Bill > HB3393

This bill makes several significant changes to statutory interpretation rules in Texas law, primarily focusing on how courts should read and understand statutes. The bill clarifies that the word "shall" imposes a duty and is not discretionary, while "must" creates a requirement or condition precedent. It explicitly prohibits courts from considering legislative intent or legislative history (such as committee reports, legislator statements, or sponsor comments) when interpreting laws, instead mandating that courts enforce the statutory text as written and interpret it according to how an ordinary English speaker would understand the words. The bill also introduces comprehensive severability provisions, ensuring that if one part of a statute is found invalid, the rest of the statute remains in effect. Additionally, it allows courts to interpret statutes with grammatical or scrivener's errors in a way that an ordinary reader would understand, and it reinforces that such errors do not invalidate a law. The bill further specifies that sovereign immunity waivers must be clearly and unambiguously stated, and that statutory prerequisites to lawsuits against governmental entities are jurisdictional requirements. These changes are part of Chapter 311 and 312 of the Texas Government Code and will take effect on September 1, 2025.

Justice

https://capitol.texas.gov/BillLookup/History.aspx?LegSess=89R&Bill=HB3393