Texas DOGE Committee: What's in and What's Out

The number of bills referred to the Delivery of Government Efficiency (DOGE) Committee in the Texas House of Representatives has grown to 172, one-third of which are technology-related.

Led by state Rep. Giovanni Capriglione, R-98, the 13-member committee was formed in February to identify and stamp out inefficiencies in state programs through waste elimination and technology modernization. Shortly after its formation, 83 bills were referred to the committee in March.

The number of tech-related bills referred to DOGE has since jumped to 57, with 34 in committee and 23 out.

Three of the four bills relating to AI referred to the committee in March are now out of committee and have been referred to the Senate Committee on Business and Commerce:

• HB 149, an overhaul of the Texas Responsible Artificial Intelligence Governance Act (TRAIGA)
• HB 2818, which would establish an AI division within the Department of Information Resources (DIR), has also been referred to Business and Commerce
• HB 3512, requiring annual compliance with cybersecurity and AI training for government employees and officials “who use a computer to complete at least 25 percent of the employee’s required duties”

HB 1709, the original TRAIGA, remains in committee.

Five more AI bills have since been referred to the committee:

• HB 3755, regarding the commercial use of biometric identifiers in training AI
• HB 3808, which would establish both an AI advisory council and a learning laboratory for experiments using AI
• HB 5496, requiring disclosure of AI use when providing a good or service
• SB 668, requiring disclosure when AI is used to make recommendations, predictions or decisions
• SB 1964, detailing oversight DIR would have over AI implementation in other state agencies

Other notable bills now out of committee include Gov. Greg Abbott’s emergency item to establish the Texas Cyber Command, the establishment of a study by the General Land Office on the implementation of a title registry pilot program using distributed ledger technology, the authorization of electric vehicle charging stations to be installed in newly constructed parking areas, a bill detailing the responsibilities of the Texas Space Commission and the establishment of the Texas Strategic Bitcoin Reserve.

A full list of bills in and out of committee can be found online.