Governor Greg Abbott, DPS, and the Texas National Guard continue to work together to secure the border. Since the launch of Operation Lone Star, the multi-agency effort has led to over 504,900 illegal immigrant apprehensions and more than 40,600 criminal arrests, with more than 36,300 felony charges. In the fight against the fentanyl crisis, Texas law enforcement has seized over 469 million lethal doses of fentanyl during this border mission.
The Texas General Land Office (GLO) posted Amendment 4 to the State Action Plan for $4.3 billion in Community Development Block Grants Mitigation (CDBG-MIT) for a federally required 30-day public comment period. Per federal requirements, the GLO must respond to public comments before the amendment can be sent to the U.S. Dept. of Housing & Urban Development for final approval.
In 2nd grade, could you imagine finding your name in the index of a nationally published poetry anthology? And if you were a 2nd-grade teacher, how thrilled would you be to have 18 students' poems included? Let me introduce you to Smaya Reddy Devidi, a 2nd grader at Harmony Science Academy in Cedar Park – located just north of Austin – and her teacher Mrs. Manisha Winchell.
The United Kingdom leads all nations for the number of direct foreign investments in the Lone Star State, and Texas is the #1 State for exports to the United Kingdom. In the last decade, U.K. companies invested $8.6 billion through 326 projects in Texas, creating over 18,200 Texas jobs. "This will make it cheaper and easier for our businesses to thrive in each other's markets, and I thank Gov. Abbott and his team for helping to make it happen," said the U.K.'s Secretary of Business & Trade, Kemi Badenoch.
“It is unbelievable these basic facts have to be explained, but apparently Democrats have forgotten them. Like any country – let alone any ally – Israel has a right to choose its own government, and its top priority should be defending its citizens," said Sen. Ted Cruz earlier today, after Senate Democrat Leader Chuck Schumer delivered a brazen floor speech Thursday morning in which he called for elections to be held in Israel in order to form a new government.
“We are especially concerned by the willful failure of 'Sanctuary Cities' to hold Criminal Non-Citizens in custody after Federal Law Enforcement Agencies have issued arrests. This has led to the release of violent offenders into American communities, and poses a real & direct threat to public safety. We're asking you to take aggressive action to end the abuse of our nation’s laws, and discourage sanctuary cities from providing safe harbor to violent criminals,” said Gonzales and 22 of his fellow Congressmen.
The program, created by Hegar in 2016, was designed to help entities realize greater transparency and increase taxpayer confidence in local governance. The Comptroller’s office awards stars to local entities in the areas of Traditional Finances, Contracts and Procurement, Economic Development, Public Pensions, Debt Obligations, and Open Government and Compliance.
Governor Greg Abbott today announced that the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) has approved his request for disaster declarations in Texas communities affected by wildfires in the Panhandle. Texas counties included in the declarations are Armstrong, Carson, Donley, Gray, Hansford, Hemphill, Hutchinson, Lipscomb, Moore, Potter, Randall, Roberts, Sherman, and Wheeler.
“While I commend Customs & Border Protection for their tireless efforts to police the border, this idea for DHS to spend 10s of millions of dollars or more to build a 'Joint Processing Center' – to accommodate 500 non-citizens in processing, is an expensive Band-Aid on a gunshot wound,” said Texas Land Comm. Dawn Buckingham Tuesday, in a letter first obtained by the Washington Examiner.
Joe Biden threatened the Justices of the U.S. Supreme Court over the issue of abortion, and lied about his economic record when Americans can clearly see for themselves just how bad things are when they go to the grocery store or the gas station. Biden even began the speech by talking not about America, but about Ukraine – which was invaded under his watch.
“Instead of throwing money at a processing center – which is an expensive Band-Aid on a gunshot wound that'll have no significant impact on this ongoing border invasion – Joe Biden should change his lawless approach to the border and secure it for the sake of the nation,” said Texas General Land Commissioner Dawn Buckingham of Biden's latest proposal.
U.S. Congressmen Henry Cuellar, Ph.D. (TX-28) and Tom Suozzi (NY-3) launched the Democrats for Border Security Task Force, a group of 26 House Democrats dedicated to countering the surge of illicit narcotics threatening communities across the country and addressing the influx of irregular migration at the southern border. Cuellar and Suozzi will serve as Co-Chairs of the newly formed Task Force.
Under President Donald Trump’s leadership, Congress dedicated roughly $1.4 billion to the construction of walls and barriers along the southern border in order to reduce the number of illegal aliens entering the country. Immediately upon taking office, President Joseph Biden issued an executive order demanding construction stop and directing the Department of Homeland Security to devise a way to redirect the funds.
“The passage of this bipartisan bill is a clear signal to the communities and businesses across Texas that Congress supports their work to become part of the Interstate System. Communities across this route need better infrastructure to meet the increasing demands of moving goods and people, and I'm proud to have secured this victory for the Lone Star State," said Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, as he and others celebrated passage of the "I-27 Numbering Act" to designate the corridor between Laredo, Texas, and Raton, New Mexico as the future Interstate 27.
“The Big Thicket National Preserve is a treasure to our state – and to our nation – and I’m certain all Southeast Texans agrees it should be protected,” said Cong. Brian Babin. “I’ve heard concerns from constituents, County & School Officials, as well as local industry and others about this potential expansion, and I share their apprehensions. Many Americans right now distrust the federal government – and under this Biden White House I don’t blame them."
President Joe Biden's Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) published their new and expansive "Methane Rule" in the Federal Register last Friday, and Texas is challenging the effort as detrimental to an industry that's not only vital to the state's economy, but comes after the oil & gas industry has also made great strides in emissions reduction. Texas Railroad Commissioners voted to refer the Methane Rule to the Office of the Attorney General to file a lawsuit against it, and the Attorney General filed the lawsuit Friday.
“President Biden’s State of the Union speech was nothing short of a Dog & Pony Show to try and convince Americans that he's keeping America safe and secure. But Texas families like Stefanie Turner's – who was in attendance – are grieving as a result of his inaction to secure our border and keep dangerous drugs & criminals off our streets. Until the president steps up as Commander-in-Chief, and does his job to secure the border, Texas will hold the line and use every tool and strategy necessary to keep those dangerous drugs & criminals off our streets – and to keep our country safe.”
“Bidenomics is destroying Americans’ pocketbooks as prices continue to soar, increasing debt and hardship on families already struggling to make ends meet. Meanwhile, the president’s radical, nonsensical climate change policies are crippling U.S. oil and gas and boosting our dependency on foreign dictators and their dirty energy. All of this while our southern border is being overrun by an invasion of suspected terrorists, violent criminals, Chinese nationals, and more. . . "
“The situation in these communities that have been impacted by this wildfire disaster is heartbreaking, and we still have a long way to go before we understand the scope of the devastation wrought by the fires," said Texas Comptroller Glenn Hegar earlier today, announcing in partnership with Gov. Greg Abbott that the Comptroller’s Office has secured a temporary waiver of state restrictions on the use of dyed diesel fuel for vehicles on Texas roadways, and suspended requirements to pay the State Motor Fuels Tax on dyed diesel.
“As we make our way into 2024, the Texas Labor Force is continuing to 'upskill' and become the workforce of tomorrow – and Texas continues to lead the nation in both jobs growth and economic stability,” said Texas Workforce Commission Chairman Bryan Daniel, as the latest Labor & Jobs Market figures for January showed another record-breaking period of growth. Texas' employed Civilian Labor Force now totals 14,053,400, and has grown in 43 of the last 45 months.