| Ask your Senator to vote YES on the Lisa Torry Smith Act |
| The Senate could vote on the Lisa Torry Smith Act (SB 1055) as soon as this week We’ve reached a critical time in the legislative session, and how things go in the next couple of weeks could determine if a bill moves forward or it it runs out of time. Getting a hearing on the Senate floor is the next step in the road to a new law being signed by the governor. Please contact your Senator TODAY about SB 1055, the Lisa Torry Smith Act: The bill establishes that riding in a crosswalk is legal and increases the penalty for motorists who injure a bicyclist or pedestrian in a crosswalk. Please ask your Senator to vote YES on SB 1055. Please also contact Lt. Governor Dan Patrick (link is to his Contact page) and ask him to vote YES on SB 1055. If you live in Senator Joan Huffman’s district, there is no need to ask for her vote–she is the bill author. Instead, thank her for authoring SB 1055. We’ve found the following format to be useful when contacting elected officials by email or phone call: My name is _______, my occupation is _______, and I live in District __. Mention SB 1055 and explain why it matters to you. It’s best if you put this section in your own words. I request that Senator ______ please vote yes on SB 1055. Thank you for your time. |
| How to find your Senator: Go to Who Represents Me? and input your home address. The tool will come back with a list of your state and national elected officials. Scroll down to your Texas Senator, and click on the link. You’ll be taken to his or her website on the Texas legislature site. From there, you will find their Austin office phone number and an email form to contact them. You will most likely speak to a staffer or will have to leave a voicemail if you call. If you learn something new from your phone call–for example, if the staffer has questions about or objections to the bill–please let us know at advocacy@biketexas.org. Thank you for your commitment to making Texas a great place to ride a bike! |
