Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick has canceled Senate committee hearings this month, citing concerns about the coronavirus. [JAY JANNER/AMERICAN-STATESMAN FILE] ▲

Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick has canceled Senate committee hearings this month, citing concerns about the coronavirus.

Patrick said he made the move after consulting with committee leaders.

"Public testimony is important — we want to hear the voice of every Texan and make sure they are comfortable traveling to committee hearings," a Patrick spokesperson said in an email. "Lt. Gov. Patrick believes this step is the prudent thing to do at this time as Texas continues ongoing efforts to contain and mitigate the impact of COVID-19."

The Senate Select Committee on Mass Violence Prevention and Community Safety was scheduled to hold a hearing Tuesday, but an updated online notice said the public meeting would be postponed to a later date "out of an abundance of caution given the recent public health events occurring around the globe."

And the Senate Education Committee hearing on Wednesday is canceled until further notice "in light of recent concern for the public's health due to the coronavirus," an updated posting said.

The Education Committee was scheduled to consider recommendations for adult education and discuss the monitoring of two bills approved last year.

Meanwhile, House Speaker Dennis Bonnen, R-Lake Jackson, said he would leave the decision whether to cancel House hearings up to committee leaders.

"I encourage you to consider the option of postponing previously-scheduled committee hearings to a later date," he said in a memo Monday to House lawmakers. "Although the decision is ultimately at your full discretion, if you feel that proceeding with hearings would prevent a single Texan from making their voice heard in the process, then I urge you to consider the benefits of rescheduling at this time."

Just one House committee hearing had been canceled as of late Monday afternoon. A House Select Committee on Mass Violence Prevention and Community Safety hearing in Houston on Wednesday was canceled "out of an abundance of caution" amid coronavrius concerns, according to a news release.

The House Public Health Committee is set to hold a public hearing Tuesday for invited testimony on the state's preparedness for the coronavirus. It has not been postponed or canceled, according to the committee's public notice.

Committees are working in advance of the next scheduled legislative session, which will begin in January.

The hearing cancellations are among the latest precautions taken around the state to deal with the spread of the coronavirus.

Twelve travel-related cases of COVID-19, the illness linked to the new coronavirus, have been confirmed in the Houston area, health officials said Monday. In addition, a Frisco man who recently traveled to California has a "presumptive positive" case of the new coronavirus, making him the first person in Texas known to have potentially contracted the virus within the U.S., health officials said Monday.

Rice University announced Sunday evening that it would suspend classes this week over concerns about the virus.

And Austin city officials declared a local disaster Friday, calling off Austin's South by Southwest festival this month, which attracts more than 100,000 attendees.

There have been no confirmed cases of the virus in the Austin area.