Seventieth Texas Legislature


The 70th Texas Legislature met from January 13, 1987, to June 1, 1987. All members present during this session were elected in the 1986 general elections.

Sessions

Regular Session: January 13, 1987 - June 1, 1987
1st Called Session: June 2, 1987 - June 3, 1987
2nd Called Session: June 22, 1987 - July 21, 1987

Party summary

Senate

House of Representatives

Officers

Senate

Senate

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This session was, to date, the most prolific in history; exceeding previous records set in 1983 and 1985. The legislature filed 4,179 bills of which 1,185 were passed by the governor.
Senate bills responding to news-making events on various state university campuses were passed. These included a bill in response to a fraternity hazing death at the University of Texas and various bills directly addressing booster involvement in campus athletics. The latter bills were implemented to prevent events that had resulted in the so-called "death penalty" being assessed against Southern Methodist University by the NCAA. This issue was a particularly sore spot for governor Bill Clements since he had been the head of the university's board of trustees during the scandal and had purportedly authorized payments to student athletes in direct violation of NCAA policy.
Key legislation regarding the sale of alcoholic beverages was passed in this session. These included regulating the sale of alcohol and passage of an open container bill to prevent drinking of alcoholic beverages while driving an automobile. Other legislations related to intoxicants address "designer drugs" and placed legal liabilities on those establishments serving alcoholic beverages.
The Senate approved observing the third Monday in January as Martin Luther King, Jr. Day. Senate Bill 485, 70th Legislature Regular Session. Chapter 159. Approved May 25, 1987, and Effective August 31, 1987, as an optional holiday.
Two special sessions were held. The first, called by Clements, commenced June 2, 1987, and ended the following day. It was specifically designed to address issue related to insurance and civil liability, otherwise known as tort reform. The second special session addressed 72 various topics from passing the state budget to wastewater treatment, between June 22 and July 21, 1987.