TWENTY-SEVENTH DAY TUESDAY, MARCH 4, 2003 PROCEEDINGS The Senate met at 11:00 a.m. pursuant to adjournment and was called to order by the President. The roll was called and the following Senators were present:iiArmbrister, Averitt, Barrientos, Bivins, Brimer, Carona, Deuell, Duncan, Estes, Fraser, Gallegos, Harris, Hinojosa, Jackson, Janek, Lindsay, Lucio, Madla, Nelson, Ogden, Ratliff, Shapiro, Shapleigh, Staples, VanideiPutte, Wentworth, West, Whitmire, Williams, Zaffirini. Absent-excused:iiEllis. The President announced that a quorum of the Senate was present. The Reverend Barry W. Chinn, Woodlawn Baptist Church, Austin, offered the invocation as follows: O gracious creator, we thank You for giving us this bountiful state we call home and for our freedoms. We thank You for our Senators who govern during these days fraught with challenges. Give to them Thy grace and wisdom. Give them strength when they are weak. Give to them energy when they tire. Give them light when their skies are gray and dark. May their actions, decisions, and legislation preserve and serve the lives of all those who live within this fair state. Watch over our Senators this day. May we all experience Thy grace and tender care and be refreshed at the end of this day, knowing that the way we lived this hour truly made a difference. Amen. Senator Whitmire moved that the reading of the Journal of the proceedings of yesterday be dispensed with and the Journal be approved as printed. The motion prevailed without objection. LEAVE OF ABSENCE On motion of Senator Whitmire, Senator Ellis was granted leave of absence for the remainder of the week on account of important business. CO-AUTHOR OF SENATE BILL 124 On motion of Senator Shapleigh, Senator Carona will be shown as Co-author of SBi124. 384 78th Legislature Ð Regular Session 27th Day CO-AUTHOR OF SENATE BILL 256 On motion of Senator Harris, Senator Lucio will be shown as Co-author of SBi256. CO-AUTHOR OF SENATE BILL 319 On motion of Senator Armbrister, Senator Deuell will be shown as Co-author of SBi319. CO-AUTHOR OF SENATE BILL 360 On motion of Senator Deuell, Senator Hinojosa will be shown as Co-author of SBi360. CO-AUTHOR OF SENATE BILL 362 On motion of Senator Ellis, Senator Williams will be shown as Co-author of SBi362. CO-AUTHOR OF SENATE BILL 377 On motion of Senator Armbrister, Senator VanideiPutte will be shown as Co-author of SBi377. CO-AUTHORS OF SENATE BILL 693 On motion of Senator Gallegos, Senators Armbrister, Barrientos, Carona, Hinojosa, Lucio, Madla, Nelson, Shapiro, Shapleigh, VanideiPutte, and Zaffirini will be shown as Co-authors of SBi693. CO-AUTHORS OF SENATE BILL 696 On motion of Senator Estes, Senators Armbrister, Hinojosa, Lindsay, and Lucio will be shown as Co-authors of SBi696. MESSAGE FROM THE HOUSE HOUSE CHAMBER Austin, Texas March 4, 2003 The Honorable President of the Senate Senate Chamber Austin, Texas Mr. President: I am directed by the House to inform the Senate that the House has taken the following action: THE HOUSE HAS PASSED THE FOLLOWING MEASURES: HCR 60, Recognizing March 4, 2003, as Ellis County Day at the State Capitol. HCR 98, Congratulating Tony Hills, Jr., of Alief Elsik High School on his athletic achievements. Respectfully, /s/Robert Haney, Chief Clerk House of Representatives Tuesday, March 4, 2003 SENATE JOURNAL 385 ESCORT COMMITTEE APPOINTED In accordance with the provisions of HCRi66, the President announced the appointment of the following as a Committee to Escort the Honorable Thomas R. Phillips, Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Texas, to the Joint Session:iiSenators Duncan, Chair; Averitt, Bivins, Gallegos, Harris, Lucio, and West. RESOLUTIONS SIGNED The President announced the signing of the following enrolled resolutions in the presence of the Senate:ii HCRi65, HCRi66. GUESTS PRESENTED Senator Barrientos was recognized and introduced to the Senate a group of students from Johnston High School in Austin. The Senate welcomed its guests. MOTION TO RECESS On motion of Senator Whitmire and by unanimous consent, the Senate at 11:10ia.m. agreed to recess, upon conclusion of today s' Joint Session, until 1:00 p.m. today. AT EASE The President at 11:10 a.m. announced the Senate would stand At Ease in order to attend the Joint Session. JOINT SESSION (To hear the State of the Judiciary Address by the Honorable Thomas R. Phillips, Chief Justice, Supreme Court of Texas) The President announced the time had arrived for the Joint Session pursuant to the provisions of HCR 66. The President of the Senate and the Senators present, escorted by the Secretary of the Senate and the Sergeant-at-Arms, proceeded to the Hall of the House of Representatives at 11:00 a.m. The Honorable David Dewhurst, President of the Senate, was announced and, on invitation of the Speaker, occupied a seat at the Speaker