How'd The Guv do?

​At the Governor’s mansion in Austin, the “Big 3” – Governor Abbott, Lieutenant Governor Patrick, and Speaker Bonnen – declared the 86th Legislature a “Superbowl of sessions.”  No MVP would be named, they said, but sessions often produce winners and losers.  So, how did the Governor do in this big game as compared to past sessions?

The analysis in the table below examines the total legislative proposals passed out of the total legislation proposed in the Governor’s 2019 State of the State Address.  

The results are quite good for Governor Abbott – his success rate was 84%, higher than his previous three sessions (2013-2017).  This success rate was also higher than Governor Perry’s last few sessions.  The Governor was batting 100% on his emergency items:  teacher pay, school finance, property tax caps, rape kit backlogs.  Most of these priority items were (more or less) agreed to before the session started but the Governor gets some credit for working the process to get them into law.  Most of his other items (like new anti-gang centers, funds to combat human trafficking, and more funding for veterans) also passed. 

​What didn’t pass were smaller agenda items.  One request was for an increase in border security funds – the state ponied up their usual spending (about $800 million) but Governor Abbott’s last minute request for an extra $100 million was quickly rejected.  Aggies and Longhorns anxious for a gridiron matchup to renew their football rivalry were as disappointed as the Governor that legislation encouraging the annual game didn’t get past the line of scrimmage.