Bill > HB4501

This bill proposes significant changes to statutory interpretation in Texas by establishing new rules for how courts should read and understand state laws. The bill clarifies that the words "shall" and "must" impose specific legal requirements, and explicitly prohibits courts from considering legislative intent or legislative history when interpreting statutes. Instead, courts must strictly enforce the written text of laws using the meaning an ordinary English speaker would understand. The bill also eliminates judicial deference to state agency interpretations of statutes, though agencies' reasonable constructions that do not conflict with plain language may still be considered. Additionally, the bill establishes strong severability provisions, requiring that if any part of a law is found invalid, the remaining parts should remain in effect, and mandates that courts cannot consider grammatical or scrivener's errors as invalidating a law. The legislation further specifies that sovereign immunity waivers must be explicitly and unambiguously stated, and that statutory prerequisites are jurisdictional requirements in suits against governmental entities. These changes aim to create a more literal, text-focused approach to statutory interpretation that limits judicial discretion and legislative history's role in understanding laws.

Justice

https://capitol.texas.gov/BillLookup/History.aspx?LegSess=89R&Bill=HB4501