State Rep. holds town hall meetings in Dallas

A Republican state representative held two town hall meetings in Dallas on Thursday to discuss several recent issues.

A crowd of at least 150 people gathered at the Town North YMCA in Northwest Dallas for Republican State Rep. Jason Villalba town hall meeting.

Many told him they didn’t believe the bathroom bill in Texas should be a priority. There were also questions about Villalba's support of a sanctuary cities bill that would punish local agencies for not cooperating with federal immigration officers.

School vouchers and school choice were other key topics. There was a round of applause for a woman who said she doesn't want tax dollars going to private schools.

Another man said he had a different take and wanted to see more tax money paying for charter schools, a proposal Villalba did file in the house.

The second town hall of the night in Lake Highlands drew a smaller crowd where people asked about the convention of states. It is the effort by the governor to get states together to propose amendments to the U.S. constitution.

People also wanted to know if state lawmakers would vote to allow for Medicaid expansion in the state.

In both town halls, the discussion at times was impassioned, but there was no heckling or protesting. Beforehand, Villalba said he intended to hear from both Republicans and democrats who wanted to weigh in on potential state laws.