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Senate freshmen were seen and heard this session

Tuesday, May 29, 2007
by Mark Lisheron
Austin American-Statesman

Leave it to Sen. Dan Patrick to speak for the accomplishments of five new state senators as they complete their first legislative session — whether they want him to or not."I think we have forever changed this notion that a freshman should be seen and not heard," Patrick said, with an honesty that has sometimes been interpreted as immodesty.Patrick, a Republican radio personality from Houston, has been quite readily seen and heard. But perhaps more remarkable than the attention garnered by a political upstart who promised from the beginning to shake things up is the collective imprint left by all five of the first-year senators, including Sen. Kirk Watson, a Democrat and the former mayor of Austin.The others are Sen. Glenn Hegar, R-Katy, a former two-term state representative; Sen. Robert Nichols, R- Jacksonville, the former mayor of Jacksonville and a longtime Texas transportation commissioner; and Sen. Carlos Uresti, D-San Antonio, who was a state representative for nine years."This class has generally received very high marks, in part, because of the experience they brought to the Senate," Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst said. "Their addition has helped the camaraderie in the Senate. These senators like one another and work better than any others I've worked with."The turnover for the Senate in this 80th Legislature, the largest in at least a generation, produced five distinctive new lawmaking voices. At critical junctures during this session, each has made his voice heard in a dramatic way.Watson might have made his most important statement of the session on April 18 by having another senator speak for him on a bill.That day, Watson asked for support for a bill to create development districts with governing boards along Texas 130, Austin's new toll road.Before Watson could proceed, Sen. Florence Shapiro, a member of the Senate Transportation and Homeland Security Committee, stood to endorse a bill she had voted against in committee. Shapiro, a Republican, thanked Watson for incorporating ideas from homebuilders, developers and property owners to develop a concept that had not been tried in Texas.The Senate passed Watson's bill by a vote of 29-1, but it later died in the House."For an idea that has never been tried before and get that kind of vote in the Senate and to get it as far as the Calendar Committee in the House," Watson said Friday. "I am as proud of that as any of the bills I got passed," Watson said, saying that the proposal made good headway for a new idea.Of the 24 bills Watson passed this session, 18 of them have already been signed. Watson said he's satisfied with the number of measures he captained through the process, although he came in with no idea what is the right amount of bills to pass.Watson took particular pride in his environmental legislation, calling for a panel to study greenhouse gas emissions in Texas, making school buses run cleaner and creating the first state program to deal with electronic waste.The consensus-seeking style that Watson used to great advantage as Austin's mayor is particularly well suited to the clubby Senate, which has five times fewer members than the 150-member house.Watson's ability to work effectively was demonstrated by the number of conference committee chairmen who asked for Watson to help negotiate important and contested legislation."I felt I wanted to get to the point that I could bring progress to a piece of good legislation, whether or not it had my name on it," Watson said. "I wanted to get to the end of this thing and be true to my constituents. I feel I've done that."No one of the freshmen made a bigger policy statement than Nichols, who became a leading firebrand for a two-year moratorium on toll roads. Nichols bucked a governor he had staunchly supported in the past, clashed with his Transportation and Homeland Security Chairman John Carona, R-Dallas, and sidestepped the original author of the moratorium bill, Sen. Tommy Williams, R-The Woodlands."I think it shocked some people," Nichols said. "But when I see a problem, I'm not afraid to go out and correct it."Hegar, with a quiet style guaranteed to shock no one, had one of his key moments late in the session defending a bill that set higher pumping limits for the Edwards Aquifer. Hegar's bill is now part of Senate Bill 3, an omnibus water bill that passed the Legislature in its waning hours.Hegar withstood a withering series of questions in opposition from Sen. Kip Averitt, R-Waco, the chairman of the Natural Resources Committee under whom Hegar serves. Hegar got his bill passed."I'm not going to be the one making the big speeches on the floor, but when I've got something to say I hope my colleagues listen to me," Hegar said. "I'm not going to be bullied."Uresti didn't have to make a speech. All he had to do was get up out of bed, suffering from the flu, and step onto the Senate floor. Uresti's dramatic entrance May 15 ended an angry fight over a bill to require voters in Texas to present valid identification at the polls. Uresti's was the necessary 11th Democratic vote that blocked the legislation from reaching the Senate floor."It is something I believe in," Uresti said. "I had no idea of the drama that was unfolding. I just wanted to do my part."And if voter identification returns in 2009, expect Patrick to press for its passage. This session, Patrick made no secret of his position on everything thing from reducing property appraisal caps, to supporting school choice and securing the border.Some Senate traditionalists labeled Patrick a showboater, and many of his more conservative bills withered without support. On the other hand, fears that Patrick would use his radio show to provide a running critique of the Senate and the Legislature did not materialize. And Patrick came prepared, showed erudition and even managed to get bipartisan support in the Senate for a bill requiring doctors to give an ultrasound to every woman seeking an abortion. (Ultimately, that bill died in the House.)Patrick is excited about 2009, and he doesn't plan to mitigate his message."I will continue to say things that other senators are thinking," Patrick said. "I don't calculate how a vote will affect my political career. You cast the right vote and be able to explain it."