A bipartisan group of Democratic and Republican representatives from the Dallas Fort Worth area worked hard to prove bipartisanship is not dead in Texas. This coalition fought for prison reform requiring Texas prisons to install air conditioning in all facilities.

HB 357 bill passed the Texas House by a vote of 123-18. In normal times, the bill would have moved to the Texas Senate before heading to Governor Abbott’s desk to sign it into law. Despite bipartisan support for this criminal justice effort, the Texas Senate failed to schedule the bill for a hearing, debate, or vote.

Just in time for Summer, The Texas legislative session is now over, and Texas Prisoners will pay the price. Texas lawmakers killed a bill that would have required air conditioning in prisons and saved lives.

The Dallas Morning News (DMN) reported one out of five lockup facilities has no air conditioning or climate control systems for inmates. Forty-nine prisons only have partial air conditioning. Temperatures can rise well above 100 degrees during the Texas Summers. Inmates confined to their cells no options to keep cool and stay safe.

Some view climate control as a luxury. “[Air conditioning] is seen as a luxury and prison officials don’t want to be seen as running luxurious prisons,” stated David Fathi, director of the ACLU’s National Prison Project. But in Southern states like Texas, regulating temperature can be a matter of life and death.

The lack of air conditioning in Texas prisons places prisoners and staff at risk. Prolonged heat exposure can cause lead to dehydration and heatstroke. Prolonged exposure to extreme temperatures can damage the kidneys, liver, lungs, and brain. Prisoners are at risk of kidney failure and heart attacks.

The DMN published documents showing more than twenty inmates died from the heat inside Texas prisons between 1998 and 2012. Terry Canales, a South Texas Democrat from Edinburg, told the House, “The reality is that we are cooking people in prison in Texas.”

HB 357 provided the Texas prison system with seven years to bring climate control systems to all facilities. The project had a cost cap of $300 million, and the bill is contingent on State or Federal funds approval to assist with cooling costs.

The bill would provide essential climate control and air conditioning to incarcerated people throughout the Texas Penal system. During the vote in House, only 18 members voted against this legislation.

The bill’s sponsors were Democrats and Republicans from the Dallas Fort Worth Metroplex, including Jeff Leach of Plano, Lynn Stuckey of Denton, Speaker Pro Tem Joe Moody, Michelle Beckley of Carrollton, and Carl Sherman of DeSoto.

In 2021, The Texas Winter Storm caused problems in the Texas prisons that do not have climate control. Mother Jones reported Texas prisoners attempted to set fires to try and keep warm during the historic freezing subzero temperatures and failure of the power grid. Inmates used toilet paper, scrap paper, and socks as kindling.

Prison Air conditioning bills have failed over and over again in Texas. Despite being one of the hottest states in the US, lawmakers have failed to provide basic climate control systems for inmates. Many thought 2021 would be different. The bipartisan effort which passed with flying colors in the house seemed destined to succeed in the Senate.

Speaker Pro Tem Joe Moody offered gratitude to the House members for their votes, reminding them, “We dehumanize people who are justice-involved.”

Sadly, The Texas Senate did not bring the bipartisan bill to the floor in the 2021 legislative session.

The post Bipartisan Texas Prison Reform Air Conditioning Bill Dies Without a Vote in Texas Senate appeared first on Medika Life.

HB 357 is a bill “relating to air conditioning requirements at facilities operated by the Texas Department of Criminal Justice.” The legislation seeks to improve the climate control systems lacking in many Texas Correction buildings.

The Dallas Morning News (DMN) reported one out of five lockup facilities has no air conditioning or climate control systems for inmates. Forty-nine prisons only have partial air conditioning.

The DMN published documents showing more than twenty inmates died from the heat inside Texas prisons between 1998 and 2012.

Democrats and Republicans from the Dallas Fort Worth Metroplex are working together to make substantial prison reform changes during the legislative session. Last week, this bill passed the House by a vote of 123-18. Now, the bill moves to the Texas Senate before heading to Governor Abbot’s desk to sign it into law.

This bill provides the State prison system with seven years to bring climate control systems to all locations. The project has a cost cap of $300 million. The bill is contingent on State or Federal funds approval to assist with cooling costs.

The bill would provide essential climate control and air conditioning to incarcerated people throughout the Texas Penal system. The requirements are relatively basic stating:

Let’s meet the Dallas Fort Worth Representatives, who are working together to provide humane treatment to incarcerated Texans.

AIR CONDITIONING REQUIREMENTS AT DEPARTMENT
FACILITIES. The department shall ensure that each cellblock,
dormitory, and common area in a facility operated by the department
is equipped with an air conditioning unit that is operating to
maintain the air temperature at not less than 65 degrees Fahrenheit
or more than 85 degrees Fahrenheit.

Representative Carl O. Sherman District 109

Carl Sherman is the democratic representative for district 109. He was elected in 2010 as the first African-American Mayor of DeSoto, Texas. He served two terms and led efforts to make Desoto one of the first cities in Texas to require police to wear body cameras. District 109 includes Cedar Hill, Dallas, DeSoto, Ferris, Glenn Heights, Hutchins, Lancaster, Ovilla, Seagoville, Wilmer, and other surrounding areas of southern Dallas County.

Representative Jeff Leach District 67

Jeff Leach is the republican representative for District 67. Representative Leach comes from Plano and is serving his fifth term in the Texas house. He is Chairman of the House committee with oversight over the Texas justice system. He also serves on the House Committee on Juvenile Justice and Family Issues. He is also the Chairman of the House committee with oversight over the Texas justice system. House District 67 consists of portions of Plano, Allen, Richardson, and Dallas in Collin County.

Representative Lynne Stuckey

Dr. Lynn Stucky is a veterinarian who now serves as the Republican representative for District 64. Dr. Stucky was raised on a Kansas farm before making Denton, Texas, his home. He spent 15 years on the Sanger ISD Board of Trustees and served on the Sanger Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors. He was elected to Texas House District 64 in 2016. The district includes Denton, Krum, Corinth, Shady Shores, Hickory Creek, and Lake Dallas.

Speaker Pro Tem Joe Moody

Attorney Joe Moody is the Democratic representing District 78, which covers northern El Paso County. Elected at age 27, Moody was the youngest state representative in Texas. He is the Speaker Pro tem and serves as the Vice-Chair of the Calendars Committee. He focuses attention on Judiciary and Civil Jurisprudence as well as redistricting issues. Representative Moody works on veterans issues, mental health, education, and equality, but criminal justice reform is his passion.

Representative Michelle Beckley

Michelle Beckley is the Democratic representative for House District 65 where she serves on the Agriculture and Livestock and the Business and Industry Committees. District 65 covers the major parts of Carrollton and Lewisville. Representative Beckley is a small business owner running the Kookaburra Bird Shop. In between running her company and serving Texans, Beckley is an active bicyclist who has completed two Ironman Triathlons.

Where does the bill stand now?

On Thursday, March 13, the House voted in a truly bipartisan fashion. 123 Representatives voted in favor of the legislation. Only eight were opposed. The bill now heads to the Senate.

Prison reform is a bipartisan issue. Both parties recognize the need to treat the incarcerated with dignity in a safe and healthy environment. Everyone deserves a second chance.

Given the partisan divide throughout our country, let’s celebrate this group of Texas Democrats and Republicans coming together to create a humane environment for incarcerated Texans.

Representative Carl Sherman shows us the importance of House Bill 357 in this April 2021 video from Texas Prisons Air Conditioning Advocates.

The post Meet the Bipartisan Dallas Fort Worth Representatives Pushing Bill for Air Conditioning in Texas Prisons appeared first on Medika Life.