Texas 2-1-1(United Way) Child/Elder Abuse Reporting Medicaid, Food Stamps, & TANF Health &Human Commission Services Office ofthe Attorney General . Texas Legislature Online of TexasState . Texas House ofRepresentatives Texas Senate of TexasGovernor The Texas HouseofRepresentatives isanEqualOpportunityEmployeranddoesnotdiscriminateonthebasisofrace,color, nationalorigin,sex,religion, age ordisabilityinemploymenttheprovisionofservices.Thisnewsletterisavailablealternateformatsuponrequest.Pleasecall1-800-241-1163. PAID . PRSRT STD H Permit 2803 Permit U.S. Postage U.S. State Penalty Austin, Texas For Private Use Private For STATE of TEXAS of STATE Official Business
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. www.yourtexasbenefits.com www.governor.state.tx.us . www.txabusehotline.org www.capitol.state.tx.us www.senate.state.tx.us www.house.state.tx.us www.hhsc.state.tx.us www.oag.state.tx.us www.texas.gov www.211.org Dustin Burrows [email protected] (512) 463-0671 fax (512) 463-0542 Austin, Texas 78768-2910 P.O. Box 2910 CAPITOL OFFICE: STATE REPRESENTATIVE Texas VeteransCommission Texas WorkforceCommission Texas Parks & Wildlife Department Texas of Insurance Department Texas ofPublic Department Safety . Texas of Department Transportation . Texas ofMotor Department Vehicles . Texas Education Agency . . www.house.texas.gov House Website: (806) 795-0635Phone Lubbock, Texas 79424 Suite 103 10507 QuakerAvenue DISTRICT OFFICE: .
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. DISTRICT 83 www.txdps.state.tx.us www.tpwd.state.tx.us www.twc.state.tx.us www.tvc.state.tx.us www.tea.state.tx.us
www.tdi.texas.gov STATE REPRESENTATIVE STATE P.O. Box 2910 P.O. Austin, Texas 78768-2910 Austin, Texas Dustin Burrows www.txdmv.gov
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bless thegreat State of Texas. May God blessyou andyours, andmayGod continueto with questionsandcommentsforme. hesitate tocontactmydistrictofficeat(806)795-0635 Facebook pageand inyourPlease localnewspapers. don’t next year. Advance noticeofthoseevents willbeonmy halls andcommunitymeetingswillbeheldduringthe listening toyour concerns. To thatend,several town tovisitingwithyouforward across thedistrict,and Between now andthenextlegislative session,Ilook accomplishmentsarekey conservative explainedingreater billssenttotheGovernor’s detail,alongwithmanyotherimportant desk. relief, andover $2billionindynamicpayraisesforteachers,librarians,counselors,andnurses.Inside thisnewsletter, bothofthese teachers. Specifically, theplanprovides $4.5billiontostudent-centered education reforms, tax over property $5billioninstatewide provides transformationalschoolfinance reform toourpubliceducationsystem by investing billionsofdollars intoourschoolsand skyrocketing taxes property across the statethreatening homeowners andrenters, theLegislature stoodup fortaxpayers. House Bill 3 taxesmake informeddecisionsabouttheirproperty andempowers voters taxratesthrough tostophigherproperty anelection. With public schoolfinance reform (HB3).The Texas Property Tax Reformand Transparency Actof2019gives taxpayers thetoolsto House District 83taxpayers taxes cameoutaswinnersduringthe86thsession,with passageofbillsaffectingproperty (SB2)and welcome students. Bylarge animalmedicalservices. thetimeyou read this,ground willhave beenbroken forthefacilityandschoolpreparing to Texas Tech Schoolof Veterinary Medicine. For toolong Texas farmsandrancheshave beenwithoutreadily available andaffordable interestOf particular toour West Texas farmersandrancherswastheLegislature’s approval, withthe2020-2021State Budget, ofthe the rightsofunborn. finance tax reform, teacherpayraises,property reform, increasing schoolsafety, thestate’s disaster response capabilityandprotecting my House colleaguesinworking withGovernor Abbott andtheSpeaker oftheHouse billsconcerningschool topassconservative House tookoncriticalissuesfacing Texas andHouse District 83.AsChairmanoftheHouse Ways andMeans Committee,Ijoined The 86thsessionofthe Texas Legislature endedin May, asessionmanyhave describedashistoricintermsoftheboldaction Dear Friends andNeighbors: 86th Legislative Update Dustin Burrows STATE REPRESENTATIVE TEXAS HOUSETEXAS OF REPRESENTATIVES State Representative District 83 Rep. Dustin BurrowsandElisabethwiththeirchildren. H
DISTRICT 83
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FROM: PROOF: DATE: Signature: ______Date: ______H HIGHLIGHTS OF THE 86TH SESSION H H SPOTLIGHT ON TAXES, SCHOOLS AND FIRST RESPONDERS H
Limiting Government THE TEXAS PLAN FOR Bills passed this session to keep government off your back: SCHOOL FINANCE REFORM: Passed a balanced budget without raising taxes. PROPERTY TAX RELIEF, RECAPTURE Banned use of red light cameras Defended private property rights by ending forced REDUCTION, EDUCATION REFORM annexation statewide Reforming how Texas funds public education was a top priority of the 86th Session. House Bill 3 promises to transform the lives Keeping Texas Communities Safe of students, taxpayers and educators across HD83. The legislation prioritizes student success by investing $4.5 billion in classrooms. Bills passed this session protecting your life and property: Students will have access to full-day Pre-K, dyslexia identification, summer programs and other benefits. Schools and Educators will Dedicated roughly $800 million to border security efforts be incentivized ($452 million available) to deliver outcomes, such Invested in human and child sex trafficking prevention, as graduates entering college or the military, and evaluated based investigative