Story by Marissa Brinkman
Throughout the Texas 89th Legislative Session, a lawsuit filed in the 298th District Court of Dallas County lingered in the background, awaiting the results of the bills filed into the Session. Motions had been filed by both parties into the case in February, and a non-jury trial was scheduled for June 24. All were left waiting for the results of the session. Unfortunately, everything hung on a bill that was left unresolved.
SB 1065 was designed to close the loophole that allowed the State Fair to implement its unconstitutional weapons policy in the first place. But as the bill moved through the session, it became known that passage of it would not isolate the loophole closure solely to the State Fair. Instead, it would open other venues to the same result and allow LTC holders to carry at other events (a win for us). With this realization came the list of exemptions to stop that from happening at these other events and venues. Suddenly, we were looking at a bill that if passed would stop the State Fair policy but would also create more gun-free zones in the rest of the state. This was not a trade that favored the Second Amendment. It was not a trade TSRA could support. SB 1065 did not pass this session.
Governor Abbott has called for a Special Session, set to begin on July 21. So far, this does not have anything to do with SB 1065, though the agenda is up to Governor Abbott.
A letter was filed last week to advise Judge Emily Tobolowsky that the session had concluded without a bill that would apply to this case. The Attorney General's office filed a Motion to Continue, which would have pushed the non-jury trial back by 90 days. On Tuesday, the trial was not held, and Judge Tobolowsky signed in favor of the State Fair.
This lawsuit may have ended, but the fight is not over for those of us who support the rights guaranteed by the Second Amendment. The Texas State Rifle Association is the only state association with a full-time political action committee, and the TSRA PAC Legislative Team will continue to work toward favorable results in this matter. We anticipate continued efforts by the Attorney General and intend to support any efforts by others to seek justice in this situation.
June 26, 2025
