"I applaud both the Lt. Governor and Speaker for quickly offering proposals that can immediately make schools safer, provide needed mental health support, and help Law Enforcement Officers on the front lines," said the Governor, after having recently requested that Texas' legislative leaders convene Special Legislative Committees to begin examining and developing legislative recommendations.

Along with the rest of the country, Texas faces a critical shortage of Registered Nurses – currently 20,000 in Texas. As a result, TWC Chairman Bryan Daniel has announced policy changes that will permit the agency to provide funds to train apprentices and other employees in healthcare occupations, many who can serve smaller communities across Texas.

“Taking commonsense steps to prepare for these storms is the best way that we can protect our homes and businesses in Texas. We’ve felt the devastation of hurricanes time and time again along the Gulf Coast. That devastation continues to serve as a reminder that we must each do our part to minimize potential damage from a natural disaster. Doing so could save lives.”

Commissioners approved the Fiscal Year 2023 Oil and Gas Monitoring and Enforcement Plan, which outlines strategic priorities and provides statistical data highlighting the agency’s enforcement efforts, including violations cited by rule.

U.S Senators Ted Cruz and Ron Johnson are leading a push by members of Congress calling for answers from the Administrator of the FDA and its Vaccines & Related Biological Products Advisory Committee ahead of its June 15th meeting that will consider approval for the use of COVID-19 vaccines in children under the age of five.

Economists often come up with clunky terms that are hard for non-economists to understand. But every once in a while, they come up with terms that beautifully evoke the point they're trying to make. An example is “deadweight loss,” especially as it relates to taxation. A deadweight loss is a loss to some that is not offset by a gain to anyone.

Cong. Tony Gonzales represents the small South Texas Community of Uvalde – and city the entire nation has been praying for during the past few weeks. He led a group of his fellow House of Representative Colleagues in an emotional reading of names honoring the 21 lives lost during the tragic shooting – and was surrounded in the Well of the House by members who were clearly shaken by the rising level of violence spreading across America.

"The task of ensuring the safety of our schools & students is not solely held within one entity in the State, but encompasses many different agencies and divisions, all with different charges and authority in implementing legislation and making recommendations for future changes," said Gov. Abbott. "A single point of contact to coordinate such efforts, now and in the future, would further improve their services," the Governor said.

The Governor also instructed the Texas Health & Human Services Commission (HHSC) to work alongside the Texas Education Agency (TEA) and the Texas Child Mental Health Care Consortium to provide behavioral health resources and community support. Abbott has taken significant actions to provide all available resources to support the Uvalde community.

"As I rise today with my fellow Texans to honor the victims, I am reminded of Matthew 5:4 'Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.' I mourn with the Uvalde community and pray for healing and comfort for the families after the loss of the following members of our city," said Cong. Tony Gonzales, prior to reading the names of all 21 people who perished.

Sanctuary cities have become havens for illegal aliens and all the social, economic, and criminal costs that illegal immigration entails. The Florida law simply required local law enforcement officials to comply with federal immigration law. 

For too long now, America's 'Big Tech' companies have catered to China's Communist government, suffocated small U.S. businesses, and abused the private behavior data they collect from us while we're surfing the web. They have dominance over advertising, they control both ad sales and purchases, and their monopolies force small businesses to either use their services or go bankrupt. It must end now.

On Twitter, “bots” are automated, non-human accounts that can do virtually the same things as real people: send tweets, follow other users, and like and retweet others’ posts. "It matters not only for regular Twitter users, but also Texas Businesses & Advertisers who use Twitter for their livelihoods,” said Attorney General Paxton. “If Twitter is misrepresenting, I have a duty to protect Texans.”

Gov. Greg Abbott has announced the list of city locations for his in-person, statewide "2022 Governor’s Small Business Series" that begins in Fort Worth this Thursday, June 9th. Designed to connect small business owners and aspiring entrepreneurs with the resources needed to start, strengthen, and grow a business, Texas is "already home to 3 million small businesses that employ nearly half of the Texas workforce," Abbott said.

Democrat leadership in the House of Representatives  have announced they will bring legislation to the House Floor and be voting on multiple bills that, they say, will curb gun violence. But not every Democrat candidate nationwide seems to be on the same page. In Texas’ 23rd Congressional District – one of the nation’s top battlegrounds every election – the Democrat has bucked his own party on gun control.

"In the coming weeks and months, there'll be many recommendations to prevent school shootings in the future. However, there's one thing we must do and can begin to do right now without waiting until the 88th Legislative Session in 2023. We cannot wait for another school year to begin to better-equip our police who respond to these attacks," said Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick.

"This vital training – delivered by Veteran 1st Responders with proven experience in active attack response and police training – will help Law Enforcement on school campuses better respond to these situations,” said Gov. Greg Abbott, instructing Exec. Director Dr. Pete Blair to begin providing Texas State University's nationally-recognized Advanced Law Enforcement Rapid Response Training (ALERRT) programs to all of Texas' School Districts.

It is impossible to comprehend the level of evil that would drive someone to commit the atrocities we've seen in Uvalde, Texas . But as I have had time to reflect, let me start by saying - this is NOT a "Gun Control" issue. That, however, is the narrative I think we will hear pushed. I believe that guns in the hands of law-abiding citizens makes society safer – and our focus must focus on hardening our classrooms.

Cong. Tony Gonzales represents the South Texas community of Uvalde, which he's urging U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardoza to grant expedited approval on for their request to immediately allow Uvalde ISD access to the School Emergency Response to Violence (Project SERV) – which could provide Mental Health Resources & Emergency Transportation for the city's students, parents and teachers.

​​​​​​​The newly formed "Special Legislative Committees" will develop Legislative Recommendations on: School Safety, Mental Health, Social Media, Police Training, Firearm Safety and more, noted Gov. Abbott. "We must come together as Texans to support the Uvalde Community and prevent future tragedies in this state," said Abbott while commending the Legislature's action after last week's tragedy in Uvalde.