The 2025 Texas legislative regular session saw the passage of both promising and harmful bills impacting immigrants and survivors. On the positive side, lawmakers approved several measures that strengthen crime victims’ rights, including expanded address confidentiality for survivors of certain crimes (HB 793), extended protective order durations (SB 1120, SB 2196), better victim notification requirements (SB 761, SB 1120), and improvements in how forensic exams are handled following a sexual assault (HB 47, SB 836). Tahirih also helped to successfully advance, though did not pass, bills to end child marriage (HB 168, SB 967, SB 1280) and improve language access in state services (HB 4838). While these bills ultimately did not pass, this work laid important groundwork for future progress.
On the other hand, several dangerous bills became law, including SB 38, which weakens tenants’ rights and disproportionately harms immigrant survivors of domestic violence, sexual assault, and human trafficking, for whom stable housing is very often a primary barrier to safety, and SB 8, which mandates that all Texas sheriffs enter into federal immigration enforcement agreements. These agreements increase the risk of deportation for survivors reporting abuse and deepen fear in immigrant communities. Thanks to strong advocacy efforts, other damaging proposals—such as bans on public funding for immigration legal services, barriers to education access for undocumented students, and a proposed constitutional amendment to deny bail to undocumented individuals—were successfully stopped. However, the use of the courts to dismantle immigrant protections, such as the post-session repeal of in-state tuition under the Texas Dream Act, signals an ongoing and intensifying threat.
Tahirih Houston Policy Manager Katharina Dechert reflected on the 2025 legislation session, stating, “We saw encouraging signs of progress in Texas, with some lawmakers recognizing the importance of protecting the rights and dignity of immigrants and survivors. But harmful bills continue to be introduced and passed, threatening the safety and well-being of the communities we serve. There is still work to be done to ensure that policy solutions and legislation reflect compassion, justice, and the realities faced by immigrant survivors every day, and we look forward to continuing to engage during special sessions and the next regular session in 2027.”
Tahirih celebrates the victories that will help protect crime victims’ rights and looks forward to continuing this critical work in 2026. Donate to support Tahirih’s efforts — in Texas and across the country — here.
