Harvey Legislation Passes out of Senate Chamber

Dear Family,

This week marks the halfway point of the 86th Legislative Session and several pieces of important legislation have passed the Senate.

Hurricane Harvey devastated the Gulf Coast more than a year and a half ago. Hundreds of thousands in Houston were impacted with the loss of vehicles, homes and prized irreplaceable possessions.

This week, the Texas Senate unanimously passed a trio of key Harvey bills that I joint-authored, designed to help communities still struggling to recover and prepare for the next natural disaster by utilizing $1.8 million from Rainy Day Fund. Below is a breakdown of Senate Bills 6, 7 and 8:

  • SB 6 seeks to keep county and city leaders informed on the best practices for disaster response.
  • SB 7 would create a special fund to pay for flood mitigation projects, hurricane recovery and provide matching funds to pull down federal dollars.
  • SB 8 is aimed at creating the first statewide flood plan.

These bills are just the first step to ensure that our state fully recovers from that historic storm, but to also ensure that we make reforms based on what we learned from it. Harvey showed us where the flaws and loopholes that exist in our state, and I am proud to work with my colleagues to resolve them.

In addition, I worked with the Texas General Lands Office during Harvey recovery and discussed the needs of our community. This week, I laid out SB 285 in the Senate Intergovernmental Relations Committee. This bill is one of the recommendations from the General Land Office’s “Hurricane Harvey: Texas at Risk” report.

SB 285 would require the distribution of hurricane preparedness and assistance information before hurricane season. This ensures all governments agencies and jurisdictions receive the necessary information so that the public can prepare their property and communities.

This bill was voted out of committee and will move to the Senate Chamber.

Keep the Faith, Keep the Fight!

Senator Borris L. Miles
District 13

St. Luke MBC Pastor Stanley Hillard Blesses the Texas Senate

Thank you to St. Luke Missionary Baptist Church Pastor Stanley Hillard and his wife Eleanor for joining me at the Capitol to give the invocation to the Texas Senate. It was an honor to have him give this blessing over the chamber. Thank you, Pastor Hillard!

Essence Duplechain

Westbury High School Excellence

It was a privilege to honor Westbury High School senior, Essence Duplechain in the Texas Senate for her outstanding accomplishments. Recently, she was awarded the Sallie Mae Bridging the Dream Scholarship and will be the first in her family to attend college. It was a pleasure to invite Essence and her family to the Capitol for this very special recognition. Congratulations, Essence! I know you will go far.

Harris County 4-H MacGregor Metropolitan

I met with the young ladies from Harris County 4-H MacGregor Metropolitan and discussed the activities and programs 4-H offers for youth. Afterwards, we explored the Civil Rights room and visited the Senate Floor where these young ladies learned about the late and great Congresswoman Barbara Jordan. I love taking the opportunity to educate our youth of the rich history of our African American leaders. Thank ladies for taking the time to visit YOUR Capitol and spending time with me.