The state Legislature's full role in Hurricane Harvey relief is to be determined, a pair of representatives from Northeast Texas said during a wide-ranging talk Wednesday at Texarkana College.
State Reps. Gary VanDeaver, R-New Boston, and Chris Paddie, R-Marshall, answered questions on a variety of topics from Texas Tribune CEO Evan Smith, and Harvey was at the top of the list.
Asked if the state's so-called rainy day fund would be used to help Harvey victims, both said the process of assessing disaster relief needs is just beginning, so speculation on specifics would be premature. But they agreed state government will do whatever is appropriate to help.
"To whatever extent the Legislature needs to get involved, we're fully prepared to do that," Paddie said.
VanDeaver stressed that however the state helps, it must be done in "prudent fashion," without any knee-jerk reaction to throw money at the problem. A former superintendent of New Boston Independent School District, he said he was particularly concerned about the public schools affected by the storm. Rebuilding them will be one "legitimate use of state funds" among others, he said.
Both reacted to social media stories, spread since the hurricane, about a tort-reform bill passed in this year's legislative session. Despite alarms raised online, the new law does not make it necessary for Harvey victims to file insurance claims by Sept. 1, when it takes effect, they said.
"This bill does not affect flood insurance. The citizens in Houston and South Texas will still have access to insurance, still be able to file claims. There's just a lot of misinformation out there. ...
"(The bill) would make it harder for people to file false claims, to hold people up in court for lengthy amount of time, costing everyone more money than it should. I don't think anything is going to be different after Sept. 1 than it is today," VanDeaver said.
State Sen. Bryan Hughes, R-Mineola, was scheduled to appear with VanDeaver, but he canceled to assist with hurricane relief efforts in the Houston area, his office said.
Neither VanDeaver nor Paddie had any easy solutions to the state's education funding problems, though they agreed that any must involve reform of the property tax system. The Texas House passed an education funding bill this year, but it did not get through the Senate.
"I absolutely think we failed," Paddie said, calling the House plan "a critical first step" in what would certainly have been a multi-session issue. The Senate did not have "the same level of commitment" as the House regarding the issue, he said.
Smith raised the controversial so-called bathroom bill that failed to win legislative approval despite being one of the main reasons Gov. Greg Abbott called a special session this summer. The bill would have restricted which restrooms transgender public school students may use.
Paddie and VanDeaver said the issue was not a high priority to them because it was not particularly important to their constituents.
"Rep. Paddie, since you did polling, which is very helpful so we know the rank order of priorities in your district, where was access to bathrooms on that list?" Smith asked.
"Well, I only focused on the first page," Paddie said, bringing laughter from the audience.
Smith kept the conversation quickly moving from one subject to another. Other topics included school choice, border security and state versus local control.
The audience filled the Great Room at TC's Truman Arnold Student Center and ate lunch provided by TC's culinary arts program.
The Texas Tribune staged the event, one of eight conversations with local representatives it holds on college campuses annually. Each year, the Tribune holds more than 50 events overall, including an Austin festival featuring dozens of speakers on Texas politics.
Complete video of the talk is available on the Texas Tribune website at bit.ly/2gqAGFr.