Sam Harless, Texas House District 126

Sam Harless represents Texas House District 126 and is a Republican. This page is the record: of the 67 votes this site publishes, Sam Harless cast 64, and on the 49 of those where the two parties took opposite sides, they voted against their own party 15 times.

Where they broke with their own party

• HB 5616 — Creates a state program and fund to promote the presidential libraries in Texas as historical and tourist attractions. history
• HB 2284 — Requires music therapists to hold a state licence before they can practise, and allows the state to charge fees for it. history
• HB 2341 — Makes time credit automatic, rather than up to the judge, for state jail inmates who take part in an education, treatment or work programme. history
• SB 1498 — Lets the state seize cryptocurrency through civil forfeiture, by adding digital currency to the property that can be taken as suspected proceeds of a crime. history
• HB 4443 — Creates a pilot programme in Dallas-Fort Worth in which the state, community colleges and employers train workers for jobs in energy-efficient technology. history
• SB 2185 — Requires school districts excused from running a bilingual programme to report which alternative language methods they use, so those methods count towards bilingual education funding. history
• HB 5111 — Sets who may serve as a campaign treasurer: at least 18, a Texas resident, not already treasurer for someone else, and not convicted of certain election offences. history
• HJR 218 — Asks voters to change the constitution so money from the Texas energy fund can pay for energy-efficiency projects that benefit electricity customers. history
• SB 1563 — Requires the state to create training for county jailers on dealing with veterans in custody. history
• HB 2186 — Requires elevator mechanics, apprentices and contractors to register with the state before working on elevators. history
• HB 1784 — Extends the help colleges must give students who were in foster care — including a named staff liaison — to students who are homeless. history
• HB 871 — Updates the building codes Texas cities must use for homes and commercial buildings from the 2012 editions to the 2018 editions. history
• HB 23 — Lets an applicant have a licensed engineer review or inspect development documents, instead of waiting for the local government to do it. history
• HB 3892 — Stops counties from limiting how many homes can be built per acre outside city limits, including through minimum lot sizes, lot widths or setbacks. history
• SB 973 — Lets appraisal districts put more property images online, including street-level exterior photos and aerial shots showing more than one building. history

How they voted on the bills people have heard of

These seven drew the most attention of the 67 this site publishes. Every member has a position on record for each one, whichever way they went.

• SB 2 Education savings accounts Voted for
  Creates state-funded accounts that families can spend on private school tuition and other approved school costs. The money comes from the state budget. history
• SB 8 Immigration enforcement Voted for
  Requires the sheriff of every county that runs a jail, or contracts one out, to request an agreement letting their deputies enforce federal immigration law, and to ask again each year if no agreement is reached. Creates state grants, sized by the county’s population, to pay for it. history
• SB 10 Ten Commandments in classrooms Voted for
  Requires every public school classroom in Texas to display a copy of the Ten Commandments. history
• SB 3 THC ban Voted for
  Bans hemp products containing THC — the ones sold in smoke shops and convenience stores — and adds licences, fees and criminal penalties for selling them. history
• SB 14 Regulatory review Voted for
  Creates a state office that reviews agency rules and recommends repealing ones it finds unnecessary. It also tells judges to decide for themselves what a law means, rather than accepting the agency’s reading. history
• SB 6 Electric grid and large power users Voted for
  Sets terms for power users above 75 megawatts at one site, such as data centres. They must help pay to connect, and can be ordered to cut usage during an energy emergency alert. history
• SB 5 Dementia research institute Voted for
  Creates a state institute that awards grants for dementia, Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s research and prevention. It takes effect only if voters approve a constitutional amendment setting up the institute and its fund. history

ZIP codes in District 126

77379 · 77070 · 77069 · 77065 · 77375 · 77388 · 77377 · 77429 · 77066 · 77068 · 77064 · 77014

Most people first. Nearly half of Texas ZIP codes sit in more than one House district, so a ZIP on this list may also be in another one, and your street decides which.

See how your own answers compare

The site asks you about these same votes with the party labels hidden, then shows you where you landed next to the members who actually voted.

Open it in English

There is also a one-page fact sheet, to print or to hand to someone.

All 150 districts

Who made this. Marco Arras, a Texas resident. I donate to the Democratic Party, and I say so before anything else rather than in a footnote. The rule that picks which votes appear is published and runs identically on both caucuses, and every vote and count is in a file you can download and check.

Sources. Roll calls from the Texas House Journal and LegiScan. Districts and ZIP codes derived from 2020 Census blocks; the method and its known error are documented in ZIP_TO_DISTRICT.md.