House members who continue to skip the Texas Legislature in protest could face nearly $400,000 in fines under current chamber rules, and if the lawmakers remain absent through additional special sessions later this year, the penalties could exceed $3.2 million, according to Politico.
In 2023, the Texas House adopted stricter consequences for breaking quorum, including a $500 fine for each day a member is absent. As reported by The Texas Tribune, the penalties specifically target lawmakers who go “absent without leave for the purpose of impeding the action of the House.”
The fine was introduced following the 2021 walkout by Democratic lawmakers who left the state to protest Republican-backed voting restrictions.
Now, dozens of Texas House Democrats are once again scattered across blue states in a last-ditch attempt to block GOP-drawn U.S. House maps that President Donald Trump wants implemented ahead of the 2026 midterm elections.
By leaving Texas, the lawmakers have placed themselves beyond the reach of state law enforcement and are effectively halting legislative business by denying the 150-member chamber the quorum it needs to operate.
Politico calculated the potential financial penalties using the $500-per-day fine, the minimum number of lawmakers required to break quorum, and the projected length of their absence. Since at least 51 Democrats must be absent to break quorum, the daily total in fines comes to $25,500. On Monday, 57 Democrats skipped the session, raising that day’s penalty to $28,500.
With the special session set to end on August 19, the total fines could reach at least $382,500 if the walkout continues. If Republican Gov. Greg Abbott calls additional special sessions to push through the redistricting plan—and Democrats continue their boycott through Texas’ candidate filing deadline on Dec. 8—the total fines for the absent lawmakers could exceed $3.2 million, according to Politico.
“We’ll deal with the consequences later,” said Texas Democrat state Rep. John Bucy, among lawmakers who fled to Illinois. “That’s not the important thing right now. It’s stopping Donald Trump from stealing the congressional map and winning the midterm elections through cheating.”
