The challenges we are facing at the border with the immigrants seeking asylum is now a crisis. The finger pointing and political rhetoric from Republicans and Democrats must end and we should come together to find short-term solutions and a response that is humane and secures our border. We must take appropriate action that not only protects migrants but also protects the residents of our communities. All, while at the same time being aware that we are still dealing with a pandemic and our hospitals are again facing both staffing and ICU bed shortages.

Just last week, the Chief Patrol Agent of the Rio Grande Valley Sector stated that the “RGV has encountered a significant increase in apprehensions that has strained the capacity at RGV Border Patrol stations.” He also added, “In Fiscal Year 2021, RGV’s apprehensions are up approximately 529% as compared to Fiscal Year 2020.” These statements are alarming and are concerning to me and our border communities as many of the migrants being tested have been COVID positive.

Making matters worse, is that there is no one supervising the migrants that have tested positive for COVID. It has been reported that these individuals and their families are going into our communities, our restaurants and stores, without masks — potentially spreading the virus to others. This is especially concerning as we have the DELTA variant spreading very rapidly across our state and our nation.

While we are blessed to have organizations like the Catholic Charities of the Rio Grande Valley, under the leadership of Sister Norma Pimentel, who provide shelter, food, and clothing to immigrants, they too are at capacity. It has left Hidalgo County Judge Richard Cortez, McAllen Mayor Javier Villalobos, and other city mayors with no other option than to issue local disaster declarations. These declarations are to address concerns with the lack of resources and infrastructure in place to continue sheltering and facilitating the release of migrants from federal custody.

It is clear that public, private, and non-profit resources have been stretched to the limit and Congress has done nothing to help us respond to this immigration crisis. Members of Congress visiting South Texas for discussions on border security have just been here for photo-ops and press conferences with no real action. This immigration problem has been going on for far too long and enough is enough.

The Biden administration needs to work with Congress to reform our broken immigration system and fix the underlying problem. However, in the short-term, just taking the necessary actions to slow the rate of immigrants crossing the border and having better control of their release, will help keep our communities safer and secure.

We must define and protect our borders. We have the right to know who is coming into our country. A country is no longer a nation if it doesn’t defend and protect its border. For our current crisis, I’m not blaming immigrants. They are following the message they are hearing from our federal government which is come to the U.S and with catch and release currently in place, if you make it here you will likely stay. I place full responsibility on the federal government for this message and for the failure to control and secure our border.

The Hidalgo County Water Improvement District No. 3 (“District”) continues to prove it is an unnecessary layer of government that has outgrown its purpose.  To the detriment of McAllen residents, the District will increase rates for the water it provides the McAllen Public Utility (“Utility “), effective September 1, 2021. Even though the Utility currently provides top tier water service to McAllen residents at one of the most competitive rates in the state, the rate increase is expected to have a negative impact. The City of McAllen pays the District nearly $1.3 million per year for water. The District already has the highest water rate compared to other districts within the region. They are about 80 percent higher than the City of McAllen pays other water providers. The District’s notice to the Utility leaves the door open for additional rate increases in the future. The new water rate increases by the District will lead to higher water bills for Utility ratepayers.

The District partially justifies the increase to fulfill its new “responsibilities” required under the bill I authored and passed this year. As enacted, Senate Bill 2185 is intended to improve transparency, end conflicts of interests, such as the District’s General Manager also being the President of the Board, and prohibit contracts such as those entered by the District with private businesses owned by this same individual. State audits have revealed these unethical practices of the District’s leadership which have plagued the District for more than a decade. Essentially, with this new rate increase, the District is passing on the costs to correct years of improper actions, mismanagement, and abuse of power that has financially enriched the District’s President at the expense of the ratepayers in McAllen. The new revenue for the District from September’s rate increase will also go towards recouping the money spent by the District to hire a highly compensated team of lobbyists who opposed Senate Bill 2185’s anti-corruption, common-sense reforms.

