Texas 2025 - 89th Regular

Texas House Bill HR398 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

Old	New	Differences
1	1	89R16669 CW-D
2	2	By: Morales Shaw H.R. No. 398
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7	7	R E S O L U T I O N
8	8	WHEREAS, Residents of Houston lost a political icon and
9	9	fierce champion of social justice with the passing of U.S.
10	10	Representative Sheila Jackson Lee on July 19, 2024; and
11	11	WHEREAS, The daughter of Ezra Jackson and Ivalita Bennett
12	12	Jackson, the former Sheila Jackson was born in New York City on
13	13	January 12, 1950, and grew up in Jamaica, Queens; she earned a
14	14	bachelor's degree in political science as a member of Yale
15	15	University's first coed class and went on to complete her law degree
16	16	at the University of Virginia; following her marriage to Elwyn Lee,
17	17	a Houston native, she became the proud mother of two children, Jason
18	18	and Erica; and
19	19	WHEREAS, In 1978, Congresswoman Jackson Lee moved to the
20	20	Bayou City with her husband and began working for the Fulbright &
21	21	Jaworski law firm; appointed as a municipal judge in 1987, she later
22	22	became a highly effective member of the city council, and she
23	23	further served as a deputy agriculture commissioner for the State
24	24	of Texas; she won her first congressional race in 1994 and was
25	25	reelected 14 times, never with less than 70 percent of the vote;
26	26	known for her formidable work ethic, she filed scores of bills
27	27	addressing the needs of the most vulnerable, and she did not
28	28	hesitate to work across the aisle to pass them; after the Violence
29	29	Against Women Act expired in 2019, she fought for its reenactment
30	30	and authored the legislation that achieved that goal; she was also
31	31	the author and lead sponsor of the Juneteenth National Independence
32	32	Day Act, which established the first new federal holiday in nearly
33	33	four decades; in 2021, she sponsored H.R. 40, a resolution to
34	34	establish the Commission to Study and Develop Reparation Proposals
35	35	for African Americans, and she succeeded in shepherding it through
36	36	to a committee vote; her many other major initiatives included the
37	37	Sentencing Reform Act and Paycheck Fairness Act; Congresswoman
38	38	Jackson Lee was known for her passionate speeches on the House
39	39	floor, and she often took her message to innumerable media outlets
40	40	as well; most recently, she lent her support to a federal version of
41	41	the CROWN Act to prevent discrimination based on hairstyles favored
42	42	by people of color; and
43	43	WHEREAS, Congresswoman Jackson Lee held numerous leadership
44	44	roles, including chair of the Judiciary Subcommittee for Crime,
45	45	Terrorism, and Homeland Security and senior member of the
46	46	Judiciary, Homeland Security, and Budget Committees; she was the
47	47	House Democrats' chief deputy whip, chair of the Congressional
48	48	Black Caucus Energy Braintrust, co-chair of the Justice Reform Task
49	49	Force, and a founder and chair of the Congressional Pakistan Caucus
50	50	and the Congressional Children's Caucus; Congressional Quarterly
51	51	ranked her among the 50 most effective members of Congress; and
52	52	WHEREAS, Devoted to her constituents, Congresswoman Jackson
53	53	Lee was instrumental in directing billions of federal dollars to
54	54	under-resourced communities; she helped her city recover from
55	55	numerous natural disasters and other crises, even personally
56	56	directing traffic to a COVID-19 testing site at the height of the
57	57	pandemic and unloading food and supplies for residents during the
58	58	2021 freeze; over the years, she appeared at countless local
59	59	meetings and events, and she demonstrated deep compassion to those
60	60	suffering loss, attending funerals, extending words of comfort, and
61	61	connecting the bereaved with support services; and
62	62	WHEREAS, Sheila Jackson Lee was a fearless warrior in behalf
63	63	of freedom, democracy, and positive change, and although she will
64	64	be greatly missed, her exceptional contributions will continue to
65	65	resonate in the years to come; now, therefore, be it
66	66	RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 89th Texas
67	67	Legislature hereby pay tribute to the life of Sheila Jackson Lee and
68	68	extend sincere condolences to the members of her family: to her
69	69	husband, Elwyn Lee; to her children, Jason and Erica Lee; to her
70	70	grandchildren, Ellison Bennett Carter and Roy Lee Carter III; and
71	71	to her other relatives, her many friends, and all who mourn her
72	72	passing; and, be it further
73	73	RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be
74	74	prepared for her family and that when the Texas House of
75	75	Representatives adjourns this day, it do so in memory of Sheila
76	76	Jackson Lee.