House Chairman Says ‘no Evidence' Texas Needs a Bathroom Bill, Signaling Tough Road Ahead

AUSTIN — A top Republican in the Texas House has confirmed he will hold a public debate on the so-called bathroom bill, but he said he doesn't see any reason for it to become law."In all the years I've been on [the House Committee on] State Affairs, we've never seen an issue that would indicate there's a need to address a bathroom bill," Byron Cook, the Corsicana Republican who chairs the committee that will next take up the measure, told The Dallas Morning News on Thursday. "There's no evidence of a problem."Senate Bill 6, which would prohibit transgender people from using the bathrooms in government buildings, public schools and universities that match their gender identity, and nix city laws that protect their rights to do so. The bill easily passed the Senate on Wednesday; it's next step will be a public hearing in Cook's committee. As chairman, he decides when it will be debated. He declined to comment whether he would vote for or against the measure.   Continue reading...