Steve Toth’s Shocking Voting Record on Flooding and Other Issues
2/1/26 – State Representative Steve Toth is running against U.S. Representative Dan Crenshaw in the Republican primary for the second congressional district of Texas.
To date, Toth has run a largely negative campaign, smearing Crenshaw with half-truths and lies. When I posted a positive story about Crenshaw’s work in Congress to reduce flood risk, dozens of hired Toth trolls flooded Facebook with false negative comments about Crenshaw – all unsubstantiated.
Usually, when candidates have nothing positive to say about themselves, they tear down opponents. That made me curious. So, I investigated Toth’s voting record in Austin. Toth voted NO on every bill below. And…
On every vote, Toth went against a majority of Republicans voting YES.
Because bill descriptions can get quite long, I summarized them. However, using the bill numbers and their years in the table below, you can easily look up everything about them in the Texas Legislature Online website. (So far, I’ve only gotten through the 2021 and 2023 sessions.)
Steve Toth Voted NO on…
Steve Toth voted NO on all of these bills. What would you have voted?
| Steve Toth: | Bill # | % Other Republicans Voting FOR |
| Voted against a hotline to report workplace violence | HB 915 in 2023 | 83% |
| Voted against allowing people to affiliate with the political party of their choice. | HB 1635 in 2023 | 94% |
| Voted against handicapped parking at polling places | HB 386 in 2023 | 92% |
| Voted against simplifying disclosure of election information | HB 4053 in 2023 | 53% |
| Voted against the Texas Ethics Commission educating people about its work, which includes campaign finance disclosure | SB 62 in 2021 | 57% |
| Voted against sexual harassment prevention | SB 2233 in 2021 | 81% |
| Voted against expanding water infrastructure | HJR 169 in 2023 | 91% |
| Voted against oil well cleanup | HB 3973 in 2021 | 53% |
| Voted against hurricane protection for the Gulf Coast | SB 1160 in 2021 | 76% |
| Voted against military law enforcement | HB 3452 in 2021 | 80% |
| Voted against economic growth | HB 1392 in 2023 | 90% |
| Voted against highway improvements | HB 1392 in 2023 | 90% |
| Voted against cybersecurity protection | HB 4018 in 2021 | 70% |
| Voted against disaster response loans | HB 2812 in 2021 | 77% |
| Voted against training for drug overdose treatment | SB 998 in 2023 | 89% |
| Voted against “Made-in-Texas” labeling standards | HB 2194 in 2023 | 83% |
| Voted against basic standards of care for dogs and cats bred in captivity | SB 876 in 2023 | 72% |
| Voted against child-labor penalties | HB 2459 in 2023 | 75% |
| Voted against penalties for importing invasive snake species | HB 2326 in 2021 | 63% |
| Voted against tax relief for farm families | HB 3241 in 2023 | 98% |
| Voted against online consumer protection | HB 3745 in 2021 | 80% |
| Voted against preventing sexual-harassment in the workplace | SB 45 in 2021 | 67% |
| Voted against uniform election dates | HB 2133 in 2023 | 88% |
| Voted against higher qualifications for sheriffs | SB 1124 in 2023 | 77% |
| Voted against making it easier for people with disabilities to vote | SB 477 in 2023 | 69% |
| Voted against financing water projects | SJR 75 in 2023 | 94% |
| Voted against improving electric reliability | HB 1607 in 2021 | 68% |
| Voted against consumer protections for electricity customers | HB 16 in 2021 | 68% |
| Voted against making it easier to buy solar products | SB 398 in 2021 | 75% |
| Voted against making it easier for energy companies to repay repair expenses from Winter Storm Uri | HB 4492 in 2021 | 78% |
| Voted against property tax relief | HJR 102 in 2023 | 56% |
| Voted against reporting cybersecurity breaches | SB 271 in 2023 | 98% |
| Voted against pay parity for Texas police officers | HB 2297 in 2023 | 98% |
| Voted against the economic stabilization fund | HJR 82 in 2021 | 83% |
| Voted against disclosure of occupational licenses | HB 2404 in 2021 | 95% |
| Voted against improving state information technology | HB 4018 in 2021 | 70% |
| Voted against mental health funding | HB 15 in 2023 | 63% |
| Voted against the Texas University Fund | HJR 3 in 2023 | 88% |
| Voted against providing opioid intervention on college campuses | HB 3338 in 2023 | 80% |
| Voted against bonds for a Brain Institute of Texas | HJR 5 in 2021 | 56% |
| Voted against a Texas Epidemic Public Health Institute | SB 1780 in 2021 | 71% |
| Voted against combatting human trafficking | HB 3772 in 2023 | 59% |
| Voted against closing massage parlors involved in human trafficking | HB 3579 in 2023 | 80% |
| Voted against training hotel/motel employees to recognize human trafficking | HB 390 in 2021 | 78% |