units and anti gang squads on performance. The bill also provides $5 billion in property tax Governor Abbott joins House and Senate leadership Cracked down on illicit trafficking businesses and enhanced to sign the Property Tax Reform bill. relief, reduces recapture by 47%, increases the state share of public investigations and prosecutions Burrows and El Paso Rep. Joe Moody (a Texas Tech Alumnus), education spending from 38% to 45% and caps at 2.5% ISD tax Increased penalties for buyers of online sex trafficking Raider Red and the Masked Rider celebrate TTU Vet School Your Second Amendment Rights increases. Many educators will see pay raises because of HB 3. Teachers, librarians, counsellors and nurses will see a direct salary Bills passed this session strengthening Texan’s right to bear Reducing economic burdens/reducing the THE TEXAS PROPERTY increase of $1.6 billion, with another $400 million available in merit arms: burden of occupational licensing TAX REFORM & and incentive pay. A veteran teacher may receive up to a $4,000 increase in pay. Protected law-abiding gun owners from being penalized Bills passed this session that keep the heavy hand of government TRANSPARENCY ACT: for accidentally carrying in an establishment where guns off occupational license holders: PROTECTS PROPERTY OWNERS, SLOWS are prohibited Restored the rights of tenants to own and keep firearms Provided reciprocity and expedited licensure for spouses RATE GROWTH, EMPOWERS VOTERS and prohibited “no firearms” clauses in leases of military service members who are licensed for an Across HD83, the number one issue brought to my attention is the Allowed permitless carry for those evacuating from and occupation in another state need for property tax reform. To that end, I authored a bill providing returning to a disaster area Prohibited a default on student loan payments from taxpayers the tools to make informed decisions about their property Cracked down on inconsistent patchwork firearms being used to disqualify individuals from obtaining an taxes, and empowers voters to authorize higher property tax rates. ordinances at the local level occupational license The legislation also Improves transparent communication between Ensured local governments cannot impose more stringent taxing units and taxpayers, adds real-time tax notices that allow Defending our Culture of Life licensure requirements for holders of a state occupational taxpayers to timely engage in the rate-setting process. The bill requires license taxing entities to inform taxpayers who has proposed a rate increase, Bills passed this session defending the rights of the unborn: Ensured that persons with a criminal history are not by how much, and when and where to protest. Taxing entities must automatically disqualified from obtaining an occupational Dedicated over $60 million for crisis pregnancy centers also provide an online form for taxpayers to communicate their license if they otherwise satisfy the licensure criteria and and alternatives to abortion position on proposed rates and submit it to the appropriate taxing their criminal history does not relate to the occupation Required physicians to treat babies who survived botched unit. Of particular help to taxpayers is a requirement of taxing abortions with the highest degree of medical care in an entities to expand opportunities to protest or appeal appraisal values. attempt to save the life of the baby Finally, and most importantly, this legislation enables you - the Prohibited government from conducting any transaction voter - to make your voice heard when local governments want to of goods or services with abortion providers raise property taxes. This bill reduces the burdensome requirements Prohibited all abortion providers from receiving taxpayer that force voters to gather signatures to petition for an election and money automatically triggers a November election when taxes are raised above 2.5% in a given year. Fortifying your Constitutional Liberties Governor Abbott visits with Chairman Burrows during Bills passed this session thwarting the undermining of your House deliberations on Property Tax Reform Bill constitutional rights:
Prohibited governmental entities from using your tax TEXAS FIREFIGHTERS - FIXING A BROKEN SYSTEM: dollars to deny contracts, loans, licenses or employment WORKERS COMPENSATION REFORM FOR TEXAS FIREFIGHTERS & EMTS opportunities to a person or business over their religious beliefs Texas State Association of Firefighters (SAFF) President John Riddle said it best: “We thank Rep. Burrows, Sen. Hinojosa and Rep. Longoria Protected free speech on college campuses and prevented for their recognition of and commitment to help fix problems with the workers’ compensation system. Their leadership and the passage of conservative students from being silenced for exercising SB 2551 is an important step forward.” SB 2551 is the first real workers compensation reform since 2005 when the state cancer presumptive their First Amendment Rights act for fire fighters and EMTs was enacted. SB 2551 allows recovery of attorneys’ fees from a city or risk pool should a covered first responder prevail in a legal claim over denied coverage, it holds cities and risk pools to the same regulatory standards as private insurers, it clarifies the claims approval process, and it replaces the language referencing the IARC as the decider of which cancers are covered with a list of 11 cancers Speaker Bonnen presents House Ways and Means commonly contracted by firefighters. Chairman Burrows with ceremonial gavel.