| For Texas voters: |
| In 2022 alone, 43 people died from exposure to extreme heat while working, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Last year, there were others, including a postal worker who died of heat stroke in Dallas, and at least one farmworker who died after falling ill while working in extreme heat in Florida.
States could pass and enforce laws requiring employers to take simple measures to keep workers safe during deadly heat waves. Five states — Washington, Minnesota, California, Oregon and Colorado — have already passed such measures, establishing important legal and ethical norms for employers. Unfortunately, this option is not available in certain states, most notably Texas and Florida. After Austin, Dallas and San Antonio passed modest heat ordinances in 2023 requiring employers to give outdoor construction workers regular water breaks, Gov. Greg Abbott supported and signed a barbaric law prohibiting local action on a wide range of matters, including workplace heat. Gov. Ron DeSantis followed suit this year in Florida. Source: "Workers Shouldn’t Have to Risk Their Lives in Heat Waves" By Terri Gerstein - NY Times - 6/21/24 In that poll, conducted this month,{June 2021. . .} the state’s Republican Legislature and governor are more responsive to the state’s Republican voters than to the full set of voters that also includes Democrats and Texans who don’t identify as members of either major party. For instance, {. . . } the governor signed a bill that would outlaw abortions in Texas if the courts overturn the Roe v. Wade decision, even though 53% of the state’s voters oppose that law. While 57% of Texas voters oppose allowing most adults to carry handguns without training or licenses,{. . . } it shouldn’t be a surprise that the governor and the Legislature went with the majority of Republicans instead of the majority of Texans. That policy is now law. Medicaid expansion, which would bring in a dollar in federal money for every dime spent by the state on coverage for the uninsured, has the support of 67% of Texas voters, including 50% of Republican voters and 90% of Democratic voters. Easy vote, right? Texas lawmakers have been turning that money away since it first became available under Obamacare a dozen years ago. Texas is one of 12 states that aren’t taking part. In this most recent survey, 29% of Texas voters think “possession of any amount of marijuana for any purpose should be legal,” and 31% would legalize small amounts for any purpose. That 27% that would allow it for medical use is holding steady, but only 13% of Texans would make marijuana illegal under any circumstances. Having the support of 60% of the state’s voters isn’t enough to get the Republican majorities in either the House or the Senate to legalize, or even to vote on it. Source: "Analysis: A majority of Texas voters isn’t enough to sway a Republican state government" BY ROSS RAMSEY - The Texas Tribune - JUNE 28, 2021 |
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