As introduced, the Senate Bill 2185 would have eliminated this unnecessary layer of government the District has evolved into and enabled the Utility to provide the same water services but in an efficient and transparent manner.  The initial version set forth an option for the City of McAllen to dissolve the District and upon dissolution would take over its obligations, rights, operation, and responsibilities. As the Utility testified in the hearing for the bill, the City of McAllen was (and remains) in the position to continue to serve Utility ratepayers and the District’s few agricultural customers without any disruption of services throughout the district’s territory. These safeguards were included in the bill. Because the Utility’s board of trustees is elected by the public, any rate increase proposals made by the Utility’s board are scrutinized by the public. Unlike the District, the Utility board of trustees answers directly to the residents they serve, making accountability a paramount priority. Had the Senate Bill 2185 passed as it was originally written, there would be no increases in water rates for McAllen ratepayers.

AUSTIN, TX — Texas’s highly successful annual Sales Tax Holiday is scheduled this year from Friday, August 6th through midnight Sunday, August 8th and will offer Texans an opportunity to save millions in sales tax on clothing and various back-to-school items. The Texas Comptroller’s office estimates that shoppers will save an estimated $107.3 million in state and local sales tax during this sales tax holiday. With the new school year almost upon us, the timing is perfect for students of all ages to stock up on clothes and supplies.

“The back-to-school season is an excellent opportunity for our Texas families to find bargains and low prices, and at the same time is an economic driver for our local businesses. I encourage our families to take full advantage of the sales tax holiday and save more of their hard-earned dollars by shopping this coming weekend. These purchases can be done in stores or from an online seller doing business in Texas,” Senator Hinojosa stated.

Texans who shop during this weekend will not have to pay sales taxes on clothing, school supplies, face masks, backpacks, or footwear priced under $100. Items sold online and layaway plans qualify, as well. The following link to the Texas Comptroller’s webpage will provide more information and a complete list of tax-free items: https://comptroller.texas.gov/taxes/publications/98-490/

Today, Legislators had a call with Texas Department of State Health Services Commissioner John Hellerstedt to discuss COVID-19. He made it very clear we are again at a CRITICAL point. We are seeing a surge of COVID cases and hospitalizations across the nation, and Texas is NO EXCEPTION!

The Delta variant is more transmissible, more deadly, and individuals with underlying vulnerabilities are at higher risk of severe infection and death. 95-99% of those currently hospitalized are unvaccinated. The slides below prove that the vaccine works.

We cannot eliminate this terrible and deadly disease without more individuals in our state getting the vaccine. If you have not gotten the vaccine, please get one as soon as possible. The vaccine not only protects you, it protects all of us.

Help us put COVID behind us. Find a COVID-19 vaccine near you by clicking on this link, www.vaccines.gov.

AUSTIN, TX — On Friday, July 23rd, the Office of the Governor and the Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs (TDHCA) announced the awarding of $52.9 million in Housing Stability Grants to 31 organizations across the state for housing stabilization in the state. Senator Juan “Chuy” Hinojosa invited several eligible entities to participate on the call for applications and commends the entities that submitted an application for funding consideration.

The organizations awarded in Senator Hinojosa’s senate district include: Community Action Corporation of South Texas ($998,297), Accessible Housing Resources, Inc. ($250,000), and the Salvation Army of the Coastal Bend ($225,000), serving the counties of Nueces, Brooks, and Jim Wells. These organizations must use the funds by August 31, 2022. The final contract may reflect additional or fewer counties in order to increase coverage areas or to avoid duplication of services. The $52.9 million is coming from $1.3 billion TDHCA received from the U.S. Treasury Department through the Consolidated Appropriations Act to help income-eligible residents struggling because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

“I appreciate Governor Abbott and TDHCA awarding over $50 million in federal funding for the new Housing Stability Grants that will benefit many residents within my district,” said Senator Hinojosa. He added “I especially appreciate and congratulate the organizations who very quickly responded to the call to apply for these funds. I am encouraged by these awards as these grants will help prevent evictions and support renters and homeowners who are still recovering from challenges and economic hardships caused by the pandemic and Winter Storm Uri.”