| Voted against improving preparedness for wind/hail storms | HB 4354 in 2023 | 85% |
| Voted against requiring insurers to disclose prescription drug coverage | SB 622 in 2023 | 73% |
| Voted against access to fertility preservation services for cancer patients | HB 1649 in 2023 | 63% |
| Voted against requiring health plans to cover ovarian cancer screening in annual exams | HB 428 in 2021 | 79% |
| Voted against allowing clinicians to dispense cancer drugs | HB 1586 in 2021 | 73% |
| Voted against updating voyeurism laws to account for hidden cameras | HB 2306 in 2023 | 98% |
| Voted against making criminal sentencing data available to public | HB 3937 in 2023 | 77% |
| Voted against classifying highway obstruction by street gangs as a criminal offense | HB 1442 in 2023 | 81% |
| Voted against a task force to prevent organized retail theft | HB 1826 in 2023 | 93% |
| Voted against minimum salaries for county sheriffs | HB 626 in 2023 | 94% |
| Voted against requiring perpetrators of certain felonies to provide DNA | HB 3956 in 2023 | 88% |
| Voted against requiring correctional officers to wear body cams | HB 1524 in 2023 | 63% |
| Voted against increasing fines on those engaged in anti-trust activities | HB 5232 in 2023 | 99% |
| Voted against cracking down on the use of AI to generate false sexualized images of people | HB1896 in 2023 | 98% |
| Voted against speeding up DNA analysis | HB 3957 in 2023 | 93% |
| Voted against dismissing controlled-substance cases even when tests proved no controlled substance was involved | HB 3686 in 2023 | 92% |
| Voted against creating a centralized portal for DPS lab records | SB 991 in 2023 | 92% |
| Voted against expanding the definition of stalking to include previous family violence | SB 1717 in 2023 | 67% |
| Voted against handgun proficiency instruction for security officials | HB 3424 in 2023 | 88% |
| Voted against limiting physician liability for medically necessary procedures when patients give informed consent | HB 3058 in 2023 | 87% |
| Voted against reimbursing counties for GPS monitoring in family violence cases | HB 1906 in 2021 | 65% |
| Voted against preventing financial abuse of nursing home residents | SB 270 in 2021 | 95% |
| Voted against increasing punishments for criminal offenses against public servants | HB 624 in 2021 | 84% |
| Voted against creating a new offense for boating with a child while drunk | HB 2505 in 2021 | 84% |
| Voted against ensuring accuracy of DPS databases of street-gang members | HB 1838 in 2021 | 72% |
| Voted against increasing the penalties for assault against a process server | HB 1306 in 2021 | 91% |
| Voted against installing climate control systems in prisons | HB 1971 in 2021 | 77% |
| Voted against making retaliation against a public servant a second-degree felony | HB 285 in 2021 | 94% |
| Voted against creating an offense for providing false or misleading information to the National Instant Criminal Background Check System | SB 162 in 2021 | 83% |
| Voted against restricting the use of choke holds by police | SB 69 in 2021 | 91% |
| Voted against prohibiting entity names that falsely imply governmental affiliation | HB 1493 in 2021 | 83% |
| Voted against making ballot language consistent with election orders | HB 4704 in 2023 | 76% |
| Voted against giving surviving spouses and children of those who died while serving in the US Armed Forced free access to state parks | HB 1740 in 2023 | 97% |
| Voted against increasing homestead exemptions for surviving spouses of members of US Armed Forces | HB 4181 in 2023 | 92% |
| Voted against mental health services for vets and their families | HB 1457 in 2023 | 78% |
| Voted against 100% property tax exemptions for totally disabled vets | HB 1613 in 2023 | 93% |
| Voted against employment training for vets | HB 739 in 2021 | 68% |
| Voted against limited property-tax exemptions for homeowners with intellectual or developmental disabilities | HB 3640 in 2023 | 93% |
| Voted against allowing local tax exemptions for day care facilities | SJR 64 in 2023 | 59% |
| Voted against protecting landlords that evict illegal massage operators | HB 3536 in 2023 | 74% |
| Voted against economic development programs that allowed ISD tax abatement agreements | HB 5 in 2023 | 85% |
| Voted against tax abatement for physicians who offered free services to the indigent | HJR 25 in 2021 | 89% |
| Voted against pre-kindergarten | HB 1615 in 2023 | 74% |
| Voted against sharing existing school-training courses with employees of child-care facilities | HB 1905 in 2023 | 60% |
| Voted against CPR instruction for grades 7-12 | HB 4375 in 2023 | 93% |
