Tarrant County legislative delegation

An introduction to the Tarrant County legislative delegation as the 82nd Legislature prepares to convene Tuesday.

State representatives

Rep. Lon Burnam, D-Fort Worth

Age: 57

District 90: Central Fort Worth, including downtown. Elected in 1996. Entering eighth term.

Occupation: Self-employed consultant

Contact: 512-463-0740 (Capitol); 817-924-1997 (district)

As one of two remaining Democrats in the Tarrant County delegation, and one of the leading liberals in the House, Burnam says he plans to aggressively combat "bad legislation" pushed by the chamber's much-expanded Republican majority, particularly when it comes to budget cuts and redistricting

Has already introduced legislation to eliminate Gov. Rick Perry's two major job creation funds and is gearing up to battle drastic cuts in education, healthcare and other social services that he says attempt to balance the budget on "the backs of the poor." Has also introduced legislation to reduce property taxes with revenue raised from a state income tax on those making over $150,000.

Rep. Kelly Hancock, R-North Richland Hills

Age: 47

District 91: North Richland Hills, Richland Hills, Watauga, Haltom City and northeast Fort Worth. Elected in 2006. Entering third term.

Occupation: Businessman

Contact: 512-463-0599 (Capitol); 817-590-9280 (district)

Hancock served as chairman of the Republican Caucus Policy Committee in 2009 and is expected to broaden his profile in the expanded Republican majority this year. Like many of his colleagues, Hancock cites the budget crunch and redistricting as his top priorities.

He also wants to explore ways to ease the financial burden on school districts by whittling down unfunded mandates. Also plans to craft legislation on urban drilling, including measures to toughen pipeline safety. Along with Burnam, Hancock was co-chairman of the Tarrant County delegation during the 2009 session. Says he remains pledged to House Speaker Joe Straus, R-San Antonio, for re-election but supports Republicans' "right" to caucus on the eve of the session to discuss the leadership race.

Rep. Todd Smith, R-Euless

Age: 47

District 92: Hurst, Euless, Bedford, and parts of Arlington, Grand Prairie and Fort Worth. Elected in 1996. Entering eighth term.

Occupation: Attorney

Contact: 512-463-0522 (Capitol); 817-283-3131 (district)

Along with Burnam, Smith is the most senior member in Tarrant County's 10-member House delegation and will be back in the center of the voter ID issue if he is reappointed chairman of the House Elections Committee, as expected. Has already introduced legislation to require Texans to show a photo ID to vote, a bill patterned after a Georgia law that is regarded as one of the nation's toughest photo ID requirements.

Smith is also weighing in on the abortion issue with a bill that would require women seeking an abortion to be presented ultrasound images of the fetus. Also sponsoring a bill backed by the Tarrant County district attorney's office that would offer deferred adjudication to first-time DWI offenders while toughening potential punishment for subsequent drunken-driving offenses. Another measure would authorize sobriety checkpoints in counties with more than 250,000 people.

Rep. Barbara Nash, R-Arlington

Age: 66

District 93: Eastern Arlington and parts of Grand Prairie and Mansfield. Incoming freshman. Defeated Democratic Rep. Paula Pierson in November.

Occupation: Real estate investor

Contact: Not yet available

Making her first run for the Legislature after earlier stints on the Arlington City Council and Arlington school board, Nash defeated Pierson by 431 votes and is part of a wave of Republican freshmen who swept into office in November. A top priority: helping enact a tough voter ID law.

Nash, who once used her .38-caliber revolver to scare off an intruder in her garage, says she also wants to make it easer to renew concealed-handgun permits.

She strongly embraces the Republican leadership's mandate to balance the budget without raising taxes. She also supports Straus for speaker.

Rep. Diane Patrick, R-Arlington

Age: 64

District 94: Most of Arlington and Dalworthington Gardens and Pantego. Elected in 2006. Entering third term.

Occupation: Former university professor

Contact: 512-463-0624 (Capitol); 817-548-9091 (district)

A former schoolteacher and faculty member at the University of Texas at Arlington, Patrick will continue her focus on improving public and higher education. In a prelude to the session, Patrick conducted her fourth annual Education Policy Summit at the University of Texas at Arlington in October, drawing ideas from more than 200 education experts.

