Hello Friends,

While Biden was at his Lake Tahoe pilates class, Texans were holding the line to stop illegal immigration, weapons, and deadly drugs from pouring across the southern border. Since March 2021, Operation Lone Star has made over 414,000 apprehensions, over 33,200 criminal arrests, and seized over 426 million lethal fentanyl doses. Thankfully, we are not in the fight alone! Twenty-four Republican Governors have committed to helping us secure the southern border, and many have provided personnel to assist our Texas Department of Public Safety officers and the Texas National Guard. In fact, on Monday, Governor Abbott held a press conference in Eagle Pass with four of those Governors.

In the fight to secure the border, my fellow Legislators and I know how important it is for Texas to have the tools to work with other states. That is why we passed a law authorizing an interstate compact for border security. If you would like to learn more about the interstate compact and other vital pieces of legislation that we passed, continue reading below.

• SB 423 allows the Texas State Guard to use unmanned aircrafts as part of an operation, exercise, or mission. The bill allows the Texas State Guard to use drones for search and recovery missions after natural disasters and to monitor the border.
• SB 602 expands the authority of U.S. Border Patrol agents who have completed a DPS training program to include arrest, search, and seizure at established border checkpoints and points of entry for felony offenses under Texas law.
• SB 1403 authorizes the Governor to coordinate and execute an interstate compact for border security without congressional approval. This compact empowers participating states to share vital resources and information, strengthening capabilities to address the border crisis and finish constructing our southern border wall.
• SB 1484 creates a collaborative border operations training program through DPS for peace officers employed by local law enforcement agencies along the border. The bill will allow DPS to share expertise in identifying and preventing transnational criminal activity.
• SB 1900 designates Mexican drug cartels and criminal organizations as foreign terrorist organizations and increases penalties for the destruction of illegal drugs and the operation of stash houses. This bill also adds foreign terrorist organizations to intelligence databases and allows local entities to seek public nuisance claims against them.

It truly is an honor to represent you in the Texas Senate, and I hope to continue doing so next session. Your support has been vital in helping me defend our conservative values at the Texas Capitol. Can you help ensure I have the resources necessary to run for reelection by contributing to my campaign? Your donation of $10, $50, or even $100 could make a tremendous difference.