s' Rostrum. The Honorable Rick Perry, Governor of the State of Texas, was announced and, on invitation of the Speaker, occupied a seat at the Speaker s' Rostrum. The Senators were announced and were admitted and escorted to seats prepared for them along the aisle. The Honorable Thomas R. Phillips, Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Texas, and his party were announced and were escorted to the Speaker s' Rostrum by Senators Duncan, Chair; Averitt, Bivins, Gallegos, Harris, Lucio, and West on the part of the Senate and Representatives Hartnett, Chair; Baxter, Garza, Hegar, Hodge, T.iSmith, Solis, and Talton on the part of the House. The Honorable David Dewhurst, President of the Senate, called the Senate to order and announced a quorum of the Senate present. 386 78th Legislature Ð Regular Session 27th Day The Honorable Tom Craddick, Speaker of the House of Representatives, called the House to order, announced a quorum of the House present, and stated the purpose of the Joint Session. Speaker Craddick introduced the platform guests. The President introduced Chief Justice Thomas R. Phillips who addressed the Joint Session as follows: Governor Perry, Governor Dewhurst, Speaker Craddick, distinguished Members of the Seventy-eighth Legislature, fellow judges, and fellow Texans:iion behalf of the judiciary of Texas, I very much appreciate the opportunity to deliver this State of the Judiciary Address to a Joint Session of the Legislature. By inviting me to appear in the same manner as you invite the Governor to give the State of the State Address, you demonstrate the Legislature s' respect for each department of government as separate and co-equal. The judges of Texas appreciate that commitment, and we pledge ourselves ready to work with you in devising creative solutions to the problems that face our branch. Early in the Civil War, the United States found that spiraling budget demands obliged it to start printing paper money. A cabinet officer reportedly asked President Lincoln whether the new greenbacks should bear the motto "In God We Trust." Lincoln replied that a more appropriate biblical inscription might be: "Silver and gold have I none, but such as I have I give thee." Like the beggar seeking alms at the temple gate, the judicial branch has little chance of success if all we seek from the Legislature this year is new money and new programs, especially since you don t' have a printing press to balance your budget. But just as the beggar received from Peter and John something far more precious than money, the ability to walk and leap, you can use the current crisis to give the judiciary something far better. You can reduce appropriations to the third branch not by rationing justice, but by restructuring the judicial system. You can make our courts not merely more economical, but more efficient and responsive as well. By removing obstacles to judicial efficiency, by redistricting the trial and appellate courts, and, most of all, by permitting the voters to decide whether to change the way we choose judges, you can enhance the rule of law all across Texas. Enhancing Judicial Efficiency As a result of proposed reductions to judicial appropriations, appellate courts will have smaller staffs and trial courts will have less technology. We can deal with these reductions better if the Legislature will streamline our courts to eliminate unnecessary work. In particular, I ask you to ensure that the statutes granting jurisdiction to the various courts of our state are clear and consistent, so that judges and litigants need not struggle over whether a case has been filed in or appealed to the proper court. And I ask you to review and amend those statutes which, for whatever reason, the courts have not satisfactorily interpreted and applied. To give but one example, our court for nearly 30 years has had difficulty understanding that part of the Tuesday, March 4, 2003 SENATE JOURNAL 387 Texas Tort Claims Act waiving sovereign immunity for "personal injury and deathi.i.i.icaused by a condition or use of tangible personal or real propertyi.i.i.."iIn both majority opinions and dissents, we have repeatedly called upon the Legislature to clarify this language, which is not found in the laws of any other state. In recent years, the House of Representatives has asked its Committee on Civil Practices to review and report on those appellate judicial decisions that "(1)iclearly failed to properly implement legislative purposes, (2)ifound two or more statutes to be in conflict, (3)iheld a statute to be unconstitutional, (4)iexpressly found a statute to be ambiguous, or (5)iexpressly suggested legislative action." The reports generated by these charges could help you draft clarifying language which will benefit the entire legal system. Judicial Redistricting Trial Court Redistricting.