She plans to take a hard look at unfunded and underfunded mandates that burden school districts and wants to increase the number of well-managed, quality charter schools. Served on an interim committee on government efficiency and accountability and will use the experience to help craft ethics legislation to improve transparency.

Patrick says the top priority facing lawmakers is to balance the budget with no new taxes. She believes that lawmakers will need to dip into the state's rainy-day fund but opposes a complete drawdown.

Rep. Marc Veasey, D-Fort Worth

Age: 40

District 95: Southeast Fort Worth, east Fort Worth, Forest Hill and Everman. Elected in 2004; entering fourth term.

Occupation: Real estate agent

Contact: 512-463-0716 (Capitol); 817-339-1430 (district)

Veasey is expected to move another notch up the ladder among House Democrats to help his colleagues confront a Republican contingent that will hold two-thirds of the 150 House seats. He's in line to become chairman of the House Democratic Caucus, the No. 2 leadership post among Democrats, a position that will be decided the opening week of the Legislature.

Representing a predominantly African-American district in southeast Fort Worth, the four-term lawmaker is also a member of the House Redistricting Committee and is expected to play a prominent role in ensuring that African-Americans and Hispanics are fairly represented when the Republican-dominated Legislature draws up new legislative and congressional districts.

Rep. Bill Zedler, R-Arlington

Age: 67

District 96: South Arlington, Crowley, Kennedale and parts of Fort Worth, Mansfield and Burleson. Defeated Democratic Rep. Chris Turner to regain the House seat he lost in 2008.

Occupation: Consultant

Contact: 512-463-0374 (Capitol)

Zedler served three terms in the House before being sidelined for two years, and now he's eager to reclaim his legislative role as a conservative defender of limited government, limited taxes and free enterprise. Zedler is apparently the only member of the Tarrant County delegation not supporting Straus and has pledged his support to Rep. Ken Paxton, R-McKinney, a stalwart in the Tea Party movement.

Calling for tougher controls on immigration and plans to introduce bills that would eliminate state tuition for illegal immigrants and outlaw so-called sanctuary cities that critics say are havens for undocumented immigrants. Like others in the expanded Republican majority, Zedler says the first priority is to balance the budget without raising taxes.

Rep. Mark Shelton, R-Fort Worth

Age: 54

District 97: Southwest Fort Worth, Benbrook and Edgecliff Village. Elected in 2008. Entering his second term.

Occupation: Pediatric infectious-disease specialist

Contacts: 512-463-0608 (Capitol); 817-927-0061 (district)

As one of four doctors in the 82nd Legislature, Shelton expects to be highly visible on health issues. His legislative priorities include measures to increase the number of resident physicians at hospitals and insurance reforms aimed at reducing healthcare costs and enabling workers to transfer coverage from job to job.

Citing his oath "never to do harm to my patients," Shelton has been a strong critic of President Obama's healthcare law, which he believes "will hurt patients, taxpayers and our country."

One measure would require the state to keep records and report on the impact of the law, which Shelton and other Texas Republicans claim will cost the state billions of dollars to implement. As a member of the Public Education Committee, Shelton plans to work to help free school districts from unfunded mandates.

Rep. Vicki Truitt, R-Keller

Age: 56

District 98: Grapevine, Colleyville, Keller and parts of Southlake, Westlake, Trophy Club and far north Fort Worth. Elected in 1998; entering seventh term.

Occupation: Owner of a healthcare consulting company

Contact: 512-463-0690 (Capitol); 817-488-4098 (district)

A singer since childhood, Truitt will be in the spotlight the opening day of the session when she performs the national anthem, just as she once did to open a Texas Rangers game.

After lawmakers get down to the heavy lifting, Truitt is widely expected to remain at the helm of the House committee that oversees the state's investment funds, including those that provide retirement benefits for teachers and state employees.

The funds have rebounded from a multibillion-dollar plunge during the recession, but a number of thorny issues are expected to come before the committee. Budget problems facing Texas and other states have sparked a fundamental debate over whether states can afford to provide pensions for public employees while many private companies are replacing pension plans with 401(k) programs. Retired teachers, who haven't received a cost-of-living adjustment in 10 years, will make the case for an increase.

