Texas House Member

Member Photo

Rep. Capriglione, Giovanni

District 98

Email

Capitol Address:

Room E2.610

P.O. Box 2910

Austin, TX 78768

(512) 463-0690

(512) 463-1004 Fax

District Address:

Physical:

1100 Bear Creek Parkway

Keller, Texas 76248

(817) 431-5339

Mailing:

PO Box 770

Keller, Texas 76244

Bills Authored/Sponsored 86th Legislature:

Committees:

District Analyses:

Counties Represented:

Tarrant (part)

District:

Biography

Giovanni has been married to his wife Elisa for 19 years, and has three children attending Carroll ISD schools. After receiving his BS in Physics, he pursued his MBA in Finance from Santa Clara University. After school, Giovanni went on to work for a DFW based venture capital/private equity firm.

Giovanni is now the owner and president of his own small business, Texas Adventure Capital LLC, which provides business services to various investment fund managers and business owners. His focus is investing in Texas-based small businesses. Previously, Giovanni held various positions at computer engineering companies specializing in semiconductor design and Internet products, and was senior vice president at an investment firm where he managed the loan and equity portfolios of various American businesses.

Giovanni was elected to the Texas House of Representatives in 2012 and is serving his fourth term representing District 98 which encompasses all or part of Grapevine, Colleyville, Southlake, Keller, Westlake, North Fort Worth, and Haslet. He currently serves as the chairman of the House Committee on Appropriations, is a member of the Select Committee on Mass Violence Prevention & Community Safety, and co-chair of the Texas Privacy Protection Advisory Council. He is a member of the following House caucuses: Innovation & Technology Caucus, Manufacturers Caucus, Rural Caucus, Sportsman's Caucus, Veteran's Caucus, Farm to Table Caucus, and the Fine Arts Education Caucus. Giovanni also chairs the Tarrant County Delegation.

Giovanni ha estado casado durante quince años con Elisa. Tienen tres hijos, dos de los cuales asisten a la Escuela Primaria Carroll. Él ha logrado materializar el Sueño Americano. Después de recibir su Licenciatura en Física, obtuvo un Maestría en Administración de Empresas con especialización en Finanzas en la Universidad Santa Clara. Tras concluir sus estudios, Giovanni trabajó en una empresa de capital privado y capital de riesgo con sede en DFW.

En la actualidad, Giovanni es propietario y presidente de su propia pequeña empresa, Texas Adventure Capital LLC, que brinda servicios empresariales a diversos administradores de fondos de inversión y propietarios de negocios. Su enfoque consiste en invertir en pequeños negocios con sede en Texas. Previamente, Giovanni fue vicepresidente superior en una sociedad de inversión, en la cual gestionaba las carteras de préstamos y valores de varias empresas estadounidenses. Y previo a esto, Giovanni ocupó varios cargos en empresas de ingeniería computacional, enfocadas principalmente en el diseño de semiconductores y en productos de Internet.

Giovanni fue elegido a la Cámara de Representantes de Texas en el 2012 y está sirviendo su segundo periodo en representación del Distrito 98, que comprende, total o parcialmente, Grapevine, Colleyville, Southlake, Keller, Westlake, North Fort Worth y Haslet. En la actualidad, forma parte de los siguientes comités: Asignaciones Presupuestarias, Calendarios Locales y Consentimiento e Inversiones y Servicios Financieros, en el que se desempeña como presidente del Subcomité sobre Endeudamiento en Bonos. Presta servicio voluntario como Secretario del Bloque de Energía de la Cámara y también en el grupo de trabajo sobre finanzas de las escuelas públicas durante la sesión interina. Se ha convertido en un gran defensor de la educación pública, enfocado, particularmente, en la financiación equitativa para los distritos llamados “Robin-Hood”.

Media

Rep. Giovanni Capriglione's 86th Legislative Session Wrap-Up

House Bills Passed

 

HB 638

Current statute only allows a school district to award a posthumous diploma if a student has died during their senior year of high school and if they were academically on track to graduate.  HB 638 opens up the statute to allow parents to request a posthumous diploma for a student who has passed away regardless of their grade level.

 

HB 1785

HB 1785 increases transparency by requiring the Texas Ethics Commission to include a statement on their lobby registration system of whether a registrant is required to also be registered as a foreign agent under FARA.

