Governor Bill Lee took the following actions on legislation passed during the Oct. 30 extraordinary legislative session:
Signed Legislation
- SB 9014: COVID omnibus bill
- SB 9007: special session appropriations bill
- SB 9008: regarding district attorneys pro tem
- HB 9072: regarding partisan school boards
- HB 9073: regarding Treasurer bill on banking collateral
- HB 9075: regarding state of emergency length from 60 to 45 days
Unsigned Legislation
- HB 9076: regarding health boards
“I have spoken with Lt.
Gov. McNally and Speaker Sexton and am not signing this bill as it requires significant updates to account for the non-pandemic functions of public health departments,” said Governor Lee. “We are committed to working together to address these changes during the regular session.”
The bill gave state officials additional authority on health issues, and brought concerns from local health departments.
Governor Lee’s full letter regarding HB9076 can be viewed here.
Additionally, the governor signed Executive Order 92, which suspends a previous order that gave parents a choice to opt their children out of mask requirements in public schools.
The new order comes alongside the passage of SB 9014, which statutorily prevents government entities and public schools from requiring masks except under severe conditions.
The partisan school board bill does not require partisan elections across the state, but it allows local political parties to direct election officials to hold primaries with party labels.