Compliance Report: Implementation of 2021 Sunset Recommendations (January 2023)
Report to the 88th Legislature (February 2023)
Final Results of Sunset Reviews 2022-23 (June 2023)
Over the last two years, the Sunset Commission worked diligently to improve state government. For the first time in more than 20 years, every Sunset bill passed into law, leading to statewide efficiency, effectiveness, fairness, and accountability gains across numerous regulatory areas. During the 2022-23 biennium, Sunset evaluated 21 entities, most of which related to natural resources and criminal justice, including the Public Utility Commission of Texas (PUC), Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ), Texas Water Development Board, Texas Juvenile Justice Department (TJJD), and a limited scope re-review of the Texas Commission on Law Enforcement (TCOLE).
Ultimately, the 88th Legislature adopted most of the changes recommended by the Sunset Commission, passing a state budget and all 15 Sunset bills that contained 95 percent of the commission’s funding and statutory recommendations. Together, the commission’s five funding recommendations, 138 statutory changes, and 85 management directives will position the agencies and entities to better serve and protect the people of Texas. Significant changes enacted through the Sunset process included securing investments in understaffed yet critical government functions; removing unnecessary regulatory burdens on Texans; and increasing accountability across key agency duties, like contracting, grantmaking, and public engagement.
Agencies Continued in 2023
- Texas Economic Development and Tourism Office
- Texas Commission on Environmental Quality
- Texas Juvenile Justice Department
- Texas Invasive Species Coordinating Committee
- Texas Commission on Law Enforcement (limited scope)
- Public Utility Commission of Texas
- Office of Public Utility Counsel
- Texas State Soil and Water Conservation Board
- Office of State-Federal Relations
- State Board of Veterinary Medical Examiners (special purpose)
Agency Abolished and Functions Transferred in 2023
Agency Removed From Sunset Review in 2023
Agencies Not Subject to Abolishment in 2023
- Electric Reliability Council of Texas
- Texas Low-Level Radioactive Waste Disposal Compact Commission
- Office of the Independent Ombudsman
- Lavaca-Navidad River Authority
- San Antonio River Authority
- San Jacinto River Authority
- Upper Guadalupe River Authority
- Texas Water Development Board
- State Water Implementation Fund for Texas Advisory Committee