 

The issue of foreign influence in domestic affairs has been a significant topic of analysis and conversation.  Most of the focus has been on federal affairs, however state governments are not immune from attempted foreign influence.  Today, if a state official wants to know if a Texas lobbyist is also a registered foreign agent, he or she would have to look up each person individually in the Justice Department's Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA) website.

 

HB 2102

Currently, Texas law mandates that contractors collect insurance deductibles owed on work connected to the proceeds of a property or casualty insurance claim.  Even though it is currently punishable by a Class A misdemeanor, some contractors still offer to "waive" or "absorb" an insurance deductible and consumers go along for the ride, not knowing they are committing a crime.  The current statute, written in 1989, is extremely vague and leaves plenty of loopholes.

 

HB 2102 requires mandatory disclosure in every contract saying Texas law requires the payment of insurance deductibles and that it is a violation of law for a contractor to knowingly waive, rebate, absorb, etc. an insurance deductible owed on work connected to the proceeds of an insurance claim.  The bill also removes the current criminal penalty on homeowners and reduces the criminal penalty on contractors for waiving a deductible.

 

HB 2103

Currently, insurance adjusters who also act as contractors may engage in insurance fraud by adjusting a loss related to damage on an insurer's behalf, increasing the rate for their work and pocketing the price difference.  The Insurance Code specifically prohibits only roofing contractors from this fraudulent activity, therefore providing a possible loophole to be used by other contractors.

 

HB 2103 would broaden the code to capture all contractors and make sure no one is unfairly profiting off the people of Texas.

 

HB 2107

Farmers and small-scale food producers face significant barriers due to the inability to determine what they must do to comply with regulations.  Local health departments frequently refuse to answer or give conflicting answers to farmers’ inquiries about what they have to do to operate legally.  Moreover, even after getting an answer, the producers continue to be at risk if the inspector comes up with a new interpretation.

 

HB 2107 applies the provisions of the DSHS Better Communications Act to local health departments. It simply requires them to respond to inquiries in a timely manner, and then not to fine producers who comply with what they are told is the law.

 

HB 2458

This bill cleans up statute relating to the Texas Bullion Depository, created in 2015.  Through implementing the Depository, the Comptroller's office gained valuable industry knowledge and recognized the need to update existing statute to ensure the Texas Bullion Depository continues to be administered in an efficient, prudent manner.

 

HB 2706

This bill makes small corrections to ensure every dollar invested under the Public Funds Investment Act is put to work to the greatest benefit of Texans relying on these funds.  HB 2706 also requires the study of appropriate investments by public schools by the Texas Education Agency.

 

HB 2859

Currently, precious metals that are not held for the production of income are exempted from ad valorem taxation.  However, due to a provision in the tax code, a local taxing jurisdiction has the ability to rescind that exemption, by resolution or order.  Texas is the only state to allow this and it creates uncertainty as to the taxability of precious metals stored in commercial depositories in the state.

 

HB 2859 proposes a constitutional amendment authorizing the legislature to exempt from ad valorem taxation precious metal held in a depository located in the state.

 

HJR 95

Proposed constitutional amendments require both a bill and a joint resolution to change the Texas Constitution and current Texas Statute.  HJR 95 is the enabling joint resolution to place language on the statewide November ballot authorizing the legislature to exempt from ad valorem taxation precious metals held in a depository located in the state.

 

HB 3428

This bill requires Adult Protective Services officials to complete training on identifying and interacting with people with Alzheimer's or other dementias as part of basic training or continuing education.  It also requires the Department of Family Protective Services to develop a process for reporting neglect, criminal abuse, sexual abuse, physical abuse, and financial exploitation to law enforcement agencies.  Additionally, HB 3428 requires each Area Agency on Aging to develop evidence-based or evidence-informed core training programs for staff relating to Alzheimer's disease and dementia, and any additional training based on local needs.

 

HB 3440

The process in which the Commission on Jail Standards collects data is outdated and inefficient.  There is no format standardization, thus the commission is forced to enter data into their system by hand and from documents ranging from PDFs to hand written reports.

 

HB 3440 promotes efficiency and migrates from data entry and compilation to simple compilation.  By requiring counties to submit their required monthly reports in something as simple as Excel format, it will reduce the cost and time of additional employees for the Commission.

