Spring time is quickly approaching, and that means the bluebonnets will be blooming, crawfish will be boiling, and legislation will be moving at full speed.
There is a lot of great information in this week’s newsletter. Feel free to share it with your friends and neighbors and encourage them to sign-up so they don’t miss any upcoming news.
Below is a summary of the information you’ll find in this newsletter. As always, there are resources on COVID-19 vaccines and winter storm recovery information.
- Celebrating Texas’ Independence Day
- Governor Abbott’s Mask Mandate
- Legislative Session Update
- COVID Vaccine Information
- Winter Storm Recovery Resources
District Update
Governor Lifts Mask Mandate
On March 2, Governor Abbott announced that he will lift the state’s mask mandate and businesses will also be able to open at 100% capacity effective March 10th.
This announcement does not abandon safe practices that we have all mastered over this past year. Each person will now have a role to play in their own safety and the safety of others instead of our government dictating how to do so.
More information on the Governor’s change found here: https://gov.texas.gov/news/post/governor-abbott-lifts-mask-mandate-opens-texas-100-percent
To see the latest Executive Orders issued by the Governor, follow this link: https://lrl.texas.gov/legeLeaders/governors/displayDocs.cfmgovdoctypeID=5&governorID=45
Legislative Update
I have been working hard to represent you this legislative session. I have filed 19 bills and 6 House Joint Resolutions.
HB 1569, which will protect home owners from having their religious displays removed by their home owners’ associations.
HB 1705, which will freeze all property taxes for homeowners over 65 years old.
HB 2294, which will lower your property taxes by having the amount of your home’s property value that doesn’t get taxed (the “homestead exemption”) automatically rise whenever your appraisal rises.
HB 2304, which will limit the growth of state government spending to the growth in the state’s population plus inflation. This bill will ensure that Texas government stays the same size relative to the economy and doesn’t take up an increasing portion of your family’ s income.
HB 2364, which will prevent the city of Houston from controlling the use of your property by including you in the city’s “extra-territorial jurisdiction” (ETJ). Currently, most of our district is in Houston’ s ETJ, which allows the city to block you from using your property as you see fit, even if you don’t live in the city or get to vote for the mayor and council.
I have also been working with Rep. Briscoe Cain, Chairman of the House Elections Committee, on an election integrity bill that will ensure that Texas elections are fair.
To read and follow the rest of my bill package, follow this link to “Bill Authored”: https://house.texas.gov/members/member-page/?district=132
Rep. Schofield in the Judiciary & Civil Jurisprudence Committee listening to Chief Justice Nathan Hecht of the Texas Supreme Court
Two of the House Committees I sit on, Judiciary and Elections, had their first hearings this week. I am excited to work with my fellow Representatives to help pass good legislation.
All legislation will be referred to a committee, which can hold a hearing or “kill” the bill in committee by taking no action on it. If the bill passes out of the committee, then it heads to the “calendars” committee, which decides whether to set it for a floor vote.
If you would like to watch committee hearings on a live stream, you can follow this link: https://house.texas.gov/video-audio/ or https://senate.texas.gov/av-live.php
Texas Independence Day
On March 2, we celebrated the 185th anniversary of the Texas Declaration of Independence from Mexico that 59 men signed at the Washington-on-the-Brazos – becoming the independent Republic of Texas!
Tips for Winter Storm Recovery
BREAKING NEWS: On March 3rd, ERCOT’s CEO, Bill Magness, was fired. The Board of Directors voted 6-1 to give the CEO 60 days notice to vacate the position.
If you are still in need of information on how to recover from the winter storm, please see the information below:
BURST WATER PIPES: Restoring water service is not the only water problem we face. If your power was out for a significant period of time, you run the risk of water freezing in your pipes that will expand when the water thaws, potentially bursting your pipes. If you haven’t had water service, or have turned off your water at the valve at the side of your home, you will want to open the faucets so they can drip and clear the water. Gov. Abbott is encouraging homeowners and tenants to line up plumbers ASAP, to avoid long waits for service. In the mean time, he has authorized out-of-state plumbers to come to Texas to help out. Be very careful if you don’t know your plumber; make sure you are not getting gouged or charged up front for work that doesn’t end up being performed.
CONTACT YOUR INSURANCE PROVIDER: Just like in the case of a flood, many people will be contacting their homeowners or renters insurance company all at once. Gov. Abbott has recommended that you contact your insurance company or agent now and set up a file number for your claim, to speed up your recovery once the extent of any damage is discovered. Take plenty of pictures and document everything that was damaged or destroyed by the water.
TDI (Texas Department of Insurance) updated their winter storm resource page which includes tips to help Texans file a claim and avoid scams. Also, their Help Line is open from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. central time this week: 800-252-3439. TDEM (Texas Division of Emergency Management) advises that people without insurance may be eligible for FEMA reimbursement in the coming weeks.
