Abbott Urged to Call a Special Session to Limit the Emergency Powers Hinojosa Would Inherit
State Rep. Brian Harrison wants lawmakers to 'rein in' the governor's emergency powers before Gov.-elect Gina Hinojosa — who has pledged a 'high-cost emergency' declaration of her own — takes office in January.
AUSTIN — The fight over Texas's transfer of power started before the transfer. Republican state Rep. Brian Harrison has publicly urged outgoing Gov. Greg Abbott to call a special session to limit the governor's executive emergency powers before Democratic Gov.-elect Gina Hinojosa takes office, according to Fox News reporting read by this desk Sunday. Harrison's argument, as reported, is timing: Republicans still hold power in Austin now, and the powers in question are the ones Hinojosa would inherit in January.
The reason those powers are suddenly the argument is Hinojosa's own campaign pledge. On the trail, she said she would declare a 'high-cost emergency' in Texas and introduce executive orders to halt the state's gas and diesel taxes and freeze residential electricity rates, the Texas Tribune reported Wednesday, as carried in the Fox News story. Under Section 433.002 of the Texas Government Code, cited in the day's reporting, a governor may issue emergency directives and amend, modify or rescind them during a declared state of emergency — the authority Harrison wants the Legislature to narrow before it changes hands.
Hinojosa defeated Abbott on Tuesday, ending his bid for a fourth term, and will become Texas's first Latina governor when she takes office in January 2027. Abbott, for his part, told supporters on election night that he had informed Hinojosa he would assist her and her team in a period of transition, The Hill reported. No decision by Abbott to call a special session was reported in the coverage read this run, and this desk prints none. What is verified is the ask, the legal authority it targets, and the deadline built into it: the current governor's remaining weeks.