 

HB 3834

State and local governments increasingly depend on information technology services to facilitate their duties.  With most employees or contactors using IT to complete at least part of their daily duties, this inherently leads to countless points of vulnerability to government data systems that house sensitive information pertaining to their constituents.

 

This bill ensures state and local governments are better safeguarded against cybersecurity risks by requiring employees to undergo cybersecurity training through state-certified programs.

 

HB 3875

When upgrading state agency technology, cloud computing services are not taken into account very often.  With state government upgrading information systems so infrequently, thinking about the future and the rapid movement of technology would benefit the state and stretch important technology dollars.

 

HB 3875 would require state agencies to ensure new automated information systems and major information resource projects would be capable of being deployed and run on cloud computing services, or being "cloud-ready."

 

HB 4390

In the digital era, a growing array of organizations use personal data to provide an ever increasing range of services. Regulation can protect individuals and communities from harm and misuse of data, and help maintain the trust that enables innovation and change.

 

HB 4390 creates an Interim Advisory Council made up of Texas Representatives, Senators, and industry appointees to study data privacy regulations in other states and make legislative recommendations to be implemented in the 87th Legislative Session in 2021.  The bill also strengthens reporting requirements after a breach of data.

 

 

Senate Bills Passed

 

SB 69 (Similar to my HB 20)

The goal of SB 69 is to reform the Economic Stabilization Fund (ESF) and maximize its investments.  It allows 75% of the fund to be invested by the Comptroller in the manner of a prudent investor exercising reasonable care, skill, and caution.  This will allow the investment return on the ESF to increase from around 2.5% right now to closer to 6%, therefore creating additional revenue to pay for state needs.

 

SB 943 (Identical Companion to my HB 2189)

Two decisions from the Texas Supreme Court in 2015 drastically reduced the public's ability to remain informed, particularly when it comes to government spending and government contracting.  In both cases, the Court overruled decades of Attorney General interpretations that protected transparency.  Unfortunately, in the four years since these two cases were decided, these rulings have been used to deny over 2,600 PIA requests.

 

SB 943 restores transparency to state and local government contracting, while recognizing that some information is truly proprietary and needs to be protected from disclosure in order to foster competition. 

 

SB 944 (Identical Companion to my HB 2191)

SB 944 compiles various PIA improvements that have come out of recent stakeholder negotiations without known opposition.  The overall focus is to address a common complaint--that the PIA process is bureaucratic and inefficient.

 

The bill closes a loophole by ensuring governmental bodies may obtain public information stored on their employees’ private devices, creates a new exception to disclosure for sensitive healthcare information, allows governmental bodies to designate a single email address and a single mailing address to receive PIA requests, and directs the Office of the Attorney General to promulgate a PIA request form that governmental bodies and requestors may use to reduce the government's workload and result in a faster response to the requestor.

 

SB 988 (Identical Companion to my HB 2192)

Under current statute, a court may assess the costs of litigation and reasonable attorney’s fees incurred by a plaintiff or defendant who substantially prevails.  Until a recent decision in Travis County, the Office of the Attorney General (OAG) has never had fees assessed against it for defending open records challenges brought by governmental bodies or third parties seeking to keep public information from being released.  Should this decision become a trend, governmental bodies and third parties would be encouraged to challenge more OAG rulings in court thus impacting the rightful and timely release of information to the public.

 

SB 988 changes statute to require a higher standard in order to assess fees against the Attorney General for fulfilling its statutory duties under the Public Information Act.

 

SB 1189 (Identical Companion to my HB 2251)

If you watch television, you see attorneys advertising for clients.  The advertisements focus on prescription drugs and medical devices, asbestos-caused cancer, automobile and truck-related accidents, workplace injuries and more.  Research has proven that advertising for clients in the prescription drug arena alarms people who are using the drug in question.  There are documented examples of people seeing attorney advertisements, becoming concerned, stopping use of their prescription drug, and suffering negative health consequences or even dying as a result.

 

SB 1189 requires attorney advertisements in any medium to disclose that it is a paid ad, disclose the name of the sponsor of the ad, disclose whether the advertising law firm will actually represent the client, and, in prescription drug-related advertisements, state that a person should not stop taking a product without a physician’s advice.  It also requires that an advertisement for legal services should not use the phrases "medical alert," "health alert, service announcement" or similar terms, and should not state that a product has been recalled when it has not.

