A bill that would bar people from making anonymous claims of child abuse to the statewide abuse and neglect hotline is closing in on passage. Texas Public Radio accountability reporter Paul Flahive has the story.
Last year roughly 12,000 people made anonymous claims of child abuse to the statewide hotline. 1,000 of those were found accurate, according to the Children’s Advocacy Centers of Texas.
Justin Wood general counsel of that child serving nonprofit says the passage of HB 63 —-which bars the practice — would leave hundreds of kids in danger.
“We believe that passage of HB 63 will undoubtedly mean that credible reports of child abuse and neglect will go and will not be brought to light and child victims will inevitably be left in dangerous and possibly fatal situations if the ability to anonymously report is as eliminated.”
Supporters of the bill say they can still make those allegations to police.
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The Texas House of Representatives has advanced a measure that would ban transgender athletes from competing on the collegiate sports team that matches their gender identity. The Texas Newsroom’s Sergio Martínez-Beltrán reports.
The measure is part of a trend in Republican-led Legislatures across the country which have passed restrictions on transgender athletes. Republican Representative Valoree Swanson says her legislation
“Our young women deserve to compete in a level playing field.”
The bill would require transgender athletes to compete in the sports team that matches their sex assigned at birth. It will only apply to public universities. Texas university leaders have said there are currently no known transgender athletes competing on their teams. Multiple Democrats joined Republicans in supporting the measure. The bill has to clear an additional hurdle before it goes back to the Senate for final approval.