As Texas lawmakers finally came to a consensus on property tax relief, Gov. Greg Abbott may now choose to widen the call of the special legislative session or call another special session on a different issue.
The first special session ended without any legislation receiving the approval of both the House and the Senate, including the one measure designed to increase penalties for human smuggling and operating stash houses.
Now, as the border crisis continues, advocates are calling on the governor to address border security.
“Despite the persistent efforts of grassroots conservatives, lawmakers concluded the regular session of the Texas Legislature without passing any meaningful legislation to protect the sovereignty and security of our state,” Cary Cheshire, executive director of Texans for Strong Borders, told Texas Scorecard.
Our state is under invasion and millions of illegal aliens are pouring across our border. We need lawmakers committed to repelling the illegal aliens trying to cross, returning those who make it through to Mexico, and working to undo the magnets that draw them to our state in the first place.
TFSB is pushing for lawmakers to not only repel the invasion at the border, but to also address policies that incentivize illegal aliens coming to Texas, including the job availability that exists because employers are not required to use E-Verify to verify legal residency.
Florida passed legislation earlier this year that mandates the use of E-Verify for employers with 25 or more employees and imposes penalties for those who employ illegal aliens.
Although similar legislation was proposed in the Texas Legislature, it was blocked by Republican senators.
“Under the leadership of Ron DeSantis, Florida passed a strong E-Verify bill that will protect citizens’ jobs and disincentivize future illegal immigration,” said Cheshire. “Meanwhile in Texas, State Sen. Lois Kolkhorst’s E-Verify bill was killed without a vote.”
Florida also passed legislation enhancing penalties for human smuggling (which Texas failed to pass in both the regular and first special session), prohibiting local governments from issuing IDs to illegal aliens, invalidating IDs issued to illegal aliens in other states, and requiring hospitals that use Medicaid to collect data on the costs of providing healthcare to illegal aliens.
“If Gov. Greg Abbott wants to truly address the illegal alien invasion of Texas, he should declare an invasion and follow through on removing illegal aliens and add mandating E-Verify, ending in-state tuition for illegals, taxing remittances, and prohibiting Chinese nationals from buying up Texas land to the special session call,” said Cheshire.
The second special legislative session is ongoing—dealing with property tax relief—and more sessions are expected to be called in the coming weeks.
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