 

SCR 21 (Identical Companion to my HCR 78)

In April 2015, the Department of Aging and Disability Services (DADS) learned that its public-facing website contained a database of names, addresses, Social Security and Medicaid numbers, and treatment or diagnosis information for over 6,000 clients.  DADS reported the breach as required by federal law and following an investigation by the federal Office of Civil Rights (OCR) it was found that DADS violated HIPAA in four different ways.  As a result of these findings, OCR proposed a "resolution agreement."  Because DADS no longer exists and its functions have been consolidated into HHSC, HHSC must respond to OCR and comply with a corrective action plan as the successor agency.

 

SCR 21 grants statutorily-required legislative authority for HHSC to enter into the resolution agreement.

 

 

Notable Amendments

 

HB 4181

  • The definition of 'legislative employee' in this bill contained the word 'consultant' which caused concern that 'consultant' could unintentionally include a lobbyist. My amendment struck 'consultant' and changed the language to apply to a person performing services under a contract entered into with the legislature, a committee, or a legislative agency.

 

SB 64

  • My amendment on SB 64 included several sections of important cybersecurity language from my HB 4214. This included:
    • Ensuring DIR coordinates with junior colleges and technical institutes to increase availability of industry certifications;
    • Allowing the Governor to command the Texas National Guard to assist the Texas State Guard with defending the state's cyber operations
    • Allowing a state agency to spend appropriated funds to reimburse a state employee for industry-recognized certification exams;
    • Institutes the Cyberstar Program Certificate of Approval for any government entity or private business that follow pre-set cybersecurity standards;
    • Encourages government entities to look towards the future using next generation technologies, including cryptocurrency, blockchain technology, and artificial intelligence; and
    • Allows a liability exemption for a person who, in good faith, discloses information regarding a potential security issue with respect to a government entity's website.

 

SB 65

  • My amendment on SB 65 included important transparency language requiring certain political subdivisions to post information about contracts they have with lobbyists. Any political subdivision that contracts with a state agency as a consultant will now be required to either prominently display on their website the contracts they have with lobbyists, and most importantly, an itemized list of all legislation advocated for, on, or against by the lobbyist(s).

 

 

General Appropriations Act

 

Several additions and improvements I offered to the General Appropriations Act passed and are a part of the state's 2020-2021 budget.

  • HHSC 10-year system-wide plan
    • This amendment requires HHSC to develop a 10-year plan for how they would modernize their IT and Data Services resources. HHSC was previously five different agencies and while they have been combined, the IT systems were all developed at different times and under different funding methods, and with different strategies.
  • Uniform Case Management System
    • This amendment ensures that the Office of Court Administration's new Uniform Case Management System will capture proper judicial data, including mental health adjudications and subjects of domestic violence protective orders, while also ensuring adequate and uniform reporting standards and being able to integrate the new system with existing county-wide systems already in place.
  • Contract cost-benefit analysis
    • This amendment says a state agency cannot pay a vendor if that vendor has not made amends to a third-party who has been harmed by the vendor's breach of contract. This ensures that our taxpayer dollars are not being spent on contractors who are in breach of contract and who have failed to make amends to harmed parties.
  • Amachi Texas - Big Brothers Big Sisters
    • Increases the funding for Big Brothers Big Sisters programs across Texas.
      • About Big Brothers Big Sisters:
        • More than five million children across the U.S. have a parent in prison. Children with 1-2 incarcerated parents have a 70%-90% chance of ending up in prison themselves and are more likely to face immense challenges including cycles of poverty, abuse, academic failure, dropping out of school, and even incarceration themselves.  Amachi mentoring supports children who could greatly benefit from one more supportive, caring adult in their lives to help them reach their full potential and thrive as productive members of society.
    • HHSC 2-1-1 Help Line System
      • This amendment greatly improves the efficiency and effectiveness of the state's 2-1-1 information and referral system, the statewide network that connects Texans in need to resources in their own communities. In addition to being a daily support for Texans, 2-1-1 can be a critical resource before, during, and after disasters.  During Hurricane Harvey, the 2-1-1 system in Texas received three times the usual number of calls, and provided individuals with information on available shelters, food banks, government support, and other resources. The heavy use of 2-1-1 during Harvey revealed a few affordable technological upgrades that would drastically improve the system.
    • Texas.gov Enhancements
      • This rider allows state agencies who use Texas.gov to transfer appropriated funds to the Department of Information Resources for Texas.gov enhancements during a biennium. This will give agencies the ability to drive innovation for things they want, while at the same time allowing DIR the latitude to execute on their plans at the program level.
    • UT Arlington
      • This rider allows UT Arlington to create a Center for Entrepreneurship and Economic Innovation to help innovators and entrepreneurs increase their ability to be successful and stay in the DFW region to enhance the economic impact.
    • County Transportation Infrastructure Fund
      • The County Transportation Infrastructure Fund (CTIF) provides positive assistance to communities during a time of robust oil and natural gas recovery to ensure infrastructure improvements for impacted county roads. My rider ensured additional funding for the CTIF to allow the continued success of the oil and natural gas activity that benefits the entire state, including our Permanent School Fund, Permanent University Fund, Economic Stabilization Fund, Highway Fund, and General Revenue Fund.

