Like any true patriot, I believe this country is the home of the free because of the brave. We owe a tremendous debt of gratitude to our Service Members & Veterans. As the only program of its kind in the U.S., the Texas Veterans Land Board stands as a model to the nation, providing low interest loans to our veterans who want to buy a house, buy land or renovate their home.
In the first Budget Bill filed by incoming Senate Finance Chair and Houston Senator Joan Huffman, homeowners could see a $70,000 Homestead Exemption for the taxable value on their homes, up from the current $40,000. Though just a first draft, "We have an obligation to the people of Texas to continue our state's incredible trajectory to keep Texas as the best place to live, work, and raise a family," said Huffman.
Continuing to fill the gaps left by Joe Biden's refusal to secure the border, updated Operation Lone Star figures now show the multi-agency effort has led to over 345,000 illegal immigrant apprehensions, and more than 24,000 criminal arrests – including over 21,000 felony charges. DPS has seized an unbelievable 356+ million lethal doses of fentanyl during the mission, which would have otherwise made their way into communities across Texas.
Following a series of flooding, winter freezes and other natural disasters, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton is alerting Texans to be cautious of scammers who try to take advantage of consumers in the wake of recent severe weather. The personal, emotional, and financial hardship of dealing with severe weather can be devastating, and can be compounded as Texans try to rebuild.
A lot of the politicians in Illinois, mainly Democratic politicians, don’t like this. So they have tried to change the Constitution. But they have been unable to do so.
“The Strategic Petroleum Reserve was intended to ensure America had sufficient stockpiles of oil. Instead, Joe Biden sold oil to the Chinese Communist Party when it was stockpiling oil for its own strategic use," said Sen. Ted Cruz earlier today, introducing the "Protecting America’s Strategic Petroleum Reserve from China Act" to prohibit the sale of the U.S.'s vital reserves to any company under CCP control, or exports from the SPR to China.
“Governor Abbott's exactly right to call for the Texas Legislature to pass a 'Texas Title 42 Act.' Texas must use every tool available to save America from the crisis that's ravaging the border and threatening our national security with over 250,000 illegal crossings last month alone," said Rep. Brian Harrison, after Gov. Greg Abbott earlier today called for passage of Harrison's recently introduced HB 1491, called the "Texas Title 42 Act".
The company has received scrutiny in recent months over questionable claims in its advertisements, including its claim that the FBI calls home title theft “one of the fastest growing white-collar cyber-crimes in America.” According to news reports, Home Title Lock admitted that it markets to “older customers.”
“I’m proud to sign the largest S-IGSA between a state and the U.S. military. Texas will always support the brave men and women who serve in our military, and together we will continue to help these heroes serve and protect the greatest nation in the history of the world. We're ensuring infrastructure projects at our bases are built faster, and more efficiently,” said Gov. Abbott while signing the historic 10-year agreement.
“School choice is the Civil-Rights issue of the 21st Century, and every single child deserves access to an excellent education – regardless of race, ethnicity, wealth or zip code. That's why I’m once again introducing legislation to dramatically expand education freedom by creating $100 billion in Federal Tax Credits and scholarships. If passed, it would be the most consequential federal education legislation since the G.I. Bill," said Cruz.
For over two years now, President Biden has waged war on American Energy... from canceling critical pipelines, to regulating endless permitting delays, taxpayers have seen energy prices skyrocket due to these anti-energy policies. And now – in order to bail out his radical "Green New Deal" agenda – he's depleted our Strategic Petroleum Reserve. This week, House Republicans fought back.
"Our debt currently sits above $31 trillion — a figure that's incomprehensible to most people. To put it in perspective, the debt is equivalent to almost $100,000 per person – and will nearly double over the next generation. To avoid a crisis, Congress will not only need uncommon fiscal courage, but commonsense economic policies that encourage work and grows our GDP," says the new chairman of the House Budget Committee.
Last week I introduced legislation to Authorize the Use of Military Force (AUMF) against the Mexican Cartels facilitating our Southern Border Crisis. I also signed onto Articles of Impeachment for Homeland Security Sect. Mayorkas. The cartels are at war with us – poisoning 80,000+ Americans with fentanyl each year, creating a crisis at our border, and turning Mexico into a failed narco-state. It’s time we directly target them.
“While direct travel spending in Texas is recovering faster than national averages, we continue supporting Texas businesses as they grow and expand. All eligible tourism-related businesses in Texas are strongly encouraged to apply for this grant program," said Gov. Abbott of the Texas Travel Industry Recovery Grant Program that will provide one-time grants of up to $20,000 for recovery of Texas businesses impacted by the pandemic.
As Republicans on the House's Homeland Security Committee worked to expose the atrocities of President Biden’s border crisis last year, I served as Ranking Member on the Counter-Terrorism Subcommittee and led the effort to expose the shocking number of known and suspected terrorists entering our country under his watch. And, I plan to keep holding this White House accountable for the crisis.
"This is the strongest, best equipped group of senators in Texas history. They are proven leaders with the expertise and experience needed to keep Texas moving in the right direction. That includes the most outstanding freshman class we have ever had," said Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, following today's announcement of his Texas Senate Committee appointments for the already-underway 2023 Legislative Session.
"In one of my first acts as chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, I sent a letter to (Joe Biden's) Secretary of State Antony Blinken, demanding more information on President Biden's withdrawal from Afghanistan — an unmitigated disaster of epic proportions. American citizens and our Afghan allies deserve answers, and I'm going to ensure they get them," said McCaul.
"We acknowledge the Commissioners’ comments to maintain competition and innovation in the solutions, but concerns remain regarding shifting risk away from generators and toward consumers as the Performance Credit Mechanism (PCM) model is crafted and continues to evolve," said Todd Staples, President of the TXOGA Texas Oil & Gas Association,
“We live in a state of infinite possibilities, and in the Legislative Session ahead we will continue working together to keep Texas the land of opportunity," said Gov. Greg Abbott, as the Texas Workforce Commission announced figures for December again surpassed the all-time record for total jobs for the 14th consecutive month. Employers added 29,500 nonfarm jobs in December, and total jobs in Texas hit a record 13,705,500 at year end.
In December 2022, Texas added 29,500 positions, reaching a total of 13,705,500 nonfarm jobs in Texas and marking a 14th consecutive record employment high in Texas. "Texas remains the best place to do business thanks to the success and resilience of Texas' employers. From lowering taxes to supporting programs that meet the needs of businesses, TWC is here to help," said Texas Workforce Commissioner Aaron Demerson.