Joan Huffman: The Gatekeeper To Air Conditioning In Texas Prisons

How one Senator’s decisions keep Texas prisoners in deadly heat.

It wasn’t until 2021 that I discovered that the State of Texas cooks some of its prisoners to death. That’s right, in Texas, where the temperatures in the summer can reach 110° or more, many of our correctional facilities do not have air conditioning.

In 2023, Texas experienced a terrible heat wave. This is just a sneak peek at what we must look forward to in the coming years under the climate crisis. An analysis by The Texas Tribune identified at least 41 prisoners who died from heart-related or undetermined causes in uncooled prisons during this time. Relatives and advocates assert that extreme heat contributed to these deaths, especially since many of the deceased were in their 20s or 30s.

I learned about this in 2021 when Representative Terry Canales (D-HD40) passed a bill through the House that would have provided air conditioning in some correctional facilities.

HB1971 was passed with bipartisan support, even though some Republican members were perfectly okay with the cruel and unusual punishment of the wards of the state by cooking them alive. The vote was 123 in favor and 18 against air conditioning in Texas prisons.

The Republicans who are returning this year who voted against HB1971 in 2021:

• Cecil Bell (R-HD03)

• Kieth Bell (R-HD04)

• Briscoe Cain (R-HD128)

• Jay Dean (R-HD07)

• Cody Harris (R-HD08)

• Cole Hefner (R-HD05)

• Brooks Landgraf (R-HD81)

• Will Metcalf (R-HD16)

• Tom Oliverson (R-HD130)

• Dennis Paul (R-HD129)

• Matt Shaheen (R-HD66)

• David Spiller (HD68)

• Valoree Swanson (R-HD150)

• Tony Tinderholt (R-HD94)

In recent years, neuroscience research shows liberals experience more empathy than conservatives when they imagine others suffering. A 2018 Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin study noted that people “who tend to be more conservative express less empathic concern for others.”

For many of us, it’s hard to understand how Republicans could know that prisoners are being boiled alive and vote for it to continue to happen. But they did. Fortunately, the bill passed through the House with bipartisan support.

The bill headed to the Senate Finance Committee, where Chairman Joan Huffman (R-SD17) killed it.

In the 2023 Legislative Session, we saw a repeat of the same thing.

HB1708, championed again by Terry Canales (D-HD40), sought to put air conditioning units in Texas prisons to prevent frequent and reoccurring heat-related deaths.

Once again, this bill for air conditioning in Texas prisons passed through the House with bipartisan support. 124 voted in favor, and 24 Republicans voted against it.

While this time, Cecil Bell, Brooks Landgraf, Dennis Paul, Matt Shaheen, and Valoree Swanson all voted in favor of the bill.

But, once again, Keith Bell, Briscoe Cain, Jay Dean, Cody Harris Cole Hefner, Will Metcalf, Tom Oliverson, David Spiller, and Tony Tinderholt voted for the State of Texas to continue to bake people in prison cells. They were also joined by:

• Giovanni Capriglione (R-HD98)

• David Cook (R-HD96)

• Mano DeAyala (R-HD133)

• Mark Dorazio (R-HD122)

• Brian Harrison (R-HD10)

• Carrie Isaac (R-HD73)

• Candy Noble (R-HD89)

• Nate Schatzline (R-HD93)

• Mike Schofield (R-HD132)

• Shelby Slawson (R-HD59)

• Carl Tepper (R-HD84)

• Terry Wilson (R-HD20)

• Terri Leo-Wilson (R-HD23)

Because nothing says Conservative Christians like ensuring people are cooked to death in 150° prison cells. Despite the votes against it, this bill again passed the Texas House in 2023.

The bill headed to the Senate Finance Committee, where Chairman Joan Huffman (R-SD17) killed it.

Joan Huffman is the reason why Texas prisoners still don’t have air conditioning.

For two legislative sessions in a row, bills that would have addressed the dire heat conditions in Texas prisons passed the Texas House with bipartisan support only to die in the Senate Finance Committee—a committee chaired by Senator Huffman.

In 2021, Representative Terry Canales’ HB1971, which would have provided air conditioning in Texas correctional facilities, was killed under Huffman’s leadership. Then again, in 2023, despite overwhelming support in the House for HB1708, Huffman ensured that the bill never made it out of her committee. Her actions are the reason Texas continues to cook its prisoners alive during brutal summers, with no legal recourse or legislative relief in sight.

The heat isn’t just uncomfortable; it’s deadly. Prisoners, many of whom are young and serving sentences for nonviolent offenses, are dying of heat-related causes. Families and advocates have begged for reform, but Huffman’s repeated obstruction shows a calculated disregard for their pleas and human life.

As we enter the 2025 legislative session, it’s up to us to demand change. Representative Trey Martinez Fischer (D-HD116) has already filed HB1315, which would mandate air conditioning in all Texas Department of Criminal Justice facilities. Whether this bill or similar legislation makes it through the Senate this time depends on pressure from voters. Huffman needs to hear from all of us: her constituents, Texans across the state, and anyone appalled by the ongoing humanitarian crisis in our prisons.

Here’s how you can help:

1. Contact Senator Joan Huffman: Call and email her office. Demand that she allow this legislation to advance out of committee and receive a fair vote in the Senate. Tell her that the continued deaths of prisoners from extreme heat are unacceptable and that she has the power to end this crisis. Here is her contact information.

2. Reach out to Republican legislators: If your state representative or senator is a Republican, let them know you expect their support for HB1315 or similar bills. Remind them that voting against the humane treatment of prisoners is not a value Texans support.

3. Engage with your Democratic representatives: If you are fortunate enough to have a Democratic legislator representing you in Austin, call or email their office to urge them to support this legislation. Make sure they know that this issue is a priority for their constituents. Don’t know who your Reps are? Find out here.

4. Spread the word: Share this information with your friends, family, and community. Educate others about the brutal realities of Texas’s uncooled prisons and the legislators enabling this suffering. Public awareness is a powerful tool.

While we still have 59 days until the 89th Legislative Session starts, we can and must act now by mobilizing support, contacting lawmakers, and raising public awareness to ensure that this issue stays at the forefront of the legislative agenda.

We can’t let another legislative session go by without addressing this crisis. The lives of countless prisoners—people who are still human beings deserving of dignity—depend on our actions. Texas cannot continue to shirk its responsibility under the guise of “fiscal conservatism” or political gamesmanship. The time for change is now.

• December 9: House Administration Committee meets to debate rules.

• January 14: The 89th Legislative Session begins.

• March 14: The last day Legislators can file bills.

• June 2: The 89th Legislative Session ends.

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