By Chris McNutt
Weatherford, TX — The 89th Texas Legislature just slammed the gavel down Sine Die, and for the first time in years, gun owners aren’t just holding the line — we’re pushing forward.
Sure, plenty of bold, no-compromise gun bills got left for dead — shame on the squishes who let that happen. Primaries are for holding them accountable.
But don’t miss the big picture: a stack of hard-fought, pro-gun wins are inches from becoming law.
That’s not just a flicker of hope; it’s a signal flare that the Texas Capitol is finally waking up.
With fresh blood leading the Texas House, a Senate packed with tougher Republicans, and a relentless ground game from the real gun rights coalition — Texas Gun Rights, National Association for Gun Rights, Gun Owners of America — the RINOs and gun-grabbers are on notice.
We’re not just in the game; we’re rewriting the rules.
Major Pro-Gun Bills Headed to Governor Abbott
In the chaotic final sprint of the session, with deadlines mowing down bills like a combine, a handful of ironclad pro-gun priorities broke through the chaos.
These bills are now on their way to Governor Greg Abbott, ready for his signature to make them law:
SB 1362 – Anti-Red Flag Act
Sen. Bryan Hughes / Rep. Cole Hefner
SB 1362 is slamming the brakes on enforcing out-of-state or federal red flag gun grabs that strip Texans of their firearms without a shred of due process. A top fight for Texas Gun Rights and long championed by Rep. Briscoe Cain, this bill shields law-abiding citizens—especially veterans screwed over by the VA—and it rejects Biden’s gun control cash from the traitorous Cornyn-backed Bipartisan Safer Communities Act of 2022.
SB 1596 – SBR Decriminalization
Sen. Hagenbuch / Rep. Hayes
SB 1596 is a gut-punch to Texas’s outdated, anti-gun laws that have criminalized Short Barrel Rifles (SBRs) and Short Barrel Shotguns (SBSs) since the 1930s, letting cops toss law-abiding folks in jail for owning them without an NFA stamp.This bill yanks SBRs and SBSs off the state’s prohibited weapons list, freeing Texans from these nanny-state shackles and aligning with our national push to torch the NFA and pass the SHORT Act.
Gun Owners of America and Rep. Wes Virdell led the charge for this legislation at the Capitol, and Texas Gun Rights & the National Association for Gun Rights rallied its members to shove this Second Amendment victory over the finish line!
SB 706 – Universal Reciprocity
Sen. Schwertner / Rep. Isaac
SB 706 is a win for out-of-state gun owners, recognizing every valid handgun carry license as equal to a Texas LTC. It gives visitors the same protections and access as Texas license holders, including spots off-limits to unlicensed carriers and some slack for honest mistakes in restricted areas. It’s a step toward fairness, but we’re not stopping until constitutional carry gets the same respect—because no one should need a license to exercise their rights.
HB 3053 – Gun Buyback Ban
Rep. Virdell / Sen. Hall
HB 3053 shuts down municipalities and counties from burning taxpayer money on pointless gun buyback programs that do nothing but hassle law-abiding gun owners and do zero to prevent crime.This bill puts an end to these anti-gun theatrics.
HB 1403 – Foster Parent 2A Privacy Protection
Rep. Harris / Sen. Middleton
HB 1403 stops the state from building a registry of foster parents who own guns, protecting the privacy of Texans who open their homes to kids in need. It’s a straight-up win, telling the government to keep its hands off the Second Amendment rights of foster families.The anti-gun elites are already choking on their own panic — and this is what happens when patriots refuse to back down!
Critical Bills Left BehindDespite our hard-fought wins, a slew of critical Second Amendment bills were killed by legislative deadlines and procedures, proving the battle’s nowhere near won, even though we have momentum on our side:
SB 82 (Sen. Hall) – Holding anti-gun businesses liable for harm to disarmed patrons. (Died in Senate)
SB 1065 (Sen. Hall) – State Fair Bill, which would have closed loopholes allowing gun bans on taxpayer-funded public property. (Died in House)
SB 1730 (Sen. Hall) & HB 170 (Rep. Guillen) – Kyle’s Law, extending civil immunity protections to lawful self-defenders. (HB 170 died in Senate, SB 1730 died in House)
HB 644 (Rep. Bell, C.) – Expanding civil liability protections for pro-gun businesses that allow you to carry firearms for self-defense. (Died in Senate).
