Texas House, Senate establish committees to study Uvalde school shooting

The Texas House and Senate have both formed committees in response to the shooting last week in Uvalde, Texas, a tragedy that left 19 children and two adults dead.

Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick (R) appointed state Sen. Robert Nichols (R), who represents a district in eastern Texas, as the chairman of the Senate Special Committee to Protect All Texans on Thursday.

Nichols said in a statement that he plans to address issues of “school safety, mental health, police training, firearm safety, and social media” on the committee. Gov. Greg Abbott (R) specified coverage of these topics when he called for the creation of the legislative committees on Wednesday.

“The committee is tasked with reviewing actions previous legislatures have taken, examining resources the State has made available to local school districts, and developing recommendations for the Legislature and Executive Branch,” wrote Nichols.

In his news release, Nichols did not mention that the committee would consider gun control policies such as red flag laws, background checks or age restrictions.

The Hill has reached out to Nichols for additional comment.

State Sen. Roland Gutierrez (D), whose district includes Uvalde, called the committee assignments “a slap in the face,” claiming that they are a “stall tactic” from Abbott.

“We already know what happens, why it happens, and we know what needs to be done to stop it from happening the next time,” Gutierrez said.

The Texas House Investigative Committee on the Robb Elementary Shooting was established on Friday by Speaker of the House Dade Phelan (R). The investigation will be led by Republican Rep. Dustin Burrows, Democratic Rep. Joe Moody and former Texas Supreme Court Justice Eva Guzman.

In addition to creating the investigative committee, Phelan issued joint charges to the Committees on Youth Health & Safety and Homeland Security & Public Safety relating to the shooting in Uvalde.

The committees will investigate the effects and implementation of laws surrounding school safety, especially Senate Bill 11, which aims to bolster mental health and security initiatives in schools. One charge specifically calls for the development of mental health services statewide.

The joint charges also call for advances in firearm safety and “solutions for detecting, mitigating, and reporting threats” over the internet.

Finally, the committees will attempt to create stronger ties between government agencies, nongovernmental entities and law enforcement to promote coordinated responses to mass violence.

A bipartisan group of Senate lawmakers in Washington are discussing potential gun control policies following the recent mass shootings: in Uvalde; a shooting in Buffalo, N.Y., that left 10 people dead; and another shooting in Tulsa, Okla.

Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) said Wednesday that there was “growing momentum” on gun violence legislation after a group meeting that day.

The House Judiciary Committee returned from recess on Thursday to consider a package of eight gun-related measures.