Texas. Legislature. Legislative Council

The Texas Legislative Council was created in 1949 by Senate Bill 316, 51st Legislature, Regular Session. It is governed by a council of seventeen members, including four senators appointed by the lieutenant governor, nine representatives appointed by the speaker of the House, and the chairs of the Senate and House Administration committees. Members serve terms beginning with appointment and ending with the convening of the next regular session. The lieutenant governor and the speaker serve as chair and vice chair. The Council is responsible for providing research and information to the legislature. The Council also assists state agencies, the public, legislatures from other states, and national organizations in answering questions regarding the legislature and Texas laws. Its duties include producing maps for the legislature to use during the redistricting process. Under the general direction of the executive director, the staff is organized into five major divisions: Administration, Legal, Research, Document Production, and Information Systems. The Research Division contains the Special Projects and Redistricting Section. To support the legislature's redistricting activities, the section works with information systems staff to build and maintain election, census, and geographic databases and mapping and redistricting computer systems. The staff of the section produces maps and reports showing population and election information for proposed and enacted redistricting plans, as well as informational publications on redistricting.

See the online finding aid for the agency history.

The Texas Legislative Council was created in 1949 by the 51st Legislature of Texas to assist legislators in gathering information related to certain legislative difficulties and problems concerning the general welfare of Texas.

The Texas Legislative Council was created in 1949 by Senate Bill 316, 51st Legislature, Regular Session as a nonpartisan legislative agency to produce impartial research and information. It is governed by a council of seventeen members, including four senators appointed by the lieutenant governor, nine representatives appointed by the speaker of the House, and the chairs of the Senate and House Administration committees. Members serve terms beginning with appointment and ending with the convening of the next regular session. The lieutenant governor and the speaker serve as chair and vice chair. The Council also assists state agencies, the public, legislatures from other states, and national organizations in answering questions regarding the legislature and Texas laws.

Under the general direction of the executive director, the staff is organized into five major divisions: Administration, Legal, Research, Document Production, and Information Systems. The Council is responsible for providing research and information, bill drafting, computing, publishing, and document distribution services to the legislature and legislative agencies. The Research Division contains the Special Projects and Redistricting Section. To support the legislature's redistricting activities, the section works with information systems staff to build and maintain election, census, and geographic databases and mapping and redistricting computer systems. The staff of the section produces maps and reports showing population and election information for proposed and enacted redistricting plans, as well as informational publications on redistricting.

Lawsuits challenged the U.S. Congressional and State House and Senate districts drawn up after the 1990 census. Thomas v. Bush, filed on January 25, 1995, challenged seventeen senate districts and fifty-four house districts, alleging racial gerrymandering. On September 5, 1995, the federal court hearing the case issued an order to allow court-ordered settlement districts to be used for the 1996 elections. A trial scheduled for October 1995 was postponed pending the U.S. Supreme Court's decision on Bush v. Vera, a similar case challenging three U.S. Congressional districts in Texas. As part of the settlement agreement for Thomas v. Bush, the plaintiffs agreed to drop the lawsuit if the legislature enacted the settlement plans or adopted other districts that were less race-conscious, more compact, or more community and neighborhood based.

On June 13, 1996, in the case of Bush v. Vera, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld a district court ruling that three U.S. Congressional districts in Texas were unconstitutional because they had been drawn to benefit particular racial groups (116 S.Ct. 1941 [1996]). Texas had gained three more Congressional seats after the 1990 census. The legislature had reconfigured District 18 as a majority African-American district in Harris County, created District 29 as a majority Hispanic district in Harris County, and created District 30 as a majority African-American district in Dallas County.

Thomas v. Bush was dismissed on August 18, 1997 in response to a motion to dismiss filed by state legislative defendants, state executive defendants, and the plaintiffs.

(Sources include: Guide to Texas State Agencies, 11th edition (2001); and the agency website at http://www.tlc.state.tx.us/tlc.htm (accessed on July 19, 2005).)

