H.R. No. 1513

	R E S O L U T I O N
	WHEREAS, For 75 years, the Texas Legislative Council has
	provided professional, nonpartisan support to the Texas
	Legislature and legislative agencies; and
	WHEREAS, The council was created by the 51st Legislature in
	1949 as part of a growing national movement to establish
	independent fact-finding and advisory agencies to aid the work of
	state legislatures; the council's governing body--initially led by
	the acting president of the Texas Senate and the speaker of the
	House--held its first organizational meeting on October 19 of that
	year; inaugural executive director John D. Moseley soon took charge
	of the agency's operations, and council staff members began their
	duties in the spring of 1950; and
	WHEREAS, In its early years, the agency completed a number of
	major research projects, including surveys of higher education and
	taxation in Texas and an inventory of water problems; it also
	analyzed proposed legislation and processed hundreds of requests
	for memoranda, bill drafts, and other materials; the drafting of
	legislation became a more prominent focus beginning with the 56th
	Regular Session in 1959, as the council adopted the bill-drafting
	function that had primarily been handled by the Office of the
	Attorney General in the years prior; today, the drafting of bills
	and related legislative documents remains an essential
	responsibility for the agency and is ably managed by the attorneys
	and support staff of the TLC legal division; in addition, the
	division oversees the permanent statutory revision program that
	eliminates invalid, duplicative, and otherwise ineffective
	provisions, an initiative that began in 1963; and
	WHEREAS, The council's oversight of the computer technology
	used by the Texas Legislature dates back more than a half century;
	the digital era dawned in the interim between the 62nd Regular
	Session in 1971 and the 63rd in 1973; TLC staff readied a room at the
	State Capitol to house mainframe equipment and began the formidable
	task of applying computerization to the legislative process; the
	revolutionary developments in information technology in the
	decades since have made this component of the TLC mission
	increasingly important, and the information systems division is now
	the agency's largest; its responsibilities include the maintenance
	of network infrastructure, the development of applications, and the
	provision of equipment, software, training, and technical
	assistance to the legislative community; and
	WHEREAS, Legislative research was one of the first tasks
	undertaken by the council, and by the early 1970s, the agency had
	established a dedicated research division to oversee this
	multifaceted area; its staff provide policy research and bill
	analysis services, perform statistical and demographic research,
	produce resolutions, publications, and mapping materials, and
	maintain a number of websites; moreover, the division supports the
	legislature's redistricting responsibilities and works extensively
	with the RedAppl district modeling computer system; this innovative
	resource was developed by council computer programmers with input
	from the agency's legal and redistricting specialists and was
	launched in its initial form in 1990; and
	WHEREAS, The processing and delivery of the wide variety of
	print and electronic materials prepared by the council are managed
	by the document production division; the council's print shop
	operations date back many decades, and the agency assumed the
	document processing responsibilities for the Texas House in advance
	of the 65th Legislature in 1977; by the early 1980s, the document
	production division had been established, and today its employees
	produce thousands of drafts, House official printings, and other
	documents and publications; in addition to the print shop, the
	division encompasses the data transcription, proofreading, and
	document processing personnel that facilitate this essential
	aspect of the agency's work; and
	WHEREAS, Over the course of the council's history, staff have
	operated out of offices in a number of different Capitol Complex
	locations, and from the 1950s through 1990s, they often resided in
	the Texas Capitol itself; the "cozy" surroundings that existed in
	the statehouse in that era were a frequent topic in council reports,
	with references to the "elbow-to-elbow" working conditions and
	"cubbyhole" confines of the building; the agency's oft-voiced
	request for additional room was finally satisfied with the
	completion of the Robert E. Johnson Building in 2000, which remains
	the council's home and also houses other legislative support
	agencies; and
	WHEREAS, Fittingly, the building is named in honor of the
	legendary Robert E. Johnson, who served as the agency's executive
	director during a remarkable 17-year tenure from 1963 to 1980 and
	also held the office of House parliamentarian; through the years,
	the council has benefited from the skilled leadership of numerous
	other executive directors, and today that tradition is continued by
	Jeff Archer with additional guidance provided by assistant
	executive director Kimberly Shields, general counsel Jon Heining,
	and chief legislative counsel Brett Ferguson; Kim Shields also
	oversees the administration division, which encompasses the human
	resources, accounting and purchasing, and assurance services
	sections; the agency operates under the supervision of its
	governing body, which is composed of the lieutenant governor and
	the speaker of the House as joint chairs as well as six senators,
	the chair of the House administration committee, and five other
	state representatives; and
	WHEREAS, Since its inception, the Texas Legislative Council
	has worked tirelessly to ensure that lawmakers have the
	information, resources, and support they need to most effectively
	advance the interests of the people of the Lone Star State, and it
	is indeed fitting that the agency be recognized for its vital
	contributions; now, therefore, be it
	RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 89th Texas
	Legislature hereby commemorate the 75th anniversary of the Texas
	Legislative Council and extend to all those associated with the
	agency sincere appreciation for their outstanding record of public
	service; and, be it further
	RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be
	prepared for the council as an expression of high regard by the
	Texas House of Representatives.
	Geren
	Burrows Guerra Morales Shaw
	Alders Guillen Morgan
	Allen Harless Muñoz
	Anchía Harris Noble
	Ashby Harris Davila Olcott
	Barry Harrison Oliverson
	Bell of Kaufman Hayes Ordaz
	Bell of Montgomery Hefner Orr
	Bernal Hernandez Patterson
	Bhojani Hickland Paul
	Bonnen Hinojosa Perez of El Paso
	Bowers Holt Perez of Harris
	Bryant Hopper Phelan
	Buckley Howard Pierson
	Bucy Hull Plesa
	Bumgarner Hunter Raymond
	Button Isaac Reynolds
	Cain Johnson Richardson
	Campos Jones of Dallas Rodríguez Ramos
	Canales Jones of Harris Romero
	Capriglione Kerwin Rose
	Cole King Rosenthal
	Collier Kitzman Schatzline
	Cook LaHood Schofield
	Cortez Lalani Schoolcraft
	Craddick Lambert Shaheen
	Cunningham Landgraf Shofner
	Curry Leach Simmons
	Darby Leo Wilson Slawson
	A. Davis of Dallas Little Smithee
	Y. Davis of Dallas Longoria Spiller
	Dean Lopez of Bexar Swanson
	DeAyala Lopez of Cameron Talarico
	Dorazio Louderback Tepper
	Dutton Lowe Thompson
	Dyson Lozano Tinderholt
	Fairly Lujan Toth
	Flores Luther Troxclair
	Frank Manuel Turner
	Gámez Martinez VanDeaver
	Garcia of Bexar Martinez Fischer Vasut
	Garcia of Dallas McLaughlin Villalobos
	Garcia Hernandez McQueeney Virdell
	Gates Metcalf Vo
	Gerdes Meyer Walle
	Geren Meza Ward Johnson
	Gervin-Hawkins Money Wharton
	González of Dallas Moody Wilson
	González of El Paso Morales of Harris Wu
	Goodwin Morales of Maverick Zwiener
	______________________________
	Speaker of the House
	I certify that H.R. No. 1513 was adopted by the House on June 1,
	2025, by a non-record vote.
	______________________________
	Chief Clerk of the House