TITLE: Honoring State Representative Senfronia Thompson for 50 years of service in the Texas House.

SUMMARY: Honoring State Representative Senfronia Thompson for 50 years of service in the Texas House.

FULL TEXT:
WHEREAS, The Honorable Senfronia Thompson has dedicated herself wholeheartedly to the betterment of Texas during a half century of distinguished service in the Texas House of Representatives; and WHEREAS, The dean of the Texas House, "Ms. T" is the longest-serving woman and longest-serving Black lawmaker in the legislature; she was first elected in 1972, when women were not even allowed to open a credit card in their own name; since then, she has been at the forefront of historic change, working tirelessly in behalf of justice, equality, and opportunity for all; and WHEREAS, Representative Thompson was among the first to take on the scourge of human trafficking, and her efforts have made Texas a leader in anti-trafficking legislation; known for her tenacity and ability to work across the aisle, she doggedly built a broad-based coalition to finally win passage of the James Byrd Jr. Hate Crimes Act; her myriad accomplishments also include the Sexual Assault Program Fund, the state's first and only alimony law, laws creating drug courts, and legislation providing insurance coverage for anti-cancer oral medication, 3D mammograms, HPV and cervical cancer screening, and contraceptives; in 2019, her 11th-hour bill amendment gave Texas one of the nation's toughest prescription drug price transparency laws; and WHEREAS, In notable efforts to benefit seniors, Representative Thompson secured passage of legislation allowing Medicaid nursing home residents to keep more of their retirement and social security money for personal use, as well as a bill permitting homeowners over the age of 65 to make quarterly property tax payments without penalty; she authored the Chief Justice Jack Pope Act, which increased funding for legal aid to low-income Texans with civil cases, as well as the Michael Morton Act, which instituted important criminal justice reforms; among many other measures to defend the vulnerable, she secured passage of legislation banning racial profiling, strengthening protective orders, shielding unpaid interns from sexual harassment, and increasing sex offender penalties; and WHEREAS, Representative Thompson has shared her expertise as a member and chair of numerous committees; she currently chairs the Select Committee on Youth Health and Safety, and she is a member of the Committees on Licensing and Administrative Procedures, Redistricting, and State Affairs; and WHEREAS, Inducted into the Texas Women's Hall of Fame in 2014, Representative Thompson has been named one of the Top Ten Best Legislators by Texas Monthly,and she is the sole recipient of the Rosa Parks Award from the Texas Legislative Black Caucus; a graduate of Thurgood Marshall School of law, she also holds a master of law degree in international law from the University of Houston, a master of education degree from Prairie View A&M University, and a bachelor's degree in biology from Texas Southern University; moreover, she is a proud member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority; and WHEREAS, Senfronia Thompson has blazed a remarkable path over the course of 26 terms in the Texas House, and her vision, leadership, and unyielding commitment to social justice are a tremendous inspiration to all; now, therefore, be it RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 88th Texas Legislature hereby honor State Representative Senfronia Thompson for 50 years of service in the Texas House and extend to her sincere best wishes for continued success; and, be it further RESOLVED, That an official copy of this resolution be prepared for Representative Thompson as an expression of high regard by the Texas House of Representatives. Reynolds Phelan Guerra Murr Allen Guillen Neave Criado Allison Harless Noble Anch a Harris of Anderson Oliverson Anderson Harris of Williamson Ordaz Ashby Harrison Orr Bailes Hayes Ortega Bell of Kaufman Hefner Patterson Bell of Montgomery Hernandez Paul Bernal Herrero Perez Bhojani Hinojosa Plesa Bonnen Holland Price Bowers Howard Ramos Bryant Hull Raney Buckley Hunter Raymond Bucy Isaac Reynolds Bumgarner Jetton Rogers Burns Johnson of Dallas Romero, Jr. Burrows A. Johnson of Harris Rose Button J. Johnson of Harris Rosenthal Cain Jones of Dallas Schaefer Campos Jones of Harris Schatzline Canales Kacal Schofield Capriglione King of Hemphill Shaheen Clardy King of Uvalde Sherman, Sr. Cole Kitzman Shine Collier Klick Slawson Cook Kuempel Smith Cortez Lalani Smithee Craddick Lambert Spiller Cunningham Landgraf Stucky Darby Leach Swanson Davis Leo-Wilson Talarico Dean Longoria Tepper DeAyala Lopez of Bexar Thierry Dorazio Lopez of Cameron Thimesch Dutton Lozano Thompson of Brazoria Flores Lujan Thompson of Harris Frank Manuel Tinderholt Frazier Martinez Toth Gamez Martinez Fischer Troxclair Garcia Metcalf Turner Gates Meyer VanDeaver Gerdes Meza Vasut Geren Moody Vo Gervin-Hawkins Morales of Harris Walle Goldman Morales of Maverick Wilson Gonz lez of Dallas Morales Shaw Wu Gonz lez of El Paso Morrison Zwiener Goodwin Mu oz, Jr. Speaker of the House I certify that H.R. No. 2185 was adopted by the House on May 29, 2023, by a non-record vote. Chief Clerk of the House