Texas Lawmakers Vote To Repeal Ban On Gay Sex

Twenty-two years after the U.S. Supreme Court found a Texas law criminalizing homosexual conduct unconstitutional (Lawrence v. Texas), lawmakers in the Texas House have (finally) voted to remove the ban on gay sex from the books. From Texas Tribune:

On Thursday, the Texas House voted 72-55 to preliminarily approve House Bill 1738, which would remove from state statute the unenforceable 1973 law that bans “deviate sexual intercourse with another individual of the same sex.” Twelve Republicans joined with Democrats to vote for repeal.

Last session, the bill failed to pass before the House deadline. Thursday’s vote is the furthest the bill has come to passing into law.

The bill is expected to pass on a final vote Friday, before it goes to the Senate, where it’s likely to get stuck in the deluge of work left to be done before the legislative session ends June 2.

Texas lawmakers have tried to remove the law for decades going back to 1984.

️ Today, we made history in the Texas House. ️ For the first time, the House voted to repeal Texas’ unconstitutional “homosexual conduct” law. This law has been unenforceable for over 20 years, but still sits on our books as a symbol of state-sanctioned discrimination.

I… pic.twitter.com/G79mzcAt9U — State Rep. Venton Jones (@VentonJonesTX) May 16, 2025

Rep. Venton Jones, a Democrat from Dallas and one of the first Black gay members of the Texas House, said in a speech on the House floor:

“I’m asking you to vote on a law that strengthens the fundamental civil liberties and individual freedoms that all Texans deserve.”

“I’m asking you to vote for a law that upholds the principles that Texans should have the freedom and ability to make their own private decisions without unwarranted government interference.”

You may recall Venton proposed to his longtime partner on the statehouse floor on the first day of this legislative session back in January.

ENGAGED.

State Rep. @VentonJonesTX, a Dallas Democrat, just proposed to his longtime partner, Gregory Scott, Jr. moments after being sworn in. Jones popped the question when the House went into recess. #txlege pic.twitter.com/4nD0EVAWw9 — Jason Whitely (@JasonWhitely) January 14, 2025