"I think it is very well documented that heat has contributed to deaths in this prison system,” said Joe Moody, a member of the Texas House who is one of several Democrats that have tried to pass legislation to air condition state prisons for years.

“There’s no need for us to continue to allow folks to cook — literally cook — in our prisons. And that’s something we should always find unacceptable,” he said.

Moody’s bill again failed in the last legislative session. The Republican-dominated state Senate stripped more than $500 million out of the budget that would have dramatically increased air conditioning in prisons throughout the system. But there is a chance that the bill could be resurrected in a special session.