Special to The Leader

After weeks in committee, SB 4 will be debated by the full body today.

Austin, Texas – Today, Senate Bill 4 will receive its second reading in the Texas House of Representatives. This reading will include a full floor debate on the legislation, following the defeat of Chairman Todd Hunter’s calendar rule on Monday.

The Texas House Democratic Caucus and Mexican American Legislative Caucus have prepared a robust, multi-pronged strategy for the debate. However, the organizations anticipate that SB 4’s proponents might exploit rarely used procedural tactics to cut off the proceedings prematurely.

State Representative Eddie Rodriguez issued the following statement regarding the upcoming debate:

“I serve on the committee that crafted the House alternative to the Texas Senate’s horrible legislation.

“We heard from Texas children, parents, faith leaders, law enforcement, business and industry representatives, educators, and countless others who testified that SB 4 will hurt our communities. But despite loud opposition to the ‘anti-sanctuary city’ bill and hardly any supporting testimony, SB 4 has taken priority over more pressing matters.

“It’s embarrassing, frankly, that the Texas Legislature has taken up the perceived problem of ‘sanctuary cities’ with such urgency while children continue to fall through the cracks in our CPS/foster care system.

“The reason is blind partisan ambition among our state’s Republican leadership and their jumping on the Trump bandwagon.

“The eyes of the nation are on the Texas House. We’ll be fighting an uphill battle, but I am proud to be working work with Texas House Democratic Caucus Chairman Chris Turner, MALC Chairman Rafael Anchia and many others on planning and executing today’s floor strategy.”