HB 920 (Rep. Bumgarner) & SB 1603 (Sen. Hinojosa) – Eliminating sales tax on guns and ammo. (HB 920 died in House, SB 1603 died in Senate)
HB 925 (Rep. Cain) – Removing automatic penalties for accidentally carrying past a “gun free zone” sign. (Died in House)
HB 1128 (Rep. Isaac) & HB 1794 (Rep. Tepper) – Protecting election judges and voters from disarmament. (Died in Senate)
HB 2031 (Rep. Richardson) & HB 2879 (Rep. Isaac) – Expansion of tenant carry rights and civil immunity protections. (Died in House)
HB 2771 (Rep. Hayes) – “Trump Carry” bill, restoring gun rights to nonviolent felons like President Trump. (Died in House)
HB 3428 (Rep. Tinderholt) – Penalizing false “51%” signs banning firearms. (Died in House)
HB 3934 (Rep. Hopper) – Second Amendment Preservation Act. (Died in House)
HB 4201 (Rep. Schatzline) – Ending gun-free zones in areas Texans visit every day. (Died in House)
Each of these bills tackled a serious threat to Texans’ Second Amendment rights.
The death of these bills leaves a pile of unfinished business that every red-blooded gun owner in Texas needs to haul into the next session—and keep fighting for until we win.
We’re not quitting, not now, not ever!
Better Leadership, Real Results?
The Texas Legislature’s always been a graveyard for bills — gun-related or not — with thousands filed each session, most doomed to die.
This isn’t always a bad thing; Gideon Tucker once famously stated “Neither liberty nor property is safe when the legislature is in session.”
But this time, the Second Amendment didn’t just scrape by — it made some serious gains.
Here’s the real story: not one gun control bill got a foothold. That’s a win, period. And it didn’t happen by magic.
The House swapping out Phelan’s wishy-washy leadership — going from passing Constitutional Carry in 2021 to slipping parts of Biden and Cornyn’s gun-grabbing BSCA into SB 728 back in 2023– for Speaker Dustin Burrows, was an unexpected improvement.
For the first time, Texas Gun Rights had a direct line to the Speaker’s office, kicking off last fall when the State Fair tried their dumb gun ban.
Burrows stepped up, and he tapped Rep. Cole Hefner to chair the House Homeland Security, Public Safety & Veterans Affairs Committee— which proved to be another unexpectedly solid move.
Hefner hails from an East Texas district so red that gun control is a dirty word. If he ever wobbled, Texas Gun Rights would be on him like flies on honey.
That kind of pressure keeps folks honest, and it showed.
Hefner refused to hear gun control bills on “Gun Day” at the capitol. While this should be a “no brainer” in Texas, it is the first legislative session this has happened in a very long time.
No soapbox for the anti-gun crowd. Just a laser focus on pushing through a batch of strong pro-gun bills.
Then, some Texas Gun Rights allies were warriors on key committees in the House — Reps. Mark Dorazio, Hillary Hickland, Janis Holt, Carrie Isaac, AJ Louderback, Don McLaughlin, Katrina Pierson, Mitch Little, Wes Virdell, and Brent Money — pushing pro-gun bills through with ease.
Add in our slew of pro-gun allies throughout the house — Reps. Mike Olcott, Andy Hopper, Keresa Richardson, Nate Schatzline, Tony Tinderholt, Brian Harrison, David Lowe, Shelley Luther, Briscoe Cain, Benjamin Bumgarner, Helen Kerwin, Marc Lahood, and Steve Toth — stacking up critical votes on the House floor, and we had a pro-gun powerhouse.
In the Senate, Texas Gun Rights stepped up its game, building strong ties with Senators Bryan Hughes, Bob Hall, and freshman Brent Hagenbuch, while also personally meeting with Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick early in the session to drive home the need to crush red flag laws.
This Senate muscle, combined with our House firepower, lit up the Capitol.
This session was a shift for gun rights in Texas.
Sure, losing some key pro-gun bills stings—especially Kyle’s law and the State Fair bill that almost made it to the finish line, is extremely disappointing.
But after years of political backstabbing and gridlock, the Legislature’s starting to move our way.
We never expect to get 100% of what we want — although we’ll certainly also fight toward that goal.
One thing is clear: Texas Gun Rights members and supporters keeping the heat on, hammering politicians with calls, emails, and relentless pressure, are the biggest reasons for the legislature moving in our direction.
Burrows and Hefner?
They’ve shown they can deliver—way better than what we’ve seen before. They’re not caped crusaders for the Second Amendment yet; time will tell if they keep it up in future sessions.
But for now, their work with no-compromise groups like Texas Gun Rights has the Second Amendment looking stronger in Texas than it has in a while.
Some Texans might grumble about the House’s other battles—we get it. That’s not our fight.
Texas Gun Rights stays locked on one mission: your right to keep and bear arms. On that front, this session moved the ball forward.
The Second Amendment protects everything else. So let’s build on this and get the job done.
