BREAKING: Texas Dems fail to show up, House fails to reach quorum on redistricting vote, Speaker withholds direct deposit of missing reps

During a roll call vote on Friday, the Texas House of Representatives failed to establish a quorum, or the minimum number of lawmakers needed to conduct business, after Democrat lawmakers in the state fled to stall a vote on a new congressional district map that could see five new GOP House seats.

The roll call vote on Friday saw 95 members of the House present, five votes shy of the 100 members needed for a quorum.

Texas House Speaker Dustin Burrows announced during the session that Democrats who fled the state will no longer be receiving their paychecks through electronic means, and must instead show up in person to receive it. 

He said he has also been in "constant contact with the Department of Public Safety, which has been working to track down absent members in an effort to return them to our chamber. These efforts will continue through the weekend. For those that have fled to Illinois or to California, be reminded that the FBI’s assistant has reportedly been enlisted, and their powers are not confined to any singular state boundaries."

"Starting today, to safeguard taxpayer dollars and account for forthcoming liabilities under Rule 5, Section 3 of House rules, which authorizes fines for members absent without leave, 30 percent of each quorum-breaking member’s monthly operating budget will be reserved and made unavailable for expenditure. Absent members must also appear in person to approve or enact any of the following: requests for travel reimbursement, personal action requests including those increasing or decreasing staff salaries, approval for newsletters and House Reproduction Services."

He also noted that while legislation for flood recovery and infrastructure funding in the wake of devastating flooding seen in the state in July, "the bill cannot be referred to committee without a quorum. Every hour you remain away is time stolen from those Texans in need."