Sunset During the 86th Legislature
The Sunset Commission has completed its interim work, adopting 496 recommendations on the 32 agencies under review. These changes aim to improve agency operations, use available funds more efficiently, and better serve the people of Texas. The Sunset Commission recommends that the 86th Legislature pass legislation to continue 20 agencies, abolish the Texas State Board of Plumbing Examiners and transfer its functions to the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation, consolidate the Texas Board of Professional Land Surveying with the Texas Board of Professional Engineers, and consolidate four behavioral health licensing boards into a new behavioral health agency. Recommendations to consolidate or transfer agencies, while expected to save money over time, would require some upfront investments in the upcoming biennium. Overall, the Sunset Commission’s recommendations are estimated to result in a negative fiscal impact to the state of about $4.4 million during the next two fiscal years.
A complete summary of Sunset’s work is contained in the Report to the 86th Legislature. This information is a guide to the introduced version of the Sunset bills of each agency under review, listed in the chart below. Generally, these bills go through normal processes in the House and Senate, and must be enacted by the Legislature for the agencies to continue.
The public can participate in the legislative process on Sunset bills in the same way as any other legislation, through hearings in the Senate and House and contacting legislators who vote on the bills. You may follow the progress of Sunset legislation by clicking the bill numbers below, which link to up-to-date information posted on Texas Legislature Online, a service of the Texas Legislative Council.
Note: Chart will be updated as bills are filed.