LIVE: Texas House Holds Legislative Session Day After Democrats Flee State

The house will come to order. The following members have moved for strict enforcement. Morales of Maverick, Raymond, Martinez, Canales, Cortez, Munoz, Longoria and Moody. Members vote from your desk and vote for yourselves. Clerk ring the bell. Have all members registered? Have all members registered? There being 94 members present, a quorum is not present. The house and gallery please rise for the invocation which will be offered by Furman carpenter, the DPS chaplain. Let us pray. Our most heavenly father, we are so grateful for your love and the blessings that you've blessed upon us, father. We thank you, father, for allowing us to be part of the United States of America, the great citizens that it has, for the great privilege that we have of being citizens of this great country. In this great state of Texas, father, we thank you for the blessings that come with that, father, the joy of freedom, the joy of freedom to be able to vote for the person that best represents the values that we have, father. Father, we thank you for our legislators, father, for each one of them, father, and we ask you to be with them as they consider their constituents to represent them in the most excellent way. Please help them, father, in passing of the laws and representing their areas, father, to do so, father, in kindness, very clear in their stand for their constituents and for Texas, father. Thank you, father, for this great special session. We ask you to be with every member of this legislature and all the admin, father, that help work it together. It's in Jesus' name that we pray. Amen. The chair recognizes the honorable Stan Kitzman of Waller County to lead us in the pledges of allegiance to the United States and Texas flags. My colleagues and friends of Texas, please join me in the pledges to our flag. I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for which it stands, one nation, under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. Honor the Texas flag. I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for which it stands, one nation, under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. Mr. Little, for what purpose? Parliamentary inquiry. State your inquiry. Mr. Speaker, isn't it true that the House Committee on General Investigating by statute or rule has the authority to convene regardless of whether our body has a quorum? In between adjournments, yes. And parliamentary inquiry? State your inquiry. Mr. Speaker, isn't it true that the House Committee on General Investigating has within its jurisdiction the ability to investigate members on matters of public corruption? The chair does not entertain general questions about house rules. Thank you, Mr. Speaker. Members, may I have your attention? This morning, I met with the leadership of the Texas Department of Public Safety to get a full briefing on their efforts to locate and return the members who are actively trying to thwart the legislature from performing its duties. DPS is actively working to compel their attendance after I signed their civil arrest warrants yesterday and will continue to do so until those members are back in this chamber. Today, the Disaster Preparedness Committee is meeting to consider five priority pieces of legislation. Each will address the catastrophic flooding that has devastated homes and entire communities. That's the kind of important work that is being done in and all elected members should be here representing their districts in those conversations. It is evident to the chair that DPS will need some time to work and we will try again to make quorum on Friday. If quorum is then made, we will proceed with the very important business of this state. Members, the call of the House remains in force. Under the House rules, the House may adjourn from day to day. While I will call the House to order tomorrow and Thursday in a pro forma session, I will provide written permission to be entered in today's journal for each member who is registered here today as present to leave the chamber and return Friday at 1 p.m. Mr. Guerin moves the House stand adjourned until 9 a.m. Wednesday. Is there objection? Chair, here's none. The House stands adjourned.