| Voted against “career-investigation days” for high school juniors and seniors | SB68 in 2023 | 98% |
| Voted against school-crossing-zone protections for high schools | HB 1263 in 2023 | 95% |
| Voted against allowing accredited armed-forces instructors to teach in K-12 public schools while they complete civilian educator-prep programs | SB 544 in 2023 | 96% |
| Voted against prohibiting parents who injured officials at sporting events from attending future events | HB 2484 in 2023 | 89% |
| Voted against “digital citizenship” instruction | HB 129 in 2021 | 58% |
| Voted against child-abuse, family-violence, dating-violence and sex-trafficking education | SB 9 in 2021 | 65% |
| Voted against workplace-violence-prevention policies | SB 240 in 2023 | 69% |
| Voted against requiring health plans to apply third-party payments that would reduce prescription costs | HB 999 in 2023 | 92% |
| Voted against extending Medicaid coverage for pregnant women | HB 12 in 2023 | 90% |
| Voted against allowing Physician Assistants from certain other pre-approved states to practice in Texas without a new license | HB 2544 in 2023 | 87% |
| Voted against reporting maternal mortality data to Dept. of State Health Services | HB 663 in 2023 | 87% |
| Voted against requiring assisted-living facilities to provide Alzheimer’s training to staff | HB 1673 in 2023 | 82% |
| Voted against prohibiting nursing home facilities from misappropriating federal grants made to residents on Medicaid | HB 1290 in 2023 | 95% |
| Voted against improving public access to occupational therapy | HB 1683 in 2023 | 93% |
| Voted against including the names of people found guilty of child abuse or neglect in a central registry | HB 2572 in 2023 | 66% |
| Voted against prohibiting the state from retaliating against employees who report a criminal offense | SB182/Amendment 1 in 2023 | 52% |
| Voted against expanding disposal programs for expired prescription drugs statewide | SB 2173 in 2023 | 60% |
| Voted against a program to improve health outcomes for pregnant women and their children | HB 1575 in 2023 | 87% |
| Voted against a training program for those investigating child abuse/neglect | SB 1447 in 2023 | 64% |
| Voted against providing luggage for transporting belongings of foster children | HB 3765 in 2023 | 74% |
| Voted against aid for human-trafficking victims | HB 2633 in 2021 | 71% |
| Voted against waiving driver’s license fees/costs for foster or homeless children | SB 2054 in 2021 | 87% |
| Voted against a bill prohibiting construction of new assisted living facilities in Harris County 100-year floodplains | HB1681 in 2021 | 61% |
| Voted against a bill increasing penalties for felons in unlawful possession of a firearm | HB4843 in 2023 | 82% |
| Voted against a motor-fuel tax exemption for food-bank trucks | HB 3599 in 2023 | 97% |
| Voted against creating a Texas Space Commission | HB 3447 in 2023 | 86% |
| Voted against record-keeping requirements for used catalytic converter sales | HB 4110 in 2021 | 63% |
Actions Speak Louder than Hired Trolls and Campaign Platitudes
By voting NO, Toth boosts his “conservative” rating among some right-leaning think tanks. He touts that rating heavily, but…
Understanding what Toth voted NO on gives you deeper insight into the man and his values.
Toth Voted No On Flood-Mitigation
Toth represents the sand-mining areas in Montgomery County. They send much of the sediment downstream that reduces conveyance of our rivers and streams. Yet he has done nothing I have seen to help control them.
Even worse, he voted NO on Charles Cunningham’s bill (HB 1532) to create a dredging district for the Lake Houston Area in the last session.
He also voted NO on HB 1681 in 2021, a bill that prohibited building assisted-living facilities in Harris County’s 100-year floodplains. (See red entry above.)
One third of all the people in Harris County who died as a result of Harvey lived in one such facility near Kingwood Town Center – in a 500-year flood plain.
After the Camp Mystic tragedy last year when more than 135 people died in flash flooding, Toth even voted for the right to continue building kids camps in floodplains.
Get Out the Vote
Make sure you vote in the upcoming primaries. And make sure you get all your friends and neighbors out to vote, too. This will literally be a life-and-death election for the Lake Houston Area.
I’m voting for Crenshaw. I hope you do, too.
Posted by Bob Rehak on 2/1/2027
3078 Days since Harvey
The thoughts expressed in this post represent opinions on matters of public concern and safety. They are protected by the First Amendment of the US Constitution and the Anti-SLAPP Statute of the Great State of Texas.
