position_held mark s. homer
The Texas House of Representatives is the lower house of the bicameral Texas Legislature . It consists of 150 members who are elected from single - member districts for a term of 2 years . As of the 2010 Census , each member represents an average of 167 , 637 people . There are no term limits , with the most senior member , Tom Craddick , having been elected in 1968 . Thomas Russell Craddick , Sr ., known as Tom Craddick ( born September 19 , 1943 ), is ___MASK85___ representing the 82nd district . Craddick was Speaker of the Texas House of Representatives from January 2003 to January 2009 . He was the first Republican to have served as Speaker since Reconstruction . Craddick resides in Midland , the largest city in his district . Craddick was first elected in 1968 at the age of twenty - five . The Legislature of the state of Texas is the ___MASK19___ of Texas . The legislature is a bicameral body composed of a 31 - member Senate and a 150 - member House of Representatives . The ___MASK19___ meets at the Capitol in Austin . It is a powerful arm of the Texas government not only because of its power of the purse to control and direct the activities of state government and the strong constitutional connections between it and the Lieutenant Governor of Texas , but also due to Texas ' s plural executive . Mark Homer ( born August 28 , 1962 ) is a former Democratic politician who represented District 3 in the Texas House of Representatives from 1999 to 2010 . He was a member of the Committee on Culture , Recreation and Tourism and Vice - Chair of the Committee on Judiciary in 2008 . In the 1998 Democratic primary , Homer defeated B . D . Blount with 67 % of the vote . Homer then defeated Sue Fancher in his first legislative race in November 1998 , winning 57 % of the vote . In the 2000 Democratic primary , Homer won 82 % of the vote against Patricia Blount . He then ran unopposed in the 2000 and in the 2002 general Elections . In the 2004 Democratic primary , he won 79 % of the vote , defeating Richard Bradley Weemes . In that year ' s general election , he was re - elected by a margin of about 300 votes , defeating Republican Kirby Hollingsworth , carrying only two counties in District 3 . In 2005 , he expressed dissatisfaction with the House leadership during a special session for school funding . In 2006 , Homer served on the Committee on Environmental Regulation , the Committee on Local and Consent Calendars , and the Committee on Licensing and Administrative Procedures . He chaired the Occupational Licensing Subcommittee . Republican State Senator Bill Ratliff , a former Lieutenant ___MASK89___ , supported Homer ' s 2006 bid for re - election . On November 8 , 2006 , he won by a substantial margin against Hollingsworth , carrying five of the six counties in the district . In 2008 , he was again opposed by Hollingsworth in his bid for re - election . About a week before the election , Homer ' s campaign reported about $ 192 , 000 in contributions . He received support from such groups as teachers , realtors , small business owners , municipal employees , architects , and farmers . Homer is married with three children . He received a degree in animal science from Texas A & M University in 1984 and an MBA from Angelo State University in 1988 . He co - owns Sonic Drive - In franchises and has worked as a meat buyer for Safeway Supermarkets . He serves as a member of the Texas Legislative Tourism Caucus , as a member of the board of the Texas Conservative Coalition Research Institute , as vice chair of the Texas Conservative Coalition , and as director of the Texas Legislative Sportsman Caucus . In 2008 , he received the Champion of Rural Health Care Award .