Know when a bill is a comeback, before the hearing
USLege shows every earlier time Texas tried to pass the same policy. Open any Texas bill and see its possible prior filings, how each one ended, and the other bills fighting over the same issue.
Preview with example bills. Possible refiles cover Texas bills only for now.
Is this the first attempt, or the fourth?
Legislators bring bills back all the time. A bill dies, and the same member refiles it next session, sometimes four or five sessions in a row. Without the history, you walk into the hearing not knowing this is the fourth attempt, or that the same idea passed once and was vetoed.
The history of a bill, on the bill page
A Similar legislation section shows possible prior filings, ordered by session, and related policy in a separate group.
Illustration with fictional bills. Real matches are inferred from bill text, are labeled possible, and link to the original bill.
The history of a bill, already on the bill
Open any Texas bill
A Similar legislation section sits on the bill page. There is nothing to set up and nothing to switch on.
See the possible prior filings
Earlier bills that look like comebacks, ordered by session so the chain of attempts is easy to read, with how each one ended.
Check the related policy
Different bills on the same fight: other bills that touch the same part of the law, whether they passed or failed.
From digging through past sessions to seeing the chain
Built to be trusted, not just to be fast
Possible prior filings
Bills that look like a comeback of something filed before, found by comparing the language of each bill with earlier ones.
How each attempt ended
Every earlier bill shows its outcome, passed, failed, or vetoed, instead of a stale last action.
Related policy, kept separate
Other bills on the same issue appear in their own group, so a different bill on the same fight is never mistaken for the same bill again.
Labeled as possible, on purpose
These are inferred matches, so USLege says Possible prior filing and Possible related policy. It never claims a bill is definitely a refile, or what its author intended.
The chain, in order
Prior filings are sorted by session, so a bill filed in 2021, 2023, and 2025 reads as the story it is.
Regular and special sessions
Matching covers the regular and special sessions of the 89th Legislature, with candidates going back to 2021.
Every new bill checked
New Texas bills are run through matching as they are filed, so the history shows up with the bill.
One step back to the earlier bill
Each match opens that bill's own page, which has its own Similar legislation section, so you can walk the chain back.
The questions it answers
Every one of these used to mean digging through past sessions by hand.
Possible matches are inferred from bill text and labeled that way. Every match links to the original bill.
For teams that walk into hearings prepared
Refiled bills, answered
What is a refiled bill? +
How does USLege find possible refiles? +
Why does USLege say possible? +
Which states and sessions are covered? +
Does it show how an earlier bill ended? +
Is a possible refile the same as a companion bill? +
Know the history before the hearing
Open a Texas bill you have followed for years. In a few minutes we will show you the chain of earlier attempts. Want the wider picture first? See Texas bill tracking or the full USLege platform.
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A full AI-policy intelligence report across all 50 states: curated AI bills, an AI-Friendliness Index for every state, verified legislative hearing clips in a growing set of states, and the sponsors driving both sides of the debate. This is the type of report USLege builds fast.