The Texas House Committee on Homeland Security, Public Safety and Veterans’ Affairs will take invited testimony on the rollout of HB 33, the rules for standing up new police agencies, and how the state recruits and keeps officers.
When: 10:00 AM, Thursday, May 28, 2026
Where: Room E2.016, Capitol Extension, Austin
Chair: Rep. Cole Hefner, R–Mt. Pleasant (HD-5)
Vice Chair: Rep. Ray Lopez, D–San Antonio (HD-125)
Format: Invited testimony only; electronic public comment accepted
Live video: house.texas.gov/video-audio/
Submit comments online: comments.house.texas.gov/home?c=c308
The Texas House Committee on Homeland Security, Public Safety and Veterans’ Affairs will gavel in at 10 a.m. Thursday to examine how the state is carrying out a new school active-shooter law and to scrutinize the rules for creating, regulating and staffing Texas police agencies. The committee will hear invited testimony only, though residents may submit written comments online on all three agenda items until the hearing adjourns.
Chaired by Rep. Cole Hefner, R-Mt. Pleasant, the 11-member panel — which holds an 8-3 Republican majority — is working through interim charges issued ahead of the 90th Legislature, which convenes in January 2027. The hearing is among the last legislative meetings posted before the Texas Legislature Online system goes offline for scheduled maintenance from the evening of May 21 until the morning of May 26. The committee’s roster includes Rep. Don McLaughlin, R-Uvalde, the city’s former mayor at the time of the 2022 Robb Elementary shooting, lending the school-safety discussion added resonance.
The first charge, Monitoring, directs the committee to track the implementation and associated rulemaking of legislation it handled during the 89th Legislature, singling out House Bill 33, the 2025 measure addressing active shooter incidents at primary and secondary school facilities and other emergencies. The review continues a multi-session push on campus security that accelerated after the Uvalde shooting and the 88th Legislature’s House Bill 3, the 2023 law that required armed officers at Texas schools. Electronic public comment is open on this item.
The second charge, Authority of the Texas Commission on Law Enforcement, asks members to evaluate the statutory framework governing how new law enforcement agencies are created and recognized in Texas and the role TCOLE — the agency that licenses the state’s peace officers — plays in that process. The panel will weigh whether current law sets clear authority and standards for establishing new agencies that employ licensed officers and will identify any gaps or inconsistencies. TCOLE underwent a Sunset Advisory Commission review in 2023.
The third charge, Strengthening the Law Enforcement Workforce, turns to recruitment, retention, “moral injury” and training-pipeline barriers confronting state and local agencies. Members are asked to examine the operational impact of staffing shortages and to consider remedies such as paying recruits during academy training, providing childcare and family-support solutions for officers, and other incentives to improve hiring and public-safety readiness.
Because the meeting is an interim hearing, the committee will gather information and may issue findings and recommendations rather than advance bills; any resulting legislation would not be filed until the 90th Legislature convenes next year.
Committee members
- Rep. Cole Hefner, R–Mt. Pleasant (HD-5) — Chair
- Rep. Ray Lopez, D–San Antonio (HD-125) — Vice Chair
- Rep. Terry Canales, D–Edinburg (HD-40)
- Rep. Philip Cortez, D–San Antonio (HD-117)
- Rep. Mark Dorazio, R–San Antonio (HD-122)
- Rep. Hillary Hickland, R–Belton (HD-55)
- Rep. Janis Holt, R–Silsbee (HD-18)
- Rep. Carrie Isaac, R–Dripping Springs (HD-73)
- Rep. AJ Louderback, R–Edna (HD-30)
- Rep. Don McLaughlin, R–Uvalde (HD-80)
- Rep. Katrina Pierson, R–Rockwall (HD-33)