SD 11 SREC: August Update from State Representative Dennis Paul

Splashdown!

Congratulations to NASA and SpaceX on safety returning two of House District 129's own, Astronauts Doug Hurley and Bob Behnken back to Earth! Crew Dragon DM-2 was a huge success and I can not wait for the launch of Crew-1 scheduled for next month!

State Updates

Governor Abbott, Lt. Governor Patrick and House Speaker Dennis Bonnen and the Chairman of the House and Senate Education Committees, Sen Larry Taylor and Rep. Dan Huberty issued a joint statement reaffirming their support for TEA guidance issued earlier this summer. You can read the joint statement in full here.

Governor Greg Abbott announced that he has waived the promotion requirement related to the STAAR test for students in 5th and 8th grades for the upcoming 2020-2021 school year.

Tax-free weekend begins Friday, August 7 and ends at midnight Sunday, August 9. Items that will be exempt from tax include most clothing, shoes, school supplies, and back packs (sold for less than $100).

Governor Abbott issued a proclamation extending the early voting period leading up to Election Day by nearly a week. In-person early voting will now begin on Tuesday, October 13 and run through Friday, October 30. This proclamation also expands the period in which marked mail-in ballots may be delivered in person to the early voting clerk's office.

The Texas Education Agency will offer free learning management system to Texas schools for two years to help bolster remote and classroom instruction read the full release here.

The Department of Public Safety has resumed all in-office driver license (DL) and identification (ID) card services by appointment only. These services include renewal transactions. For more information, or to make an appointment please click here.

COVID-19 Update

For information related to Texas' response to Covid-19 please click here.
If you have a specific question, or need personal assistance, please do not hesitate to contact my office. You can find the contact information at the bottom of this email.

Need Help with the Workforce Commission?

My office has been working every day to help constituents resolve their unemployment claim issues. I know these have been extremely challenging times for Texas families, and I want to make sure that everyone gets the proper help they need.

If you need assitance please contact my office and my staff will be happy to assist you in whatever way they can.

Contact information for both my Capitol and District offices is at the bottom of this email.

Around the District

I was honored to attend and speak at the dedication oof the Nassau Bay Gateway Structure.

I attended the virtual BAHEP General Meeting with Col. Matthew Baker Commander of the 147th Attack Wing Texas Air National Guard and the Commander of Ellington Joint Reserve Base. Col. Baker discussed the future of Ellington Field and the possible relocation of Africa Command. He also spoke about the presence of the newly formed United States Space Forced gave an update on on improvements at the badging station and what will be required for a future commissary on the base.

Last week I attended a virtual Public Meeting held by the Harris County Flood Control District. They were discussing flood control projects along Horsepen Bayou in the heart of Clear Lake. It was a great meeting with a lot of good input from the public. My office and I closely monitor all flood work in the area and are looking forward to working HCFCD on this project. If you would like more information on this project you can click here.