This weekend, as we spend time at picnics, the beach, and with family and friends, let us all reflect on and honor the sacrifices our fallen men and women in the U.S. Armed Forces have made in defense of our country. Each one of those sacrifices is a building block to the freedoms we celebrate in America, and we remember and thank them on this and every Memorial Day.
Below is a quote from President Ronald Reagan's January 5,1967 Gubernatorial Inaugural Address regarding freedom and the sacrifices made to defend it.
"Freedom is a fragile thing and it's never more than one generation away from extinction. It is not ours by way of inheritance; it must be fought for and defended constantly by each generation, for it comes only once to a people. And those in world history who have known freedom and then lost it have never known it again." |
This week, Texas and the nation were devastated by the murders at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas. Just last week, we remembered those lost at a similar school shooting in Santa Fe, Texas; the fourth anniversary was May 18th. In Uvalde, 21 people, including 19 children, were killed in a murderous act of violence perpetrated by a lone shooter. The stories from families and the community being reported are heart wrenching. To those affected, we are praying with you and for you. We know we can and must do better to protect our communities, schools, and children.
That is why, on Friday, May 25, 2022, I introduced three bills in Congress to better protect our schools.
The first bill, the Protect Our Children's Schools Act, would allow the Secretary of Education to use unspent COVID-19 funds designated for schools and localities to reprogram those funds to make our schools safer against attacks. This money would be used to strengthen and enhance security systems already in place at schools. It would also allow for the funds to be spent on creating and implementing school safety programs to ensure our educators and administrative staff are better equipped to deal with active shooter scenarios.
The second, the School Resource Officer Compensation Act, would incentivize school districts to hire former law enforcement officers to serve as School Resource Officers, by exempting the respective school districts from the additional expense of having to pay matching social security contributions to anyone desiring to serve in this critical safety role. While the cost savings to the district may seem marginal, it is often at the margins that critical funding decisions are made—particularly, for those jurisdictions that are already hard-pressed to fund every high priority item.
And the third, the Protect Against School Shootings (PASS) Act, would amend the Gun-Free School Zones Act of 1990. This bill would allow qualified law enforcement officers, retired law officers, and those permitted by State law to carry a firearm, to discharge it in defense of themselves or others in an otherwise "gun free" school zone. |
Wednesday, I enjoyed meeting the Odyssey Academy of Galveston’s Underwater Robotics Team. They recently won the NASA TechRise Challenge, giving Odyssey the honor of being the only school in the state of Texas to fly an experiment on a Raven Aerospace High Altitude Balloon. The Team won the regional challenge and will be representing Galveston for the first time in the International Competition this June in Maryland. All 13 proposals to fly experiments were selected to fly in the NASA Sounding Rocket and the NASA High Altitude Balloon. This is such a huge accomplishment for these students. It was an honor to be able to host them and learn about their project and recognize their achievement of representing Galveston and Texas. I wish them the best of luck in Maryland at the International Competition next month! |
On Monday, I had the opportunity to recognize and show appreciation for our amazing FBI agents by visiting one of their TX14 local field offices. The men and women of law enforcement, across all levels, deserve more thanks and appreciation than we can possibly offer. They put their lives on the line to protect us day and night, and we want to make sure that they know how thankful we are for their sacrifice. |
Legislation cosponsored: - H.Res. 1136 - Establishing a Women's Bill of Rights to reaffirm legal protections afforded to women under Federal law.
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Friends, We must enact laws to make schools safer and prevent future tragedies like Uvalde this week and Santa Fe, in our own district, four years ago. As a nation, we owe it to our children to make sure they are safe at school. No families should ever have to suffer the horrors of losing a child this way.
Earlier today, I introduced three bills to make our schools safer. These would: 1) use unspent COVID-19 funds to improve school safety; 2) lower the costs for schools to hire former law enforcement officers as School Resources Officers to protect schools; and 3) allow qualified current and former law enforcement officers to be exempt from prohibitions against carrying (and if necessary, using) a weapon in school zones.
But I want to hear from you! |
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Do you support using unspent COVID-19 funds, hiring former law enforcement officers, and allowing certain vetted individuals to carry a firearm in “gun free” school zones to improve school safety?
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Submit survey to sign up for updates on my work in Congress.*
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It is a great honor to represent Texas’ Fourteenth District in Congress. We all know that 2020 has brought some challenging times. Please know that we have been and will always be here for you. Call or stop by our offices (which are YOUR offices), if you need help with a federal agency.
Bureaucracy often brings red tape, but we know how to cut through it, and we are proud to fight on your behalf. Whether you need help with immigration, IRS, Medicare, Social Security, passports, stimulus checks, small business loans, VA claims, FEMA relief, or other assistance, please call us!
We can also help with flags flown over the U.S. Capitol, nominations to the military academies, or tours in Washington D.C. We welcome opportunities to serve you. For assistance or more information, please call or go online or visit weber.house.gov.
God Bless you and God Bless Texas!
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Sincerely,
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Randy K. Weber
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