The County Affairs hearing on HB 549 went well. The members of the committee called access to face-to-face visitation a "human rights" issue, chastised county lobbyist for looking at visitation from a strictly monetary angle, and even asked questions about the high price of prison and jail phone calls. The bill was not voted on, most bills are heard and then voted on at a later meeting. One of the issues the committee will have to weigh is how to deal with facilities that have already eliminated in-person visits. It is our hope they will pass the bill as is. Counties should have thought twice when they made decisions that put profit over people. There was a broad coalition of organizations present to provide testimony and support: Grassroots Leadership, Texas Criminal Justice Coalition, Center for Community Change, Texas Jail Project, Mental Health America, ACLU of Texas to name a few, and of course Texas CURE. I want to thank all of you who called, signed and shared this petition, and who wrote emails and letters. Each Representative's office said there were so many phone calls on this issue. It is a proud day in Texas when the Capitol switchboard is going crazy on a criminal justice bill! What's next? There will be another committee hearing in the near future to vote on this bill. We need to keep pressure on these offices to insure all Texas families have access to face-to-face visits in our jails. When this bill passes out of the committee, it will go to the full house for a vote, it will then be extremely important to contact your state Representative to ensure this bill be sent to the Senate (which starts this whole process over again). We will keep you updated! Give yourself a pat on the back, you all did great work!