Texas Gov. Greg Abbott announced on Thursday afternoon the third called session of the legislature — including school choice as promised, but adding a few conservative crowd-pleasers.

While the regular legislative session for the Lone Star State ended in late May, there were two other special sessions dedicated to property tax relief. The Senate met in September to consider the failed effort to impeach Attorney General Ken Paxton. The third special session is slated to begin 1 p.m. Monday.

According to the proclamation,  special session No. 3 agenda items include:

• EDUCATION FREEDOM: Legislation providing education savings accounts for all Texas schoolchildren.
• BORDER SECURITY:
• Legislation to do more to reduce illegal immigration by creating a criminal offense for illegal entry into this state from a foreign nation and authorizing all licensed peace officers to remove illegal immigrants from Texas.
• Legislation to impede illegal entry into Texas by increasing the penalties for criminal conduct involving the smuggling of persons or the operation of a stash house.
• Legislation to impede illegal entry into Texas by providing more funding for the construction, operation, and maintenance of border barrier infrastructure.
• PUBLIC SAFETY: Legislation concerning public safety, security, environmental quality, and property ownership in areas like the Colony Ridge development in Liberty County, Texas.
• ENDING COVID RESTRICTIONS: Legislation prohibiting COVID-19 vaccine mandates by private employers.

“Together, we will chart a brighter future for all Texas children by empowering parents to choose the best education option for their child,” Abbott said in the release. “Texas will also pass laws to mirror the federal immigration laws President Joe Biden refuses to enforce that will reduce illegal immigration and enhance the safety of Texans. For the first time ever, Texas will subject people to arrest for illegal entry into our state from a foreign nation. All licensed law enforcement officers in Texas will be authorized to arrest or remove any person who illegally enters the State, with penalties up to 20 years in prison for refusing to comply with removal. To crack down on repeated attempts to enter Texas illegally, re-entry will be penalized with up to 20 years in prison.

“Additionally, we must protect the freedom of Texans from forced COVID-19 vaccinations. I look forward to working with my partners in the Legislature to address these critical issues.”

From the hip: For part-time senators and reps ($600 per month, plus a per diem of $221 for every day the Legislature is in session, including any special sessions), this has been a long legislative season away from their families and day-jobs.

Much of the unfinished business can be attributed to a stark difference between the legislative agendas of the House and Senate — the House having adopted a far-more centrist list of priorities in January, holding school choice legislation hostage, and not to mention its last-minute Hail Mary pass to impeach Paxton, which it did. This inter-chamber acrimony is expected to continue into the third special. But with primary elections coming up in March, the House may opt to quickly pass school choice and some semblance of immigration reform in order to save face and claim “the most conservative session in Texas history” (as they already have been doing).

A significant effort was made by Texans for Vaccine Choice and county Republican parties to add what is known as the COVID Freedom Act back to the House and Senate floors. Keep in mind that during a special session, the only bills that can pass are those that are germane to the Governor’s call.

The plan to issue Education Savings Accounts to Texas parents and guardians as a means of expanding school choice in Texas had strong support but was stymied by the inter-chamber warfare. Not much else needs to be said on this, except that this was the first year Gov. Abbott made school choice an absolute priority.

Immigration reform has conservatives largely split between two camps. One is convinced Abbott is doing everything he can within federal law and international treaties to defend the border, including the placement of buoy barricades in the Rio Grande which triggered legal review. The other camp believe that Abbott has more power that he’s not currently using to call in more forces to repel what is increasingly considered to be an invasion on our soil. Pick your philosophy there, but now that the Biden Administration has reversed its stance on the border wall (going as far as to suspend laws to continue construction) this may affect what tactic the center of power may now prefer here on the state level. It has become obvious there’s a problem, as on certain days tens of thousands of persons are crossing the U.S./Mexico border in Texas.

Finally, there’s an odd bit concerning the Colony Ridge development in Liberty County that has only made headlines in the last week or so. This is in a rural outpost of the Houston metro consisting of many trailer homes and unfinished lots. Critics say it has become a magnet for illegal immigration and may have even been marketed to them, while others say it does not differ from many other trailer and modular home communities scattered throughout Texas or rural areas in general. Now Texas prides itself on not having county zoning powers — in other words, and for example, you want to build your own DIY geodesic dome on your own land and risk getting blown away by a tornado, you’re free to do so outside of city limits and certain special districts. But for decades, various interests have attempted to expand a county’s power to regulate private developments through environmental inspections, the “platting” process, and utilities permitting. Now the push seems to be coming from a law enforcement angle. We’ll be reading through filed bills to check for any attack on private property rights.