Texas House bill by Rep. Leo Wilson permits fireworks sales before Juneteenth with drought monitoring

Passed bill authored by State Rep. Terri Leo-Wilson seeks to regulate fireworks sales before Juneteenth in certain counties and aims to enhance drought condition reporting to inform sale approvals, according to the Texas Legislature website.

In the House, 55 Democrats and 71 Republicans voted in favor of the bill, while one Democrat and six Republicans opposed it.

Meanwhile, in the Senate, 11 Democrats and 20 Republicans voted in favor, with no opposing votes.

Terri Leo-Wilson introduced the bill in the Texas House on Tuesday, Nov. 12, 2024, ahead of the official start of the 89th regular legislative session on Jan. 14, 2025.

Leo-Wilson graduated from Texas A&M University with a BS.

Leo-Wilson, a Republican, was elected to the Texas State House in 2023 to represent the state’s 23rd House district, replacing previous state representative Mayes Middleton.

According to the Texas Legislature, the bill’s official text was summarized as follows: ‘Relating to the sale of fireworks on and before the Juneteenth holiday’.

The following is our breakdown, based on the actual bill text, and may include interpretation to clarify its provisions.

In essence, this bill amends Texas law to permit the sale of fireworks prior to Juneteenth in counties where the commissioners court has approved such sales. Specifically, fireworks sales are allowed from June 14 to midnight on June 19. The bill also requires the Texas A&M Forest Service to determine and report on drought conditions for various holidays, including Juneteenth, so counties can gauge the appropriateness of permitting fireworks. Additionally, the bill allows the Forest Service to receive donations to support its drought assessment efforts. The Act will take effect immediately if it secures a two-thirds majority vote in both legislative houses; otherwise, it will become effective on Sept. 1, 2025.

The bill was co-authored by Rep. Greg Bonnen (Republican – District 24), Rep. Valoree Swanson (Republican – District 150), and Rep. Penny Morales Shaw (Democrat – District 148), along with eight other authors.

The bill received its final legislative approval on Tuesday, May 13, and was signed into law by Gov. Greg Abbott on Monday, May 26.

Bills in Texas go through a multi-step legislative process, including committee review, debates, and votes in both chambers before reaching a final decision. Each session, there are typically thousands of bills introduced, but only a portion successfully navigate the process to become law.

You can read more about the bills and other measures here.