The grants will be used for housing stabilization activities that include outreach and shelter services. The grants will also allow TDHCA to partner with the Texas Veterans Commission and connect veterans experiencing homelessness, or those at risk, with direct local assistance that includes housing, transportation, and mental health services. The organizations may use the funds for various activities including hosting clinics to help access the Texas Rent Relief Program, providing landlord incentive payments and helping with job placement. TDHCA is also giving a $20 million grant to the Texas Access to Justice Foundation so attorneys can provide advice for rent relief and evictions.

AUSTIN, TX – At the Texas Transportation Commission (Commission) meeting on June 30, 2021, the Commission awarded the Hidalgo County Regional Mobility Authority (RMA) $27 million in grant funding for the State Highway 365 Project which is from FM 396 (Anzalduas Highway) and extends east and south to US 281 (Military Highway), a distance of approximately 12.2 miles in Hidalgo County. The members of the Hidalgo County legislative delegation have been working with the Commission, RMA leadership, and TxDOT staff to secure these funds to move this project forward.

“I appreciate the Texas Transportation Commission’s unanimous approval of the $27 million in grant funding so that the RMA can move forward with the construction of the SH 365 Project,” said Senator Juan “Chuy” Hinojosa. He added, “For the past several years I have been working with RMA Chairman David Deanda, facilitating meetings with TxDOT staff, and making sure this project remained in the Unified Transportation Program (UTP).” The UTP is TxDOT’s 10-year plan that guides the development of transportation projects across the state. “I also want to thank Terry Canales, Chairman of the House Transportation Committee, and all the members of our legislative delegation for their letters of support, phones calls to the Commission, and tireless commitment to this project,” said Senator Hinojosa.

In a letter Senator Hinojosa sent to the Commission prior to the meeting, he wrote, “This is a project that will significantly improve our communities by diverting nearly one million international trucks per year from our local roads through neighborhoods and school zones where they cause significant safety issues and are a strain on an already congested system.” After the meeting, Senator Hinojosa re-emphasized the importance of this project, “In a recent report from TxDOT, it is estimated that the number of northbound commercial vehicles and rail crossings in the Texas-Mexico border is forecast to grow from a combined 5.6 million in 2019 to 14.9 million in 2050,” said Senator Hinojosa. “For this reason, it is important that we invest in our infrastructure so that Texans can reap the financial benefits and the number of jobs trade with Mexico generates for the Texas economy. This is an important investment for the future of the Valley.”

The State Highway 365 project was a priority for the Hidalgo County RMA, the RGV Metropolitan Planning Organization, and many business and community leaders in the Rio Grande Valley. The Hidalgo County RMA now has until May 1, 2022 to execute a construction contract for this project.

AUSTIN – Today, Senator Jane Nelson, chair of the Senate Finance Committee announced she will not be seeking re-election, ending her legislative career after nearly three decades in the Texas Senate.

Senator Juan “Chuy” Hinojosa released the following statement:

“Senator Nelson made history when she was appointed chair of the Senate Finance Committee in 2015, making her the first woman to hold this powerful chairmanship. I had the honor and privilege of working with her as vice chair of the Senate Finance committee for three sessions. With her leadership we crafted and passed budgets that invested in public education, healthcare, including mental health and GME expansion, higher education, and infrastructure. I congratulate her for her long, successful, and historic legislative career, and wish her much success in her future endeavors.”

Every legislative session is different. With such a big state, we never know what challenges we will have to address. This past session, addressing the impact the coronavirus pandemic had on our economy, our schools, our healthcare system, and our workforce was a priority. Just as important was addressing the serious shortfalls in the Public Utility Commission and the Electric Reliability Council of Texas’ management of our electricity grid during Winter Storm Uri. It was equally important that we passed a state budget that takes care of the needs of our state and our communities to help us recover from these challenges.

