Texas Governor Greg Abbott (R) signed several border security bills into law during the 88th Regular Legislative Session at the Texas Capitol.
These six bills are directed at stopping illegal immigration and the smuggling of drugs and weapons from Mexico into America.
"Thanks to the leadership and hard work of Director McCraw, General Suelzer, and their teams, Texas has pushed back against the swell of migrants and held the line to keep people out of Texas—but there's more that needs to be done," said Gov. Abbott.
The Texas governor stated that his legislation was a direct response to the Biden administration and what he viewed as mishandling of border security.
"The Texas Legislature has stepped up to make sure we continue to robustly respond to President Biden's growing border crisis, including allocating $5.1 billion for border security.”
The Texas lawmaker then announced that he was going to sign six bills that would help fight against the various issues.
“Today, I am signing six bills from this year's regular session to ensure that Texas can continue to do even more to stop illegal immigration at our southern border and provide new tools to the brave men and women along the southern border to protect Texans and Americans from the chaos and crisis of the border.”
Each of the Governor’s six border security bills addresses a different issue that, in some way, is connected to the state of Texas.
Senate Bill 423 (sponsored by Paxton/Wilson, T.M.) “provides Texas military forces the authority to use unmanned aircrafts as part of an operation, exercise, or mission. The bill legalizes the use of drones for search and recovery missions after natural disasters and for monitoring the Texas-Mexico border as part of Operation Lone Star.”
Senate Bill 602 (sponsored by Birdwell/Harless) “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. Current law only allows agents to detain certain individuals at these locations.”
Senate Bill 1133 (sponsored by Blanco/King, T.) “creates a grant program to compensate agricultural landowners up to $75,000 for property damage caused by trespassers committing a border crime, such as the smuggling of persons, evading arrest, human trafficking, or a drug offense.”
Senate Bill 1403 (sponsored by Parker/Spiller) “authorizes the Governor to coordinate and execute an interstate compact for border security among interested states without congressional approval. The compact will allow participating states to share law enforcement intelligence and resources for heightened detection and deterrence of illegal border activity and will further protect personnel and property to overcome continued shortcomings of existing federal border policy.”
Senate Bill 1484 (sponsored by Creighton/Holland) “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 of transnational criminal activity to local authorities.”
Senate Bill 1900 (sponsored by Birdwell/Guillen) “designates Mexican drug cartels and criminal organizations as foreign terrorist organizations in the State of Texas and increases penalties for the destruction of illegal drugs and the operation of stash houses. This bill also adds foreign terrorist organizations to current intelligence databases and allows local entities to seek public nuisance claims against them.”
The Governor was joined at the bill signing ceremony by Senators Brian Birdwell, Cesar Blanco, Pete Flores, and Tan Parker; Representatives Ryan Guillen, Caroline Harris, Tracy King, David Spiller, and Terry Wilson; Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) Director Steve McCraw; Adjutant General of Texas Major General Thomas Suelzer; Zapata County Sheriff Raymundo Del Bosque; Brooks County Sheriff Benny Martinez; National Border Patrol Council Executive Vice President Paul Perez; and other border security advocates.
The smuggling of illegal drugs and firearms from Mexico to Texas is usually attributed to the Mexican cartels, who Director McCraw sees as America’s main foe.
"Today, public enemy number one is the Mexican cartels, and they impact every community in Texas and the United States," said Director McCraw.
He continued, stating that finding where the illegal smuggling is happening is the main strategy for stopping it from entering the country.
"Our mission is to detect and interdict transitional criminal activity and create proactive strategies to combat it. It's dangerous to cross between ports of entry, and securing the border between them is ideal to fight Mexican cartels."
General Suelzer, moreover, complimented the Texas governor’s efforts to secure the border.
"Texas is extremely fortunate to have a Governor who is absolutely relentless in his actions to protect our state's sovereignty, secure our border, and preserve the rule of law," said General Suelzer.
"The legislators behind me passed comprehensive laws to secure the Texas-Mexico border, and I applaud all of them for their work on this important issue."
Gov. Abbott also announced that “new marine floating barriers” are going to be deployed to “deter illegal crossings in hotspots along the Rio Grande River.” Furthermore, the barriers will make it more difficult for migrants looking to enter the country through that particular port of entry.
“The first 1,000 feet of the marine floating barrier will be deployed near Eagle Pass.” reads the statement.
Recently, Texas politicians have rallied against Abbott's statements and legislation on property taxes.
Amid a property tax dispute between Abbott and Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick (R), Texas Representative Vicente Gonzalez (D) is asking the Governor to suspend payments on property taxes.
“The astronomical rise in property taxes is hurting the livelihoods of South Texans. @GovAbbott you have the power to freeze property taxes and help those who need it the most,” said Rep. Gonzalez.
Rep. Gonzalez attempted to remind the Governor about the economic hurdles that Texans have faced over the last few years.
“As Texans continue to recover from the lingering effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent inflation, we must continue to ensure that our small businesses and constituents have the resources they need to thrive. However, the recent increases in property taxes are impeding the growth of our communities and local economies.”
