Texas Legislature's 2025 Special Sessions: Redistricting, Floods and New Laws

In July 2025, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott issued a proclamation calling a special legislative session beginning July 21, with an agenda addressing flood warning system improvements following deadly July 4 floods in the Texas Hill Country, along with property tax reform and redistricting legislation. Abbott stated that while the regular session had produced significant legislation, additional work was needed, particularly on flood preparedness. On August 4, 2025, Texas House Democrats broke quorum to block mid-decade congressional redistricting legislation, which forced the first special session to end without completing that item and led Abbott to call a second special session. During the second special session, Abbott expanded the agenda to include measures prohibiting same-day voter registration and authorizing law enforcement contracting. By the end of the second called session, Abbott signed 31 bills and resolutions, including legislation expanding the attorney general's authority to prosecute election crimes and a law allowing private citizens to sue over abortion pills. The session also produced new flood-warning and camp-safety legislation responding to the July floods. As of the most recent reporting, the second special session had concluded with the governor's signature on the 31 enacted measures. It remains unresolved whether the redistricting legislation that prompted the Democratic quorum break was ultimately passed during the second session, as the supplied reports do not specify its final disposition. Details on the specific provisions of the voting and law enforcement measures added to the second session's agenda, and their ultimate passage, are also not confirmed across sources.