As a candidate for Texas House District 56, I am deeply concerned about the threat of climate change and its potential impact on our community and great state. Climate change is not just a distant issue; it is already affecting Texans in their everyday lives, making severe weather more frequent and severe, leading to more storms, hurricanes, floods, and droughts that threaten our safety and property, and disrupt our daily routines and livelihoods.

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The devastating winter storm of 2021, which cost the lives of an estimated 700 Texans, is a clear example of how we are experiencing a rise in extreme weather. Two of my elderly clients froze to death in that storm.  Their deaths shook me to my core and were the initial reason I decided to run for the Texas House of Representatives. The Texas House and Senate were warned that a catastrophic storm of this size would cause our electrical grid to fail, but they ignored the warnings and voted against weatherizing our electrical grid. 

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Following that catastrophic storm, state legislators voted to push the financial cost of the February electrical freeze onto residents and did not sufficiently invest in weatherizing our systems to prevent another catastrophe. This is simply inexcusable. 

McLennan County deserves a leader who will fight to ensure that when our next climate catastrophe occurs, we are ready and that Texans will not freeze to death because of inaction in the Texas legislature. 

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Texas is the top producer in the country for wind, oil, natural gas, and renewable energy, and the second largest producer of solar power. With so many energy sources available, the state of Texas should not have to operate on a weak and inefficient power grid. The extreme heat we all experience in the summer will only get worse as climate change takes its hold on our world. We need solutions and we need them now!

 

From agriculture to tourism, many industries in Texas rely heavily on our natural resources and climate conditions. Changes in temperature and rainfall patterns can disrupt agricultural production, leading to crop failures, reduced yields, and increased food prices, causing our grocery bill to go up. 

 

We cannot afford to ignore the urgent threat of climate change or allow special interests to dictate our environmental policies. 

 

When elected, I will work to: 

• implement sustainable solutions

• invest in renewable energy

• collaborate with industry and scientists to find solutions that will protect our communities from the devastating impacts of climate change

• support Texas joining the national energy grid so we have a more stable source of power