SNAP FOOD PROGRAM: If you lost the food in your fridge due to the power outage, and you are on the state’s SNAP food program, you can request replacement benefits for this month only. Submit a signed 1855 form and upload to your portal at yourtexasbenefits.com
RENTERS: If you are renter and your apartment or rental home was damaged last week, please click the link to learn more about renter’s rights so you can move forward with your management company: https://bit.ly/37wt8Zt
TDHCA (Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs) has launched the Texas Rent Relief Program — the first statewide rent and utility assistance program for qualifying households throughout Texas. This program has been created to administer the more than $1 billion allocated to Texas through the latest federal COVID-19 stimulus bill. TDHCA will begin accepting applications for the program on Monday, February 15th, but Texans can visit TexasRentRelief.com starting today to learn more about qualifications, required documents, and the application process.
BUSINESS OWNERS: If you were impacted by the severe winter storms and are located in a declared disaster area, you may be eligible for a low-interest disaster loan from the U.S. Small Business Administration. For more info and how to apply, visit bit.ly/3dFEiPl
PRICE GOUGING: Under Texas law, no company or provider may raise the cost of a service or good due to a natural disaster. An example of this is if a gas station rose the cost of gas well over the state’s average, or if a grocery store charged well over the cost of the good. If you saw price gouging, or currently see if as we move through recovery, please report it at the following link: bit.ly/2Nas0Ut
FEMA RESPONSE: Governor Abbott announced that the White House has partially approved Texas’ request for a Major Disaster Declaration (DR-4586-TX). The Governor requested the Major Disaster Declaration on Thursday for Individual Assistance and Public Assistance in all 254 counties. The White House approved the request for Individual Assistance in 77 counties (including Harris County) and for Public Assistance (Emergency Protective Measures Only) in all 254 counties.
Individuals and business owners in counties included in the President’s declaration who sustained losses in the designated area can begin applying for assistance by registering online at www.DisasterAssistance.gov or by calling 1-800-621-3362 or 1-800-462-7585
COVID-19 Vaccine Information
On March 3, Texas Department of Emergency Management (TDEM) announced that teachers and child care providers will now be considered part of the priority group to be eligible to receive the COVID vaccine.
This is the most updated information on how to sign up for COVID vaccines.
Please contact the provider and/or location you were scheduled to get the vaccine to see when your new appointment time has been set.
As of Wednesday, 8,88,955 doses of the vaccine has been distributed, which has been administered to 5,678,873 people in 254 counties.
I have been working closely with the Governor’s office, Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS), and a number of representatives from the healthcare field to get information out about the COVID-19 vaccine.
So far it has been too difficult to find out where vaccines will be available and to know where to sign up to get vaccinated. Many people have told me that by the time they hear that a location will have the vaccine and go to sign up, they are told that location is already out of vaccine. It needs to become a lot easier to locate places that have the vaccine and to be able to sign up in time to get vaccinated.
We will try to push information out about how to sign up to get the vaccine as soon as we receive that notice. Unfortunately, the process for vaccine distribution is rapidly changing week to week. There is no one single, centralized location to sign-up or register for a vaccine. I would encourage you to reach out to your healthcare providers, particularly any hospital where you have previously sought medical care, to find out if they are expecting any vaccines and how you can sign up.
You can also reference DSHS’ website where a map is provided with the most current and up-to-date locations of vaccine distributions. Follow the prompts through the following link: https://dshs.texas.gov/coronavirus/
VACCINE PROVIDERS: If you work at a medical facility or pharmacy that can support the storage and distribution of the vaccines, DSHS is taking requests to become a vaccine provider. You can find more information and fill out the application through the following link: https://dshs.texas.gov/coronavirus/immunize/provider-enrollment.aspx
Contact Me
I am your State Representative, but I am also your neighbor. If there is anything I can do to help you, please do not hesitate to reach out to me.
If you’d like to get in contact with our office, please feel free to go onto my webpage and click the “Email” button to fill out the form. The page can be found here: https://house.texas.gov/members/member-page/?district=132
You can also call our Capitol office at 512-463-0528 or our Katy district office at 281-492-0684. Our district office is located in the Houston Community College building at 1550 Foxlake Drive. We aren’t there right now, because HCC has closed the campus on Fridays and weekends.
I encourage everyone to stay connected this session on legislation, committee hearings, and floor debates through the following website: https://capitol.texas.gov/
House District 132
This past weekend was Katy ISD’s FFA Livestock Show and auction. I was very sad to miss the event, but I am very impressed with how well the students did!
Across the state of Texas, 214,000 students are enrolled in agricultural science courses, with 137,500 of those students enrolled as Texas FFA members.
This year, the students of Katy ISD raised $615,051.24. Congratulations to all Grand Champions, and to Emma Jordan of Cinco Ranch High School who won Grand Champion for Steer and was the Top Auction Winner having raised $12,000!
To see all the winners, check out the link here: https://www.katyisd.org/Pages/news-item.aspxTitle=%22Katy%20ISD%20FFA%20Auction%20Brings%20in%20Over%20$615K%22
Cinco Ranch High School Senior, Emma Jordan, with her Grand Champion Steer
Thank you and God Bless Texas,
