 50 states. Goldman called it a “major problem.”

Under the new law:

Car dealers will be required to issue metal license plates, from the Texas Department of Motor Vehicles, when a vehicle is sold.
At a cost of $10, metal license plates will be issued instead of the current paper one-trip and 30-day temporary permits.
The new law also ensures dealers are able to obtain, in advance, a sufficient amount of plates in order to sell vehicles “without an unreasonable disruption of business due to the unavailability of license plates.”
The TxDMV is tasked with establishing an expedited process, as well.
The TxDMV has until Dec. 1, 2024, to come up with a rule to implement the change.
From left to right: Sgt. Jose Escribano, Rep. Cole Hefner, Rep. Craig Goldman and Central Texas deputy David Kohler (Courtesy Jose Escribano)

A years-long series of KXAN investigations revealed criminals are not only counterfeiting dealer tags but also infiltrating the TxDMV system to print and sell real ones, with phony information, by posing as car dealers. Fraudulently-obtained tags are used to turn vehicles into virtually untraceable “ghost cars.”

Two top officials with the TxDMV resigned last year amid the paper plate scandal, including then-executive director Whitney Brewster. In late 2022, the TxDMV introduced a redesign of paper tags touting new enhanced security features, like watermarks and QR codes.

Despite the change, Goldman said he was given a counterfeit copy of a paper plate, with the new security features meant to prevent fraud, “within one hour” of its launch. It confirmed his belief that the only way to “fix” the paper license plate problem is to “get rid of paper tags altogether,” he previously told KXAN.

After he introduced HB 718, Goldman said he was contacted by law enforcement “all across the state” who thanked him. Among the first to support the bill was Sgt. Jose Escribano with the Travis County Constable’s Office Pct. 3.

In 2017, Escribano warned KXAN that paper license plates were being forged “and you’re not the wiser.”

Since then, he’s led the fight statewide to stop the proliferation of bogus tags, which he and other law enforcement say are connected to organized crime, human smuggling, drug running and other crimes large and small.

Escribano said he’s “very excited” to finally see the culmination of his efforts.

“It’s going to, in an instance, make it a lot safer out there,” Escribano said of the new law and the TxDMV requirement passed last year to fingerprint all car dealers. “They’re not going to be able to hide.”

Illegal temporary tags confiscated in Austin. (Courtesy Travis County Constable Pct. 3)

While the new law won’t kick in for another two years, in the meantime, Abbott signed HB 914, introduced by Rep. Cole Hefner, R-Mount Pleasant. The bill clarifies temporary license plates are a “government record.” Law enforcement officials said this will make it easier to prosecute tag fraud with tampering charges. The law goes into effect Sept. 1.

“I didn’t think they were going to eliminate all paper tags,” Escribano told KXAN after the bill was sent to the governor. “I thought that was going to be the fight to the finish. I really did.”

“If it wasn’t for you guys exposing it, we’d still be in the trenches fighting,” he added. “But, you know how it is, you guys are the Kryptonite.”

Escribano has used our reporting to educate and train law enforcement across the state. Goldman said news reports, including KXAN’s investigations, helped inspire his bill and educate lawmakers.

“Credit absolutely goes to investigative reporters, reporters like you and your station. … you’ve been doing this for years reporting on fake paper tags,” Goldman said. “The more the general public heard about the paper tags — and now, I have 149 colleagues who drive around the state and say, ‘Every time I see a fake paper tag I think of you,’ — the same credit goes to y’all for informing the public and keeping us aware of problems in the state. So, there’s no question, that was a major part of it and component of it as well.”

Patient safety bill signed into law

Abbott signed a major patient safety bill into law Tuesday, capping a bipartisan achievement that will reform the Texas Medical Board, protect patients from potentially dangerous doctors and, supporters say, save lives.

“This bill will absolutely save lives,” said Rep. Julie Johnson, D-Farmers Branch, who introduced HB 1998 in direct response to KXAN’s “Still Practicing” investigations. “I’m thrilled we got this passed.”

The new law addresses problems KXAN first uncovered. Five years after the infamous Texas surgeon, nicknamed “Dr. Death,” was sentenced to life in prison, we wanted to see if anything in the state had changed. Our investigation found at least 49 doctors practicing in Texas, despite having their medical licenses revoked in other states. We found no record of those out-of-state disciplinary actions listed on their Texas Medical Board physician profiles, even though it’s required by state law.

“The Texas Medical Board has completely failed in its job,” Johnson said more than a year ago at her law office in Dallas. “And, so, we’re going to have to step in and do it for them.”

At the time, Johnson pledged to “do something” about what we found. Her reform bill achieved overwhelming support from the TMB and lawmakers in both the House and Senate, where it was sponsored by Sen. Bob Hall, R-Edgewood.

“I’m really grateful that Sen. Hall was willing to work with me,” Johnson said. “We had a lot of ideas in common about the need for transparency and the need for medical board reform.”

The new law gives the TMB the tools it needs to better protect patients from dangerous doctors. It also makes clear the board has an obligation to be transparent about physician discipline records.

HB 1998 was championed as much for its bipartisan support as it was its broad patient safety measures. So, what changes for patients here in Texas?

