AUSTIN, Texas \u2013 More than 30 new laws will take effect in Texas on Jan. 1, spanning the gamut from artificial intelligence, immigration enforcement and social media accountability.<\/p>\n
Across the 140 days of the 89th Texas Legislature, lawmakers filed 11,503 Senate and House bills. Gov. Greg Abbott ultimately signed more than 1,100 into law. <\/p>\n
More than 800 new laws<\/a> took effect on Sept. 1. Such laws included Senate Bill 2<\/a>, which helped push forward the state\u2019s private school vouchers program. <\/p>\n See below for a closer look at some of the Jan. 1, 2026, laws and their potential impact on Texans.<\/p>\n Tax code changes for local governments after natural disasters <\/p>\n House Bill 30<\/a> targets tax code changes allowing for a \u201cDisaster Debris Rate\u201d to address costs and repairs for local governments following natural disasters. The legislation also prevents local governments from temporarily raising property taxes above the normal voter-approved limit without holding an election in the year after a disaster, according to Texas Legislature Online (TLO).<\/p>\n Texas\u2019 AI regulations bill among the country\u2019s most comprehensive<\/p>\n House Bill 149<\/a> will establish a formal framework for the regulation of artificial intelligence (AI) in Texas, specifically creating rules on transparency and consumer protection and establishing a Texas Artificial Intelligence Council.<\/p>\n The law puts Texas\u2019 AI regulations as one of the most comprehensive in the country<\/a>, according to The Texas Tribune, but also in direct conflict with an executive order issued by President Donald Trump.<\/p>\n Bill offers severance exemptions to operators for inactive oil and gas wells<\/p>\n House Bill 3159<\/a> creates a severance tax exemption for oil and gas from certain previously inactive wells that undergo reviving processes. The bill aims to encourage operators to revive inactive wells and curb restimulation costs with tax relief. The severance benefits are limited to three years. <\/p>\n Bill streamlines unemployment claims<\/p>\n House Bill 3699<\/a> changes how initial claims under the unemployment compensation system are handled. The bill streamlines and modifies the process for filing and processing unemployment claims.<\/p>\n Texas sheriffs must formally cooperate with ICE immigration enforcement<\/p>\n Senate Bill 8<\/a> requires sheriffs operating county jails to formally cooperate with the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Certain immigration enforcement actions would occur under a 287(g) program. The program provides local law enforcement with the necessary training and authority to verify the immigration status of individuals booked into their jails, according to an analysis of the bill.<\/p>\n SB 8 mandates counties with populations over 100,000 to participate in the program. It also establishes financial assistance pipelines for sheriffs in counties with populations under one million to utilize grants to cover program participation costs. <\/p>\n Bill speeds up eviction process for squatters<\/p>\n Senate Bill 38<\/a> will create an adjudication process for civil court cases, seeking to streamline the process for squatter cases. The bill seeks to be more friendly to landlords, while preserving basic notice and appeal processes. <\/p>\n Bill protects school board property tax rates<\/p>\n Senate Bill 1502<\/a> will target tax-rate elections for school district boards, specifically limiting them from unilaterally adopting a property tax rate higher than the district\u2019s voter-approved rate without holding another election. <\/p>\n Texas commits to its research and development activity<\/p>\n