Rep. Charlie Geren, R-Fort Worth

Age: 61

District 99: Northwest Tarrant County, including north and west Fort Worth, River Oaks, Azle, White Settlement, Lake Worth and Saginaw. Elected in 2000; entering sixth term.

Occupation: Restaurant owner and rancher

Contact: 512-463-0610 (Capitol); 817-738-8333 (district)

Geren was instrumental in helping Straus become House speaker in 2009 and has been a leading supporter of Straus' re-election bid against two challengers. With Straus heavily favored to win another term on the opening day of the session, Geren is expected to remain a key member of Straus' leadership team as the Republican-led House deals with the budget shortfall, redistricting and other issues.

As chairman of the House Administration Committee, Geren is also the go-to guy in making the House machinery run smoothly. In recent weeks, he and the committee staff have been dealing with logistical challenges on everything from office space to parking assignments after the Nov. 2 election produced the biggest House turnover in years.

State senators

Sen. Chris Harris, R-Arlington

Age: 62

District 9: Eastern Tarrant County and parts of Dallas and Denton counties. Elected to the Senate in 1991; served in the House from 1985 to 1990.

Occupation: Attorney

Contact: 512-463-0109 (Capitol); 817-461-9109 (district); 1-866-724-0109 (toll-free)

The senior Republican in the Senate, Harris is taking over as chairman as of the Senate Jurisprudence Committee after being appointed to the post several months ago by Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst. In that role, Harris will oversee major legislation affecting family, child support, adult guardianship and any changes in the state's judicial system, including the creation of courts.

Also plans to use his membership on the Higher Education Committee to champion issues affecting the University of Texas at Arlington. Harris' bills introduced before the session include a proposed constitutional amendment guaranteeing that toll road revenue is spent on transportation improvements and a measure requiring law officers to inquire about a person's immigration status when making an arrest.

Sen. Wendy Davis, D-Fort Worth

Age: 47

District 10: Southern Tarrant County, including Fort Worth, Mansfield, Crowley, Colleyville, about half of Arlington, and parts of Southlake, Hurst, Bedford and Euless. Elected in 2008.

Occupation: Counsel with Canty Hanger law firm and partner in the Newby-Davis firm.

Contact: 512-463-0110 (Capitol); 817-332-3338 (district)

Midway through her four-year term, Davis hopes to build on the momentum of her first legislative session, when Texas Monthly named her "Rookie of the Year." Plans to resume her fight for pocketbook issues. Priorities include curtailing electricity and insurance rates and legislation to crack down on usurious payday lending practices.

"A bad budget and redistricting should never serve as excuses for what we were elected to do," says Davis, who defeated longtime Republican incumbent Kim Brimer in 2008.

She plans to make quality job creation one of her hallmarks in the session and believes that well-funded public education holds the key to assuring that Texas has a quality work force. One top priority: a "Texas jobs first" measure to make sure that state-contracted jobs stay in Texas instead of being outsourced to other states or foreign countries.

Also pushing initiatives to help returning veterans, improve urban transportation and improve environmental protections in the Barnett Shale.

Sen. Jane Nelson, R-Flower Mound

Age: 59

District 12: Much of northern Tarrant County and southern Denton County. Elected in 1992; entering her 18th year in the Senate.

Occupation: She and her husband operate a precision aircraft component manufacturing company in Denton.

Contact: 512-463-0112 (Capitol); 817-424-3446 (district)

Nelson ranks sixth in seniority in the Senate and is the second-ranking Republican behind Harris. As chairwoman of the Health and Human Services Committee, the former teacher will once again stake out her role of "protecting the vulnerable" -- a tougher challenge this year in the face of deep budget cuts.

One of the most prolific bill passers in the Legislature, Nelson is pushing a broad-based agenda on everything from promoting healthful living to strengthening protections for children, the elderly and the disabled. She plans to continue a high-profile campaign on obesity, propelled by findings that cases of type II diabetes are soaring at epidemic levels.

Another major focus: fraud and inefficiency that she says increase the cost of social services. Is also likely to be at the center of efforts to crack down on drunken driving with legislation that would revoke the licenses of those twice convicted for DWI.

Like other Republican leaders, Nelson is strongly committed to balancing the budget without imposing new taxes. The overwhelming message from her North Texas constituents, she says, is "don't raise our taxes."

-- Compiled by Dave Montgomery

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