Steve Toth

Neighborhood associations in the area complained that the development would add to traffic congestion and eliminate a forest that has been part of Texas heritage since 1923.

Steve Hixson Toth (born November 29, 1960) is an American businessman and politician serving as a member of the Texas House of Representatives from District 15, The Woodlands area.

Born and raised in New York, Toth attended Pittsford Mendon High School in suburban Rochester.

He also attended Rochester Bible College.

Toth is also a commentator on the political show FOX Faceoff which appears on Fox 26 Houston.

Texas House District 15 is based entirely in suburban Montgomery County, centered around The Woodlands.

It is part of the Houston Metro area in the southeastern portion of the state.

Toth won the 2012 election to the State House district 15.

In February 2013, newly inaugurated Representative Toth was elected by his colleagues to the House Republican Caucus Policy Committee as the East Texas representative on the panel.

In his first legislative session in 2013, Toth authored and carried the CSCOPE Transparency Act in the House (SB-1406).

The bill brought the CSCOPE (Common Core) curriculum under the purview of the Texas State Board of Education.

He authored the Firearms Protection Act (HB 1076) restricting federal control and regulations of firearms, which made it a Class A misdemeanor to interfere with a Texan's Second Amendment rights.

The act also protected Texas' state and local law enforcement officers from violating the U.S. Constitution, and prevented the federal government from targeting certain firearms and accessories with restrictions.

Texas Monthly Magazine called this the "nuttiest gun bill ever" and placed Steve on their dishonorable mention list of the worst Legislators in Texas that year.

Toth received assistance from Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott in drafting the bill.

On May 6, 2013 HB 1076 received enough votes to pass in The Texas House but was never approved by The Senate so did not become law.

Toth supports constitutional carry for Texas.

On January 11, 2019, Toth filed House Bill 792 (Senate Bill 345) with the 86th Legislature and entitled it the Jones Forest Preservation Act ("Jones Forest Act").

The Jones Forest Act protects the 1,722-acre William Goodrich Jones State Forest from development.

Texas A&M University suggested that the university would develop a Texas A&M campus on the land, which sits next to The Woodlands, Texas.

It was passed by both the Texas House and the Texas Senate and sent to Governor Greg Abbott on May 25, 2019.

In January 2019, he was appointed to the House Appropriations Committee by Texas House Speaker Dennis Bonnen.

On January 25, Toth along with Will Metcalf and Cecil Bell filed House Bill 1042 which would require Texas schools and law enforcement agencies to establish active shooter response plans and law enforcement agencies to conduct annual drills while also requiring law enforcement to immediately contain or eliminate a threat.

On February 7, 2019, Toth filed the JD Lambright Local Government Ethics Reform Act (HB-1495), which requires cities, counties, and other political subdivisions statewide to post contracts they have with taxpayer-funded lobbyists and to post how much they are paying the lobbyists.

It was filed in the Senate by Brandon Creighton on February 8 as Senate Bill 710.

The house bill was passed by both chambers and was sent to the governor for signature on May 29, 2019.

Governor Abbott signed the bill into law on June 14, 2019.

In February 2019, Toth co-authored Texas House Bill 1500 which would ban abortions after the detection of an unborn child's heartbeat.

He also co-authored Texas House Bill 896 which would prohibit abortion.

In March 2019, Toth became a cosponsor of SB 22 which prohibits government entities from providing taxpayer-funded resources (including cash, goods, services, and anything of value) to Planned Parenthood.

It was a response to Planned Parenthood's $1-per-year rental agreement with the City of Austin for a clinic.

It passed both chambers and was sent to Abbott on May 25, 2019 for signature.

The bill was signed into law by Abbott on June 7, 2019.

On March 5, 2019, Toth introduced Texas HB 3145, the School Lunch Bill.

It clarifies that each parent, including the non-custodial parent, in a divorce can visit their child during school lunch and school activities regardless of possession schedule.

It passed both chambers and was sent to the governor on May 28, 2019.

In March 2019 Toth introduced Texas House Bill 2518 which aims to reduce cannabis possession from a Class B to a Class C misdemeanor.

To take it down from B to C would remove jail time for simple possession (180 days is the current penalty) and lower the monetary penalty from $2,000 down to $500.

In August 2020, Toth, along with fellow state representatives Mike Lang, Kyle Biedermann, Bill Zedler, and state senator Bob Hall sued Texas Governor Greg Abbott over a $295 million Covid-19 contact tracing contract Abbott awarded to a small Frisco, Texas technology firm without approval from the Texas legislature.

In May 2020, Toth protested Abbott's lockdown order by getting a haircut.