Relating to the care, custody, and display of the letter known as the victory or death letter, the Texas Constitution, and the Texas Declaration of Independence.
HB 1397 requires the Texas Historical Commission to manage the care, custody, and display of three key historical documents: the "victory or death letter" (William Travis' 1836 letter), the Texas Constitution, and the Texas Declaration of Independence. The bill mandates that the commission designate a secure display location for the victory or death letter at the Alamo complex by December 1, 2027, while continuing to display the Constitution and Declaration at the Capitol Complex under existing arrangements. It also requires collaboration with the Texas Historical Commission and State Preservation Board to develop and publish a formal display plan for all three documents. This law, signed by the governor on June 20, 2025, and effective September 1, 2025, institutionalizes the current practice of displaying these documents while formalizing future display locations.
Bill status
signed
all 5 stages cleared
Introduction
Mar 2025
Committee Review
May 2025
House Passage
May 2025
Senate Passage
Jun 2025
Signed into Law
Jun 2025
Introduced Mar 11, 2025
Signed Jun 20, 2025
Maddy AI version diff · 2 comparisons
What changed between versions
Engrossed
→
Enrolled
·
5 edits
·
Jun 20, 2025
MODERATE
The bill was finalized from its engrossed version to an enrolled version, which is the final version ready for the Governor's signature. The substantive policy content remained largely the same, with the main changes being formatting cleanup, removal of placeholder text, and addition of official certification signatures and voting records. The core provisions regarding the care, custody, and display of the Victory or Death letter, Texas Constitution, and Texas Declaration of Independence were preserved without substantive policy modifications.
Scope change
No substantive scope change; the bill's applicability and requirements remain identical to the engrossed version.
TECHNICAL
Removed placeholder text and formatting artifacts from the engrossed version, including draft notes and incomplete line breaks.
Added official certification language documenting House and Senate passage dates, vote counts, and Governor approval.
Included signature lines for the President of the Senate, Speaker of the House, Chief Clerk of the House, Secretary of the Senate, and Governor.
Deleted informational text about TLO digital content accessibility updates that was not part of the bill text.
Standardized spacing and line breaks throughout the document for final publication.
Floor votes · Senate May 23, 2025 · House Apr 29, 2025
How they voted
28–2
Passed
Total votes 30
May 23, 2025
D
Democratic10
90% Yea
R
Republican20
95% Yea
Vote distribution
All Yea
All Nay
Mixed
No data
Full legislative history
Actions timeline
Total actions
60
Key actions
20
Committee
11
Amendments
11
Jun 20, 2025
Signed into law
Signed by the Governor
executive
Jun 1, 2025
Upper · Passed
Signed in the Senate
upper
May 31, 2025
Lower · Passed
Signed in the House
lower
May 29, 2025
Introduced
House concurs in Senate amendment(s)-reported
upper
May 29, 2025
Introduced
Text of Senate Amendment(s)
lower
May 29, 2025
Introduced
House concurs in Senate amendment(s)
lower
May 26, 2025
Introduced
Senate Amendments Analysis distributed
lower
May 26, 2025
Introduced
Senate Amendments distributed
lower
May 24, 2025
Lower · Passed
Senate passage as amended reported
lower
May 23, 2025
Upper · Passed
Passed
upper
May 23, 2025
Upper · Passed
Passed to 3rd reading as amended
upper
May 23, 2025
Upper · Passed
Amended
upper
May 23, 2025
Introduced
Amendment(s) offered
upper
May 14, 2025
Upper · Passed
Committee report printed and distributed
upper
May 14, 2025
Upper · Passed
Reported favorably as substituted
upper
May 13, 2025
Upper · Passed
Vote taken in committee
upper
May 5, 2025
Upper · Passed
Left pending in committee
upper
May 1, 2025
Committee
Referred to Economic Development
upper
May 1, 2025
Introduced
Read first time
upper
Apr 30, 2025
Introduced
Received from the House
upper
Apr 30, 2025
Lower · Passed
Passed
lower
Apr 29, 2025
Lower · Passed
Passed to engrossment as amended
lower
Apr 29, 2025
Lower · Passed
Amended
lower
Apr 29, 2025
House · Passed
House Vote: pass (146-0-1)
house
Apr 23, 2025
Lower · Passed
Committee report sent to Calendars
lower
Apr 22, 2025
Lower · Passed
Committee report distributed
lower
Apr 15, 2025
Lower · Passed
Reported favorably as substituted
lower
Apr 8, 2025
Lower · Passed
Left pending in committee
lower
Apr 8, 2025
Lower · Passed
Testimony taken/registration(s) recorded in committee
lower
Mar 11, 2025
Committee
Referred to Culture, Recreation & Tourism
lower
Mar 11, 2025
Introduced
Read first time
lower
6 primary · 1 co-sponsor
Sponsors
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