By: Birdwell, et al.	S.B. No. 871
	(Slawson)

	A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
	AN ACT
	relating to the authority of the legislature, governor, and certain
	political subdivisions with respect to disasters and emergencies.
	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
	SECTION 1.  Section 418.002, Government Code, is amended to
	read as follows:
	Sec. 418.002.  PURPOSES. The purposes of this chapter are
	to:
	(1)  reduce vulnerability of people and communities of
	this state to damage, injury, and loss of life and property
	resulting from natural or man-made disasters [catastrophes, riots,
	or hostile military or paramilitary action];
	(2)  prepare for prompt and efficient rescue, care, and
	treatment of persons victimized or threatened by disaster;
	(3)  provide a setting conducive to the rapid and
	orderly restoration and rehabilitation of persons and property
	affected by disasters;
	(4)  clarify and strengthen the roles of the governor,
	state agencies, the judicial branch of state government, and local
	governments in prevention of, preparation for, response to, and
	recovery from disasters;
	(5)  authorize and provide for cooperation in disaster
	mitigation, preparedness, response, and recovery;
	(6)  authorize and provide for coordination of
	activities relating to disaster mitigation, preparedness,
	response, and recovery by agencies and officers of this state, and
	similar state-local, interstate, federal-state, and foreign
	activities in which the state and its political subdivisions may
	participate;
	(7)  provide an emergency management system embodying
	all aspects of predisaster preparedness and postdisaster response;
	(8)  assist in mitigation of disasters caused or
	aggravated by inadequate planning for and regulation of public and
	private facilities and land use;
	(9)  encourage state agencies, local governments,
	nongovernmental organizations, private entities, and individuals
	to adopt the goals of the strategic plan of the Federal Emergency
	Management Agency for preparing for, responding to, and recovering
	from a disaster that emphasize cooperation among federal agencies,
	state agencies, local governments, nongovernmental organizations,
	private entities, and individuals in each activity or project
	undertaken to ensure that this state is prepared to effectively
	respond to and recover from a disaster; and
	(10)  provide the authority and mechanism to respond to
	an energy emergency.
	SECTION 2.  Section 418.004(1), Government Code, is amended
	to read as follows:
	(1)  "Disaster" means the occurrence or imminent threat
	of widespread or severe damage, injury, or loss of life or property
	resulting from any natural or man-made cause unrelated to the use of
	force or violence such as civil unrest, riots, or insurrection. The
	term includes[, including] fire, flood, earthquake, wind, storm,
	wave action, oil spill or other water contamination, volcanic
	activity, epidemic, air contamination, blight, drought,
	infestation, explosion, [riot, hostile military or paramilitary
	action,] extreme heat, cybersecurity event, other public calamity
	requiring emergency action, or energy emergency.
	SECTION 3.  Subchapter B, Chapter 418, Government Code, is
	amended by adding Section 418.0126 to read as follows:
	Sec. 418.0126.  CERTAIN POWER RELATED TO BUSINESSES RESERVED
	TO LEGISLATURE. (a) Notwithstanding any other law, during a
	declared state of disaster, only the legislature has the authority
	to restrict or impair the operation or occupancy of businesses in
	this state by category or region to appropriately respond to the
	disaster.  The legislature may only exercise the authority granted
	by this subsection in a county after consulting with the county
	judge of each county impacted by the disaster.
	(b)  The governor by proclamation shall convene the
	legislature in special session to respond to a declared state of
	disaster if the governor finds that the authority of the
	legislature under Subsection (a) should be exercised and the
	legislature is not convened in regular or special session.
	SECTION 4.  Section 418.014, Government Code, is amended by
	amending Subsections (b) and (c) and adding Subsection (c-1) to
	read as follows:
	(b)  Except as provided by Subsection (c) or (c-1), the state
	of disaster continues until the governor:
	(1)  finds that:
	(A)  the threat or danger has passed; or
	(B)  the disaster has been dealt with to the
	extent that emergency conditions no longer exist; and
	(2)  terminates the state of disaster by executive
	order.
	(c)  A state of disaster may not continue for more than 30
	days unless renewed by the governor, subject to Subsection (c-1).
	The legislature by law may terminate a state of disaster at any
	time.  On termination by the legislature, the governor shall issue
	an executive order ending the state of disaster.
	(c-1)  If the governor finds that a state of disaster
	described by Section 8(c), Article IV, Texas Constitution, requires
	renewal and the legislature is not convened in regular or special
	session, the governor by proclamation shall convene the legislature
	in special session to renew, extend, or otherwise respond to the
	state of disaster.  The governor may not declare a new state of
	disaster based on the same or a substantially similar finding as a
	prior state of disaster subject to this subsection that was
	terminated or not renewed by the legislature.
	SECTION 5.  Section 418.0155, Government Code, is amended by
	adding Subsections (c) and (d) to read as follows:
	(c)  The governor's office shall publish the list compiled
	under Subsection (a) on the office's Internet website.
	(d)  Each state agency impacted by the suspension of a
	statute or rule on the list compiled under Subsection (a) shall
	publish on the agency's Internet website a list of those statutes
	and rules. The agency's list must be:
	(1)  posted or updated within 24 hours of any
	suspension; and
	(2)  accessible by selecting or viewing not more than
	two Internet web pages after accessing the agency's Internet home
	page.
