We’re down to our last month here in Austin. More bills are being debated on the House floor that directly affect our communities. This week was a special example of how important these decisions are, and the difference we can make.
Fighting to protect border families
You have probably heard me talk about the fact that House District 75 has 263 colonias. These colonias often lack basic infrastructure and services such as running water, reliable roads, and sanitary sewage treatment.
On Thursday we debated a bill that would have loosened restrictions that have helped stop the spread of colonias. These restrictions have been in place for decades and raised the standards for building homes outside of city limits.
Unfortunately, some developers believed there was an opportunity to lower the standards and place a greater risk on homebuyers who may be new to the process and may have a language barrier.
El Paso County Judge Veronica Escobar and County Attorney JoAnn Bernal also opposed the bill and I was able to successfully exempt El Paso County from the proposed changes. Even though my amendment passed, every other border county would have still been affected.
That I why I voted no and helped defeat the bill.
It’s days like this that make all the hard work and travel worth it. We stood up to unscrupulous developers and got the results we need for our communities.
As always, if I can ever be of assistance, please contact my Capitol office at (512) 463-0613 or visit my district office at the Summer Office at 11200 Santos Sanchez in Socorro.