The state’s $248 billion budget for the next two years fully funds the state’s commitment to the public education investments made by HB 3 during the 2019 session. Coming into this session, there was concern that the pandemic and the declines in tax revenues would require these investments to be scaled back. However, we kept our promise of not only fully funding public education, protecting the salary increases to our teachers and school employees, but also added additional funds. Part of the $2 billion increase for public education funding in the state budget includes $664 million for targeted programs to help students and schools affected by the pandemic. This was made possible in large part to the bipartisan federal COVID-response legislation, including the American Rescue Plan signed by President Biden. Education is the best equalizer and these investments will continue helping our students get an education.

The budget also continues our investments in higher education. We added $486 million to higher education to bring our total investment to $8.6 billion, $1.25 billion of which is for financial aid programs. The budget also increases funding at the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley by $29 million for a total of $364.3 million. This increased funding includes our continued support of the School of Medicine which saw an increase of $3.8 million for a total of $72.8 million. We also allocated $1.9 million for the Cervical Dysplasia Cancer Immunology Center and will continue working with UTRGV and UT System leadership to expand cancer care in South Texas.

Additionally, the approved budget bolsters our healthcare workforce by increasing funding for graduate medical education by $48 million to a total of $199 million to maintain a 1.1 to 1.0 ratio for residency slots. This increase in GME funding will also help the recently authorized UTRGV school of podiatry program, which will allow students to pursue careers in the medical and surgical care of the foot and ankle – an important specialization for the Valley due to its high incidence of diabetes and related diseases of the lower extremities.

Mental health continues to be a priority for the legislature. The approved budget strengthens our commitment by including $8.4 billion in behavioral health funding across 25 state agencies. This includes an increase of almost $20 million for the Texas Child Mental Health Care Consortium which will now be funded at nearly $120 million to provide early intervention for students at risk of suicide, substance abuse, or becoming a danger to themselves or others.

For our retirees, the 2019 legislative session was focused on the Teacher Retirement System. This session, we worked to address issues related to the Employees Retirement System. We passed Senate Bill 321 which will be used to start paying down the $14.7 billion unfunded liability in conjunction with an increase in the state’s investment into this system from $350 million to $510 million annually. These moves not only help shore up the pension fund, but also saves the state $34 billion in interest over 33 years.

Other major statewide funding items we passed include $352.6 million for women’s health programs, which is an increase of $10.2 million from the previous budget. Funding for the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department was increased by a total of $100.6 million to a total of $316.9 million. This means more funds for our state parks and more available grant funds for our local parks. Transportation funding also remained a priority and $26.5 billion has been approved for highway planning and design, construction, and other purposes.

The budget we approved also includes funding for many of our South Texas priorities including another $5 million for the South Texas International Airport in Edinburg to continue expanding the hangar for emergency and first responders; up to $10 million for the Raymondville Drain project from the Texas Water Development Board; $3.5 million for the Center for Urban Ecology at Quinta Mazatlan; $1 million in grants for the Border Zone Fire Departments; $500,000 for the Texas Transnational Intelligence Center; $500,000 for the Women’s Institute for Technology Employment Training; $500,000 for the Trade Agricultural Inspection Grant Program; and, continued the funding for Border Infrastructure which has led to $60 million per biennium being allocated by the Texas Transportation Commission.

The budget we passed increases access and funding to services needed by our most vulnerable populations — the young, elderly, sick, and poor. We invested in education, healthcare, public safety, and infrastructure. This budget will benefit our state and our South Texas communities by paving the way for an educated and healthy workforce and a successful Texas economy recovering from the pandemic and the winter storm.

Every legislative session is different. With such a big state, we never know what challenges we will have to address. This past session, addressing the impact the coronavirus pandemic had on our economy, our schools, our healthcare system, and our workforce was a priority. Just as important was addressing the serious shortfalls in the Public Utility Commission and the Electric Reliability Council of Texas’ management of our electricity grid during Winter Storm Uri. It was equally important that we passed a state budget that takes care of the needs of our state and our communities to help us recover from these challenges.