	SECTION 6.  Section 418.016(a), Government Code, is amended
	to read as follows:
	(a)  Subject to Sections 418.0126 and 418.0165, the [The]
	governor may suspend the provisions of any regulatory statute
	prescribing the procedures for conduct of state business or the
	orders or rules of a state agency if strict compliance with the
	provisions, orders, or rules would in any way prevent, hinder, or
	delay necessary action in coping with a disaster.
	SECTION 7.  Subchapter B, Chapter 418, Government Code, is
	amended by adding Section 418.0165 to read as follows:
	Sec. 418.0165.  LIMITATION ON POWER TO SUSPEND LAWS OR
	RULES. (a) Notwithstanding any provision of this chapter, the
	governor may not suspend:
	(1)  a provision of this chapter or Chapter 433; or
	(2)  a law or rule related to the application of Chapter
	325 (Texas Sunset Act), the suspension of which results in the
	continuation of a state agency beyond the date prescribed in
	statute for the abolishment of the agency.
	(b)  Except as provided by Subsection (d), the governor may
	suspend a provision of the Code of Criminal Procedure, Election
	Code, or Penal Code only during the first 30 days of a declared
	state of disaster.
	(c)  If the governor finds that a suspension authorized by
	Subsection (b) should be continued beyond the first 30 days of a
	declared state of disaster and the legislature is not convened in
	regular or special session, the governor by proclamation shall
	convene the legislature in special session to respond to a state of
	disaster.
	(d)  Except as provided by this subsection, the governor may
	not suspend a provision of the Election Code related to the
	qualifications or procedures for early voting by mail or to the
	procedures for accepting a voter during any voting period,
	including procedures related to voter identification, residency,
	and signature requirements, except that the governor may suspend
	Section 86.006(a-1), Election Code, only for the purpose of
	allowing a voter registered to vote at an address located in a
	disaster area to deliver a marked ballot voted under Section
	86.006(a-1) to the early voting clerk's office on or before
	election day.  This subsection does not prohibit the governor from
	suspending a provision of the Election Code to extend the voting
	period for early voting by mail as necessary to address the declared
	disaster.
	SECTION 8.  Subchapter B, Chapter 418, Government Code, is
	amended by adding Section 418.027 to read as follows:
	Sec. 418.027.  PREEMPTION OF DECLARATION OF LOCAL DISASTER.
	A declaration of local disaster issued under Subchapter E may not
	conflict with, or expand or limit the scope of, a declaration of
	disaster issued under this subchapter unless expressly authorized
	by a proclamation or executive order issued by the governor under
	this chapter.
	SECTION 9.  Section 433.001, Government Code, is amended to
	read as follows:
	Sec. 433.001.  PROCLAMATION OF STATE OF EMERGENCY. On
	application of the chief executive officer or governing body of a
	county or municipality during an emergency, the governor may
	proclaim a state of emergency and designate the area involved. For
	the purposes of this section an emergency exists in the following
	situations:
	(1)  a riot or unlawful assembly by three or more
	persons acting together by use of force or violence;
	(2)  if a clear and present danger of the use of force
	or violence exists; or
	(3)  a natural or man-made disaster related to the use
	of force or violence such as civil unrest or insurrection.
	SECTION 10.  Section 433.002, Government Code, is amended by
	amending Subsection (b) and adding Subsection (d) to read as
	follows:
	(b)  Subject to Section 433.0025, the [The] directive may
	provide for:
	(1)  control of public and private transportation in
	the affected area;
	(2)  designation of specific zones in the affected area
	in which, if necessary, the use and occupancy of buildings and
	vehicles may be controlled;
	(3)  control of the movement of persons;
	(4)  control of places of amusement or assembly;
	(5)  establishment of curfews;
	(6)  control of the sale, transportation, and use of
	alcoholic beverages; and
	(7)  control of the storage, use, and transportation of
	explosives or flammable materials considered dangerous to public
	safety, other than explosives or flammable materials that are
	components of firearm ammunition.
	(d)  A directive issued under this section applies only
	within the jurisdictional boundaries of the county or municipality
	for which an application was made under Section 433.001.
	SECTION 11.  Chapter 433, Government Code, is amended by
	adding Section 433.0025 to read as follows:
	Sec. 433.0025.  CERTAIN POWER RELATED TO BUSINESSES RESERVED
	TO LEGISLATURE. (a) During a state of emergency, only the
	legislature has the authority to restrict or impair the operation
	or occupancy of businesses in this state by category or region to
	appropriately respond to the emergency.
	(b)  The governor by proclamation shall convene the
	legislature in special session to respond to a state of emergency if
	the governor finds that the authority of the legislature under
	Subsection (a) should be exercised and the legislature is not
	convened in regular or special session.
	SECTION 12.  Section 418.019, Government Code, is repealed.
	SECTION 13.  The changes in law made by this Act apply only
	to an order, proclamation, regulation, or directive issued on or
	after the effective date of this Act.
	SECTION 14.  This Act takes effect January 1, 2027, but only
	if the constitutional amendment proposed by the 89th Legislature,
	Regular Session, 2025, regarding the powers of the governor, the
	legislature, and the supreme court following certain disaster or
	emergency declarations is approved by the voters. If that
	amendment is not approved by the voters, this Act has no effect.