The new law will better protect Texas patients by:

Making it a Class A misdemeanor to lie on medical license applications;
Preventing doctors who’ve had licenses revoked, restricted or suspended for cause in other states from practicing in Texas;
Preventing doctors from practicing in Texas if they have been convicted, or had a deferred disposition, for a felony or misdemeanor crime involving moral turpitude;
Requiring physicians and applicants to be fingerprinted as part of a criminal background check with the Texas Department of Public Safety for a criminal background check;
Requiring all physicians be monitored monthly with the National Practitioner Data Bank — a confidential clearinghouse of all physician complaints, established by Congress and sealed to the public — which will be funded with fees physicians pay to the TMB. Johnson said the legislature will appropriate a greater percentage of those fees to cover the cost, which is $2.50 per doctor per year; and,
Mandating the TMB updates the public physician profiles on its website when it’s alerted to any disciplinary action within 10 business days.

“I’m thrilled. I’m thrilled. I’m just so happy,” said Johnson at the Capitol shortly after her bill passed both chambers and was sent to the governor. “I just want to thank KXAN…we got it done.”

A close up of the folder containing HB 1998, which regulates physicians and the TMB’s disciplinary authority. (KXAN Photo/Matt Grant)

After KXAN brought the problems we uncovered to Johnson, and other lawmakers, she worked with patient advocates, along with the Texas Medical Board and other physician groups, to craft legislation that would be impactful.

“Your investigations were the catalyst for this whole project,” Johnson said. “You uncovered some of the malfeasance that was happening and some of the inactions of the medical board that needed to be addressed. You communicated it, we learned of it…and now we have a law that’s going to make Texans safer.”

In April, KXAN investigative reporter Matt Grant testified in front of lawmakers, including Hall — taking the findings of our “Still Practicing” investigations straight to the Senate floor.

“The Texas Medical Board’s goal is to ‘protect and enhance the public’s health safety and welfare’ but we’ve discovered, in case after case, the board has instead prioritized protecting physicians over patients,” Grant said.

“It wasn’t until KXAN and their investigations (did we learn), hey, these guys came to Texas because they lost their license in the other state,” said Hall during remarks to the Senate Health and Human Services Committee.

“This particular problem was originally exposed by some really good investigative reporters from KXAN,” he added at another hearing. “We are very grateful to them for their findings.”

If this law had been in place last year, the TMB would have “immediately” been alerted by the National Practitioner Data Bank that an emergency doctor was arrested on child pornography charges on Nov. 30. Instead, the board found out in March of this year from a news article, the president of the TMB, Dr. Sherif Zaafran, said.

The doctor’s medical license was suspended on April 10, more than four months later, records show.

“So, a lot of the concerns you had raised in the past about physicians out there potentially violating the law, and us not acting on it in time,” Zaafran said, “this would help take care of that by us knowing about it in real-time.”

Asked about the new law, Zaafran told KXAN he’s “grateful” to lawmakers for the resources to better protect and inform patients.

“I’m grateful for the legislature granting us the authority and the funding to continuously monitor the National Practitioner Data Bank as well as fingerprinting all our licensees,” he said. “We can now rely on real time data to update physician profiles in real time and protect the public with up to date and current information on all our licensees.”

Last year, the TMB approved a rule change in response to our reporting. The new rule requires doctors to self-report criminal convictions, out-of-state disciplinary actions and medical malpractice claims within 30 days. Previously, it was every two years.

More than a decade after the TMB gave Dr. Christopher Duntsch, now known as “Dr. Death,” a license to practice medicine, the Dallas surgeon who helped stop him praised the new law.

“Great News!!,” Dr. Robert Henderson wrote in a text message. “Now we can work on getting other states to do the same. Thanks so much for all you have done!!”

The new law takes effect Sept. 1.

Texas Space Commission launches

The space industry is getting a little extra oversight in Texas. Abbott signed HB 3447 into law Tuesday, establishing the creation of the Texas Space Commission. The group will distribute $350 million in taxpayer dollars towards the development of the space industry in Texas.

“Having a space commission, like the Texas space bill, allows industry partners like us to be able to tap into those dollars and expand even more,” said Stephen McCall, Director of Government Relations for Firefly Aerospace.

Firefly Aerospace, called Austin area’s “secret” aerospace company by the group’s CEO, is based in Cedar Park. They’re currently in a period of expansion, building a new mission control locally and facilities in Briggs, TX.

McCall said that the funding the Commission provides could play a major role in their expansion. “(It) allows us to have innovative ideas funded in addition to research opportunities.”

Texas isn’t the first state to have a commission dedicated to distributing funding to aerospace innovation. California and Florida have their own versions of the space commission.

The bill behind the commission is pretty broad. The board will have nine seats, filled by the Governor, Lieutenant Governor and Speaker of the House.

According to McCall, “various industry partners, like Firefly aerospace, will be asked to be on the board to help establish the policies.” Additionally, one member will be from NASA, while another will be a member of the military.

The Commission will be in charge of planning for the space industry in Texas. This includes not only distributing funds to companies, but also research and education efforts.

The bill, HB 3447, was primarily authored by Rep. Greg Bonnen, R-Friendswood.

McCall said that his team helped with getting the bill passed. “We briefed members of the House and we also had the aerospace caucus that was founded by members of the House come visit our Briggs manufacturing and test site in Briggs, TX.”

Firefly Aerospace is especially excited about the bill because they have some major projects coming up.

“We are building, right now, the Blue Ghost Lunar Lander, there’s going to land on the moon in 2024,” McCall said.

The company was commissioned by NASA to build the lunar lander as part of the Commercial Lunar Payload Services initiative. They will also build a transfer vehicle that will transport communications equipment to lunar orbit.