The state’s $248 billion budget for the next two years fully funds the state’s commitment to the public education investments made by HB 3 during the 2019 session. Coming into this session, there was concern that the pandemic and the declines in tax revenues would require these investments to be scaled back. However, we kept our promise of not only fully funding public education, protecting the salary increases to our teachers and school employees, but also added additional funds. Part of the $2 billion increase for public education funding in the state budget includes $664 million for targeted programs to help students and schools affected by the pandemic. This was made possible in large part to the bipartisan federal COVID-response legislation, including the American Rescue Plan signed by President Biden. Education is the best equalizer and these investments will continue helping our students get an education.

The budget also continues our investments in higher education. We added $486 million to higher education to bring our total investment to $8.6 billion, $1.25 billion of which is for financial aid programs. The budget also provided over $145 million in funding for Texas A&M Corpus Christi, over $2 million of which supports the growing engineering programs we recently created. Moreover, the budget increased funding for Del Mar Community College by nearly $2 million, provided $8.5 million to the UT Marine Science Institute, and added a new $3 million to create the Texas A&M Corpus Christi Unmanned Aircraft Emergency Management program.

Additionally, the approved budget bolsters our healthcare workforce by increasing funding for graduate medical education by $48 million to a total of $199 million to maintain a 1.1 to 1.0 ratio for residency slots. This increase in GME funding will help increase the number of highly trained doctors in our region.

Mental health continues to be a priority for the legislature. The approved budget strengthens our commitment by including $8.4 billion in behavioral health funding across 25 state agencies. This includes an increase of almost $20 million for the Texas Child Mental Health Care Consortium which will now be funded at nearly $120 million to provide early intervention for students at risk of suicide, substance abuse, or becoming a danger to themselves or others.

For our retirees, the 2019 legislative session was focused on the Teacher Retirement System. This session, we worked to address issues related to the Employees Retirement System. We passed Senate Bill 321 which will be used to start paying down the $14.7 billion unfunded liability in conjunction with an increase in the state’s investment into this system from $350 million to $510 million annually. These moves not only help shore up the pension fund, but also saves the state $34 billion in interest over 33 years.

Other major statewide funding items we passed include $352.6 million for women’s health programs, which is an increase of $10.2 million from the previous budget. Funding for the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department was increased by a total of $100.6 million to a total of $316.9 million, including $500,000 for the Texas State Aquarium Wildlife Rescue Center. This means more funds for our state parks and more available grant funds for our local parks. Transportation funding also remained a priority and $26.5 billion has been approved for highway planning and design, construction, and other purposes.

The budget we approved also includes funding for many of our Coastal Bend priorities including $8.6 million for Healthy South Texas, headquartered in Corpus Christi; $40 million for port access improvements; $30 million in Defense Economic Adjustment Assistance (DEAAG) Grants; and $9.7 million for boll weevil eradication.

The budget we passed increases access and funding to services needed by our most vulnerable populations — the young, elderly, sick, and poor. We invested in education, healthcare, public safety, and infrastructure. This budget will benefit our state and our Coastal Bend communities by paving the way for an educated and healthy workforce and a successful Texas economy recovering from the pandemic and the winter storm.

Texas Governor Greg Abbott recently held a press conference to announce his plans for the State of Texas to build a physical border wall with state taxpayer dollars. He also indicated a new approach to charge immigrants and asylum seekers with state crimes to create a criminal record and jail them. At the press conference, Governor Abbott was surrounded by lawmakers from various parts of the state, but not a single lawmaker who joined him represents a border community.

Because border lawmakers live and work on the border every day, we understand the concerns of our constituents and the challenges our communities face. In our representative government, the voice of border lawmakers are the voice of border communities and should be at the table discussing issues that impact our districts. For whatever reason, we were omitted from major policy discussions related to the border. We support legal immigration, not open borders, and have supported transparent, accountable, and smart border security for years.

