Rep. Don McLaughlin

Maddy summaryHB 3736 prohibits Texas public school districts and charter schools from serving food or drinks containing specific artificial color additives in school meals. The bill bans nine listed additives (including red 40, yellow 5, blue 1, and caramel) and any substantially similar substitutes. This policy directly affects school nutrition programs, requiring them to remove these additives from all meals served to students starting the 2025-2026 school year. The law does not apply to food sold in vending machines or à la carte items outside of regular meals.

Maddy summaryHB 3739 requires Texas public schools to include specific fetal development instruction in health classes for students in grades 7 through 12 starting in the 2025-2026 school year. The bill mandates teaching about weekly fetal growth, medically assisted termination procedures (including abortion-inducing drugs), and other causes of fetal termination (such as drug/alcohol effects), alongside resources supporting pregnancy continuation through faith-based organizations. It does not require teaching about abortion access but specifies that recommended resources must not be linked to organizations providing or advocating for fetal termination. This policy directly affects Texas public school curricula and students in grades 7-12.

Maddy summaryHB 3734 amends Texas law to require public water systems to test for mifepristone and estrogen hormones in drinking water, in addition to existing testing requirements. This bill directly affects municipal and community water providers across Texas by adding these specific substances to mandatory water quality testing protocols. The key provision (Section 1) amends the Health and Safety Code to explicitly include mifepristone (a medication used in medical procedures) and estrogen hormones in required testing under Section 341.033(c). The law takes effect on September 1, 2025, but does not establish new testing standards or penalties for non-compliance.

Maddy summaryHB 3735 requires health insurance plans in Texas to cover prenatal care, childbirth, and postnatal care provided in hospitals, birthing centers, or home settings. It specifically mandates coverage for nurse midwife services, prenatal visits (including ultrasounds), related blood/urine tests, childbirth in all three settings, and prescription drugs for pain management during labor. This applies to all health benefit plans offering maternity coverage, including those from traditional insurers, HMOs, health maintenance organizations, and state health exchanges. The bill aims to standardize coverage for essential pregnancy-related services regardless of where care is delivered.

Maddy summaryHB 3740 requires that any chemical or technique used for weather modification and control in Texas must first be approved by the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation (TDLR). TDLR cannot approve a chemical or technique if it is known to cause harm to human health, including to the endocrine, nervous, respiratory, or reproductive systems. The department may seek input from other agencies like the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality or the Department of Agriculture when reviewing approvals. TDLR must adopt implementing rules as soon as practicable after the bill takes effect, which would be September 1, 2025, unless it receives a two-thirds legislative vote for immediate implementation.

Maddy summaryHB 3738 requires the Texas Department of Agriculture (with Texas Education Agency assistance) to conduct an annual study measuring PFAS levels in school lunches served through the state's school lunch program. The study must test representative samples of all foods distributed to schools under the program and other foods commonly purchased using program subsidies. Results must be reported annually to the governor, lieutenant governor, speaker of the house, and all legislators by December 31 each year, with the first report due December 31, 2026. This bill directly affects Texas public school lunch programs and the agencies managing food safety compliance.

Maddy summaryHB 3742 prohibits public universities and colleges in Texas from providing instruction that promotes the use of gender pronouns inconsistent with a person's biological sex. The bill directly affects all public higher education institutions in Texas, banning classroom instruction that encourages pronouns not aligned with biological sex. It requires the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board to create implementing rules and takes effect for the 2025-2026 academic year. The law does not restrict students or faculty from using any pronouns privately but prohibits institutions from teaching or promoting specific pronoun usage in educational settings.

Maddy summaryHB 3737 prohibits healthcare providers from prescribing, delivering, administering, or using any COVID-19 vaccine containing mRNA material (defined as vaccines introducing mRNA corresponding to viral protein) for prevention of the 2019 novel coronavirus disease. It also bans advertising or soliciting patients for such vaccines. The bill directly affects medical professionals, clinics, and entities involved in vaccine distribution or promotion. If enacted, these prohibitions would take effect on September 1, 2025. (Note: This is proposed legislation; it has not yet passed.)

Maddy summaryHB 3580 prohibits Texas and its political subdivisions from offering new economic or tax incentives for the construction, maintenance, or operation of renewable energy facilities (like wind and solar power plants). It allows existing incentives under pre-existing agreements to continue but blocks renewal of those incentives after the bill's effective date. The bill also creates a new permit requirement for renewable facilities selling energy at wholesale, applying to wind and solar projects regardless of prior agreements. This directly affects renewable energy developers seeking state or local financial support for new projects.

Maddy summaryHB 3573 prohibits Texas governmental entities from awarding contracts or providing preferential treatment based on race, color, ethnicity, sex, gender identity, or sexual orientation. It eliminates the state's historically underutilized business program by repealing Chapter 2161 of the Government Code. The law applies only to contracts entered into on or after September 1, 2025, with existing contracts governed by prior law. This bill directly affects state and local agencies that issue contracts, removing specific criteria they could previously consider in vendor selection.