Updated at 11:58 a.m. with the latest membership numbers from the Combined Law Enforcement Association of Texas.

AUSTIN -- At the start of the 2017 legislative session, Texas law enforcement groups were reeling from years of high-profile use-of-force incidents involving black victims, as well as the deaths of five Dallas officers in a downtown shooting.

The message from state lawmakers was simple: We back the blue. They passed laws funding $25 million worth of rifle-resistant bulletproof vests for police departments and property tax relief for the surviving spouses of police officers killed on duty, and they gutted police accountability legislation pushed by advocates.

With a new session starting in January, state law enforcement groups say their profession has mostly avoided headline-grabbing incidents, such as the controversial arrest and subsequent jail death of Sandra Bland in 2015.

Instead, they hope to focus on bread-and-butter issues like creating a minimum wage for police officers across the state, ensuring pension systems are functioning properly and getting the state to help recruit people into law enforcement careers.

“It feels a lot better going into a session where we’re talking about the working conditions of officers,” and not solely racial issues, said Charley Wilkison, executive director of the Combined Law Enforcement Association of Texas, which counts more than 24,000 as members.

But lawmakers have other priorities that won’t make it an easy session for law enforcement officers. They have proposed restricting asset forfeiture policies and decriminalizing the possession of small amounts of marijuana. Law enforcement groups will also have to monitor conversations around protecting schools against shootings.

And their leaders expect questions to be raised about police interactions with civilians, especially following the shooting of Botham Jean in his home by former Dallas police officer Amber Guyger.

Dominique Alexander, an activist with the Next Generation Action Network, said his group will push the Legislature to outlaw the 72-hour “cooling off periods” that give officers three days before being compelled to make an official statement on a shooting.

Alexander said Jean’s shooting highlighted the need for the public to remain vigilant about holding police accountable.

“We have to do meaningful legislation,” he said. “And allowing that these officers get the same fair treatment as any other citizen would get. We’re trying to shut down everything that gets officers special treatment just because they walk around with a badge.”

Marijuana decriminalization

Under a bill from Rep. Joe Moody, an El Paso Democrat, possession of one ounce of marijuana or less would not incur a criminal offense and would be punishable only by a fee of no more than $250. Possession of less than two ounces but more than one ounce would be a Class B misdemeanor, which is punishable by up to 180 days in jail and a fine of up to $2,000.

State lawmakers have tried without success to decriminalize marijuana, but Moody is confident that a change in public opinion could help his bill in 2019.

A June 2018 poll by the University of Texas and the Texas Tribune showed that 69 percent of Texans support reducing the punishment for possessing small amounts of marijuana to a citation and a fine.

Moody also pointed to Gov. Greg Abbott's support for decreasing the penalty for possession of less than 2 ounces of marijuana in a gubernatorial debate in September, and official support from the major parties.

“You now have both the Democratic Party and Republican Party agreeing on this principle,” he said. “Do I think it has better chance this year? Yes. Do I think it’s a slam dunk? No.”

Wilkison said if his group was asked to testify about the bill before a legislative committee, he would tread carefully.

“Let’s think about lives, property and being impaired with motor vehicles,” Wilkison said. “How much is enough and how much is too much? That’s the discussion.”

Frederick Frazier, the legislative chairman for the Fraternal Order of Police in Texas and a first vice president with the Dallas Police Association said decriminalizing marijuana - even in small amounts - would present challenges for police in the state that have not yet been discussed, like what would constitute impairment or a reasonable search if someone was found possessing marijuana.

“We are not in favor until we have some type of structure in place that shows us what we’re going to do and how we’re going to do it and how much manpower this is going to take,” he said.

Moody said he is prepared for those discussions and sees law enforcement as partners in any attempt to pass criminal justice legislation. The law does not take away their authority to search a suspect with marijuana or to enforce laws against impaired driving.

“I tried to get ahead of the perceived problems, and in this case we’re certainly not taking away any tools in the toolbox and not taking away any of their authority,” he said. “We’re just sanctioning small possessions in a different way. I think it’s a practical thing for me, the court system, the community and taxpayers.”

School safety

Following a shooting at Santa Fe High School that left 10 dead and 10 injured, the state's top officials promised to do more to make schools safer.

Abbott laid out a 40-page plan in May that included hardening school entrances, giving local law enforcement more access to school facilities, increasing mental health counseling and urging the Legislature to look into "red flag laws" that would allow law enforcement or family members to take a gun from a potentially dangerous person.

Some of Abbott's ideas - like hardening school entrances or giving local law enforcement officers more access to schools - were left to individual districts to implement, while red flag laws were dismissed after widespread backlash from gun rights advocates.

Law enforcement groups say they want a seat at the table when these decisions are made.

“There ought to be some sort of consistency across school safety,” Wilkison said. “The people involved in that ought to be listening to more than just the gun lobby or people that are paid to do political races. We’d like to see more uniform work done in relation to school safety and have people listen to the officers that do that work.”

Civil asset forfeiture

In recent years, lawmakers from across the political spectrum have pushed efforts to change or repeal the way police can seize property from suspected criminals and then use it to pay for their operations. Repealing what’s known as civil asset forfeiture has become a major talking point in criminal justice circles.

Conservative lawmakers, including some libertarian and tea-party leaning officials, say the issue is about property rights, while liberal lawmakers say people of color are disproportionately affected.

Lawmakers have filed bills to restrict how police agencies repossess assets, including one by Houston Democratic State Rep. Harold Dutton that requires a final conviction for a crime before a law enforcement agency can take your belongings.

Law enforcement groups resist changing asset forfeiture policies, which they say target and hurt the bottom line of organized crime rings by stripping their assets.

They’re preparing to fight lawmakers’ attempts to repeal the practice.

“There may be some areas in asset forfeiture that need to be tweaked,” said Mitch Landry, deputy executive director of government affairs with the Texas Municipal Police Association. “But what proponents want is not tweaks, they want overhauls. If they make major changes, the only winners will be the cartels.”