Lawmakers from both political parties agree border security is a federal responsibility. For years, however, Texas has supplemented federal efforts by spending billions of state taxpayer money on this federal responsibility, instead of on other pressing state needs. This session, for example, Texas appropriated another $1.1 billion for border security. None of that money was earmarked for a border wall.

The federal government, dating back to President George W. Bush, has already built fencing and walls in the highest traffic areas. Building a physical wall from El Paso to Brownsville would be the most expensive and least effective way to achieve border security, and it would be a colossal waste of taxpayer money. A physical wall made of cement or steel slats is a 3^rd century solution to a 21^st century migration problem. Anyone who commits a crime, whether immigrant or legal resident, should be arrested. But, Texas shouldn’t circumvent federal immigration and asylum laws by creating new ways to criminalize and to jail undocumented immigrants and asylum seekers. This expensive proposition would overfill local prisons, which already are stretched thin—with non-dangerous persons and separate families looking for refuge and the American dream.

The new federal administration is working on addressing the root causes of these migration waves that stress our borders, but this will take time. The bottom line is that Congress needs to act immediately to pass immigration reform and provide resources to stop the criminal elements from crossing the border.

If Texas, however, is going to be in the business of border security in the meantime, the state needs to be accountable, transparent and smart with taxpayer dollars. The state also should hear from border lawmakers. If Texas is to be committed to going down this path, as lawmakers who represent districts along the Texas-Mexico border, we suggest the following smart measures as a starting point:

Building a virtual or smart wall with fiber optic lines along the border, supported by technology, drones, motion sensors, cameras, etc. Virtual infrastructure for border security could be accomplished at a fraction of the cost of a physical wall; bolster real time monitoring, detection, and response; and bridge the digital divide for law enforcement along the border.

1. Reimbursing local border communities and private property owners for costs incurred related to border security and humanitarian aid with proceeds from asset forfeitures related to border crimes and other state grants. Our border communities are on the front lines as local law enforcement support border security efforts, provide humanitarian assistance for needy families and children, and humanely process the remains of deceased migrants. Because private property owners along the border also sustain property damage by human traffickers and cartels to fences, barns, outhouses, and livestock, they should be reimbursed for related expenses.
2. Cracking down on gun trafficking in Texas and incentivizing the reporting of lost or stolen guns to law enforcement. If Texas is serious about combatting cartels and armed human traffickers, we should find ways to disarm them. Hundreds of thousands of firearms are smuggled from the U.S. into Mexico every year and are traced to 70 percent of all weapons seizures following murders, robberies and drug busts. Approximately 41 percent of illicit guns utilized to commit a crime in Mexico are from Texas.
3. Reducing the demand for drugs, beginning with our children, and the related flow of money into Mexico. This will require education, intervention, rehabilitation and law enforcement programs. The flow of drugs from Mexico into Texas and of cash from here to there will stop when the demand for drugs is reduced or eliminated.
4. Modernizing ports of entry with technology and intelligent transportation systems. Fentanyl and most illicit drugs from Mexico enter the U.S. through the ports of entry. Investing in our ports of entry can make our border more secure while boosting our economy.
5. Improving border rail inspection stations required by U.S. Customs and Border Patrol for border rail lines owned by the State of Texas. Some border rail lines owned by Texas cross the border and need improved facilities for the inspection and processing of rail cars.

 These are only a few ideas from lawmakers who represent the border and who understand our region’s problems and related solutions. By funding these proposals instead of a wall, we will make great strides while using state taxpayer dollars to benefit Texans and without funding programs that should be the responsibility of the federal government.

The issue of immigration and border security has been a challenge for decades and plagued by partisan politics. These issues will not be solved overnight or by one party. We are confident if we leave politics at the door, we can find common ground from which to address these challenges. That first requires including border lawmakers at the table.