 

 

Some of the Bills I Joint-Authored and Co-Authored

 

SB 2 - Texas Property Tax Reform and Transparency Act of 2019

HB 3 - Public school finance reform

HB 5 - Disaster recovery efforts

HB 6 - Disaster relief and recovery

SB 12 - Retired teacher actuarial stability and 13th check

HB 16 - Born Alive Act

SB 18 - Protecting expressive activities at public institutions of higher education

SB 22 - Prohibiting government entities from transactions with abortion providers

SB 24 - Requiring an abortion provider to hand required information materials to a pregnant woman before an abortion

SB 26 & SJR 24 - Fully appropriating the Sporting Goods Sales Tax to Texas Parks and Wildlife

HB 39 & HJR 12 - Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas

HB 121 - 2nd Amendment

HB 259 - Named driver insurance polices

HB 302 - 2nd Amendment

HB 305 - Political subdivision required website posting

HB 368 - Use of legislatively produced audio/visual materials in political advertising

HB 492 & HJR 34 - Temporary property tax exemption after disaster

SB 572 - Expanding the types of foods allowed in the cottage foods industry

HB 803 - Financial reporting by a toll project entity

HB 888 - Criminalizing misrepresenting a child as a family member at a port of entry

HB 902 - Increasing the criminal penalty for assault of a pregnant woman

HB  996 - Prohibiting debt buyers from threatening litigation after statute of limitations has expired

SB 999 - Creating a state plan for education and treatment of Alzheimer's disease and related disorders

HB 1028 - Increasing penalties for burglary and arson offenses in a declared state of disaster

SB 1264 - Protecting consumers from surprise medical billing

HB 1421 - Cybersecurity of voter registration lists

HB 1576 - Increasing efficiency for Medicaid transportation

HB 1590 - Establishing the Sexual Assault Survivors' Task Force

HB 1631 - Prohibiting the use of red-light cameras

HB 1791 - Allowing handgun license holders to carry on government property

HB 1888 - Temporary polling place revisions

SB 1978 - Preventing governmental entities from taking adverse actions based on association with religious organizations

HB 2174 - Changing the Texas Controlled Substances Act to combat the growing rate of abuse of prescription drugs

HB 2305 - Enhancing training and credentialing of emergency management personnel

HB 2315 - Easing the process for obtaining a trailer title used for temporary housing following a disaster

HB 2320 - Better coordinating communications systems after a disaster

HB 2340 - Encouraging government entities adopt the goals of FEMA's strategic plan to help coordinate in times of disaster

HB 2345 - Creating the Institute for a Disaster Resilient Texas

SB 2551 - Updating workers compensation laws for firefighers

HB 2677 - Prohibiting a former officeholder from using previous political contributions as a lobbyist expenditure

HB 2826 - Establishing requirements for contingent fee contracts for legal services by political subdivisions

HB 2945 - Cracking down on credit card skimmers

HB 2984 - Increasing computer science instruction in public schools

HB 3022 - Allowing a person to opt-in to local emergency warning systems

HB 3745 - Converting the Texas emissions reduction plan fund to a new trust fund

HB 4150 - Implementing certain safety and inspection reporting requirements for electric utilities

HB 4345 - Providing immunity from civil liability for a charitable organization employee for reporting sexual misconduct of a fellow employee/volunteer

HB 4388 - Establishing the Permanent School Fund Liquid Account

HCR 19 - Urging Congress to repeal the Government Pension Offset / Windfall Elimination Provision of the Soc. Sec. Act