State Rep. Eric Johnson, a Dallas Democrat, is attempting to create a bipartisan Young Texans Legislative Caucus, the first legislative group in the state focused on policy matters that affect Texans under 40, including education and natural resource management. Of the 150 members of the House, 94 members will be eligible to join the caucus, the 37-year-old told the Texas Tribune. Thirty-five reps are under 40, and 59 more represent districts where 59 percent or more of the population is under 40.
“We hope to focus the broader Lege’s attention on Texas’s future, and planning for that future, by focusing on the needs of the younger Texans who represent that future,” he wrote in an email to the Tribune.
An Athens Republican and El Paso Democrat are also helping form the group. Johnson’s district covers areas of Dallas’ southern and southeastern sectors, and stretches into parts of West Dallas and Oak Lawn.