The Texas Legislative Council was created in 1949 by Senate Bill 316, 51st Texas Legislature, Regular Session as a nonpartisan legislative agency to provide professional and technical service and support to the Texas Legislature and the legislative agencies. It is governed by a council of fourteen members, including six senators appointed by the lieutenant governor, five representatives appointed by the speaker of the house, and the chair of the house administration committee. Members serve terms beginning with appointment and ending with the convening of the next regular session. The lieutenant governor and the speaker serve as joint chairs and act as the governing body of the council during a regular legislative session.

Under the direction of the council's leadership team, the staff is organized into administrative functions and four major divisions: Document Production, Information Systems, Legal, and Research. The council employs professional, administrative, and technical staff to assist legislators in drafting proposed legislation and in obtaining information on specific legislative problems and on matters affecting the general welfare of the state. Council staff also handle the printing, processing, and distribution of legislative documents and provide computer support to the legislature and all of the other legislative agencies. The council assists state agencies, the public, legislatures from other states, and national organizations in answering questions regarding the legislature and Texas laws. During legislative interims, the legal division is largely occupied with the ongoing statutory revision program, which includes a simplified classification system, improved numbering system, and clarification of the statutes without substantive change.

The Research Division is responsible for providing research, drafting, mapping, and redistricting services to the legislature. Specific services include congratulatory, memorial, and policy resolution drafting; bill analysis and bill version side-by-side comparison drafting; policy issue research; statistical research; data gathering and preparation; map production and geographic analysis; publication preparation; and redistricting information and support. To support the legislature’s redistricting activities, the division's mapping and redistricting section works with information systems staff to build and maintain election, census, and geographic databases and mapping and redistricting computer systems. The section produces maps and reports showing population and election information for proposed and enacted redistricting plans, as well as informational publications on redistricting, and prepares information for the council's Texas Redistricting website .

(Sources include: Guide to Texas State Agencies, 11th edition (2001); and the Texas Legislative Council website at http://www.tlc.state.tx.us/about.htm (accessed on May 2, 2011).)

The Texas Legislative Council was created in 1949 by Senate Bill 316, 51st Legislature, Regular Session as a nonpartisan legislative agency to produce impartial research and information. It is governed by a council of seventeen members, including four senators appointed by the lieutenant governor, nine representatives appointed by the speaker of the House, and the chairs of the Senate and House Administration committees. Members serve terms beginning with appointment and ending with the convening of the next regular session. The lieutenant governor and the speaker serve as chair and vice chair.

Under the general direction of the executive director, the staff is organized into five major divisions: Administration, Legal, Research, Document Production, and Information Systems. The Council is responsible for providing research and information, bill drafting, computing, publishing, and document distribution services to the legislature and legislative agencies. One aspect of this work, undertaken by the Administrative Division, involves assisting the Texas Inaugural Committee with details of the swearing-in ceremony of the governor and lieutenant governor. The Council also assists state agencies, the public, legislatures from other states, and national organizations in answering questions regarding the legislature and Texas laws. The Council is also responsible for the ongoing statutory revision project, which includes a simplified classification system, improved numbering system, and clarification of the statutes without substantive change.

(Sources include: Guide to Texas State Agencies, 11th edition (2001); and the agency website at http://www.tlc.state.tx.us/tlc.htm (accessed on March 24, 2005).)

On March 1, 1949, during the Regular Session of the 51st Texas Legislature, Senate Bill 316 was introduced, providing for the creation of the Texas Legislative Council. During the period that these records cover, the Legislative Council was composed of seventeen members: the President of the Senate (ex officio), the Speaker of the House (ex officio), five senators, and ten representatives. Senators were appointed by the Senate President, i.e., the Lieutenant Governor; representatives by the House Speaker. An Executive Director was selected by the entire membership.

Responsibilities of the Council include the investigation of agencies and officers of the state and statutory revision without substantive change. The Council is authorized to sit between legislatures and is assisted by a large staff. During the legislative session, upon the request of a member or committee, Council staff will draft legislation and reports. In addition, staff members may testify before committees and prepare written statements. Under the general direction of the executive director, the staff is organized into five major divisions: Administration, Legal, Research, Document Production, and Information Systems.

From September 1974 until December 1975, the Texas Legislative Council participated in the constitutional revision process through a temporary Office of Constitutional Research.