Humbly invoking the blessings of Almighty God, the people of the State of Texas do ordain and establish this Constitution.

—Constitution of Texas, preamble

Article 1: "Bill of Rights"

Article 1 of the Texas Constitution serves as its bill of rights. Originally composed of 29 sections, five additional sections have since been added. Several of these provisions outline specific, fundamental limitations on the power of the state government. Importantly, the protections offered by the Texas Bill of Rights apply solely to actions by the Texas government. However, many protections found in the U.S. Constitution are also applied to state governments through the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment.

Differences with the U.S. Bill of Rights

While the Texas Bill of Rights includes many rights similar to those found in the U.S. Bill of Rights, it is notably more detailed and contains several provisions that are unique to Texas.

• Section 6-a mentions the state of Texas does not have the right to prohibit or limit any assembly of people who congregate and exercise their right to religious freedom. (Added, November 2, 2021).[5][6]

• Section 11d states that bail will be denied by judges in cases of violent and/or sexual offence cases where clear evidence shows that the person in question poses a danger or may be a flight risk.[7]

• Section 12 recognizes the writ of habeas corpus as an unqualified right and prohibits its suspension under any circumstances. This differs from the U.S. Constitution, which allows suspension “in Cases of Rebellion or Invasion when the public safety may require it.”

• Section 21 prohibits both corruption of blood and forfeiture of estates, including in cases of suicide. This expands upon the U.S. Constitution's Article III, Section 3, which limits such forfeitures to only during the life of the person convicted.

• Section 34 protects the right of the people to hunt, fish, and harvest wildlife, subject to regulations intended for wildlife conservation. The section explicitly clarifies that it does not alter any laws relating to trespassing, property rights, or eminent domain.

• Section 37 recognizes parental rights o

Constitution of Texas

Constitution of Texas

American state constitution

Constitution of the State of Texas
The opening of the hand-written Texas Constitution of 1876
Overview
Jurisdiction
Subordinate to
Government structure
Branches
Chambers
Executive
Judiciary
Full text
Constitution of Texas (2022) at Wikisource

Flag of Texas. Seal of Texas. Map of the State of Texas Map of the State of Texas within the United States of America

The Constitution of the State of Texas is the document that establishes the structure and function of the government of the U.S. state of Texas and enumerates the basic rights of its citizens. The current document was adopted on February 15, 1876, and is the seventh constitution in Texas history. The previous six were adopted in 1827 (while Texas was still part of Mexico and half of the state of Coahuila y Tejas), 1836 (the Constitution of the Republic of Texas), 1845 (upon admission to the United States), 1861 (at the beginning of the American Civil War), 1866 (at the end of the American Civil War), and 1869. Texas constitutional conventions took place in 1861, 1866, 1868–69, and 1875.[1][[2]](https://en.wikiped