Excerpt from a statement written for Texas State Senator Judith Zaffirini regarding the state's withdrawal from its Accenture Health Services Contract

"I was saddened to learn of the recent death of Devante Johnson, a 14-year old cancer patient who was dropped indefensibly from Medicaid enrollment, demonstrating the extreme crisis afflicting the state's Medicaid and CHIP eligibility system. I truly hope that the ensuing transition from Accenture's contract does not further disrupt and prevent persons from seeking health services eligibility.

"I repeatedly expressed my concerns and ardent opposition to privatizing these important social and health services, which is one of the reasons I voted against House Bill 2292 (2003). Today's announcement sends a clear message that Texas no longer will tolerate unnecessary and unreasonable gaps that tremendously hinder access to state health services for children and low-income families.["]

Excerpt from a health care speech written for Texas State Senator Judith Zaffirini

III.In addition to your support of increased state resources and funding for Medicaid and CHIP, I share your commitment of advocating on behalf of uninsured Texans.

A.Your comprehensive 2007 legislative agenda underscored a remarkable fact about state health coverage: one in four Texans lack adequate health insurance coverage. Incredible!

B.Texas currently ranks first in the nation in its percentage of persons without health coverage (24 percent uninsured according to U.S. Census information reported August 29, 2007.)

C.What's more, Hispanic communities along the border, which include communities within my Senatorial District 21, comprise much of our state's uninsured population.

Floor speech written for Congressman Silvestre Reyes (D-TX 16th)

SPEECH OF

HON. SILVESTRE REYES

OF TEXAS

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

Tuesday, May 15, 2001

  • Mr. REYES. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 1727, the Fallen Hero Survivor Benefit Fairness Act. This bill would allow a necessary extension of tax-free benefits to the survivors of law enforcement and public safety officers killed in the line of duty before December 31, 1996. This bill also provides all families of deceased public safety officers the opportunity to receive an exclusion from the income accumulated from any survivor annuity granted on account of the death of a public safety officer killed in the line of duty. This legislation will help the families who have endured the loss of their safety officer family member.
  • Currently, 1.2 million men and women serve as firefighters or emergency medical technicians. Every year, our country can expect to lose over 100 men and women who bravely provide our communities with these essential public safety services. In 1999, the strong line held by our police and law enforcement agencies thinned by 134 officers killed in the line of duty. Many of these individuals left behind mothers, fathers, brothers, and sisters, wives, husbands, sons and daughters to carry out legacies and lives without their beloved peace officers and safety officials. The families of our deceased public safety officers deserve to continue their lives as free from unnecessary obligation as possible.
  • Law enforcement officers, their family and friends living in my district of El Paso, Texas will soon hold the El Paso Police Memorial Service in remembrance of police officers killed in the line of duty. This service will be held tomorrow, and will honor officers who have served El Paso and El Paso County from the late 19th century to the present. Officers of all description will be honored, such as Detective Charles Heinrich who died from a gunshot would to the head in 1985, two years after being shot by a perpetrator; Detective Norman Montion who was killed during a massive gunfight in October of 1989; and Officer Ernesto Serna, a Persian Gulf war veteran working off duty security who was fatally shot in November of 1991. They all served proudly and honorably in the face of danger. With the passage of this bill, their families may enjoy compensation without burdensome taxation.
  • Mr. Speaker, H.R. 1727 allows our country to lend assistance to families who have faced loss for the sake of public safety. We should approve this legislation as a tribute to the service of public safety officers, the lives that they save and protect, and the families who survive them.

Excerpts from the Homeland Security and Public Safety policy initiative written for the Bill White for Houston Mayoral Campaign, Summer of 2003

Neighborhood Organization and Citizen Preparedness (HoustonCARES)

Houston’s size and importance make homeland security planning and emergency mitigation formidable tasks. If disaster were to strike Houston, first response teams, resources, and emergency supplies could be stretched so thinly that neighborhoods would have to rely on self-contained emergency mitigation in the aftermath of a disaster. It is therefore vital that the Houstonians actively participate in homeland security planning and preparedness. Such a program would allow the people of this region to become actively aware and responsible of community emergency management and would assuage the fear associated with disaster response scenarios.

It is for these reasons that I propose to initiate the HoustonCARES program. HoustonCARES or Community Awareness and Response for Emergency Situations would be a city sponsored program that would seek to educate and train local communities to implement a coordinated disaster response plan. The program would establish CARES response teams within area neighborhoods that would be organized and run by citizens who can respond to basic needs following a major disaster.

By successfully motivating citizens to actively prepare for major disasters, HoustonCARES will provide many significant benefits to Houstonians, including:

  • A neighborhood watch program that will reduce loss of life, injury and further destruction of property after a major disaster strikes;
  • Reduction of secondary hazards such as fires or accidents caused by dangerous debris;
  • Organized and manageable response environments for professional first responders;
  • Heightened ability for communities to recover from disaster effects;
  • A greater sense of community and local unity against the fallout of major disasters;
  • Localized emergency mitigation that will become the equivalent of area-wide Houston disaster response and mitigation;
  • Preparedness and confidence will replace fear and frustration for Houston and the way the city answers the call of homeland security.

Houston Business Community Mitigation Organization

Houston possesses a large and thriving business community that includes a vast and world renowned oil and gas exploration industry, petroleum refining industry and petrochemical production industry as well as international import/export and manufacturing and distribution industries. The City of Houston must work with the private sector in order to ensure that these economic resources are safe and prepared to survive potential disasters.

The City of Houston will work to produce a cooperative organization that will enable area industries, businesses and corporations to prepare for and respond to potential disasters or terrorist attacks.

  • The City of Houston will develop a business oriented emergency communications network that will allow businesses and industries to receive emergency information immediately from government resources in order to provide for disaster preparedness and mitigation in the event of a disaster.
  • The City of Houston will develop a private sector/public sector cooperative network that will work to employ emergency resources in the event of a wide-scale emergency.
  • The Office of the Mayor will aggressively seek funding from State and Federal resources to assist the public/private cooperative. Such sources can be derived from programs offered by the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the Department of Domestic Preparedness. FEMA’s Project Impact (1998) program was a source for major United States metropolitan areas to develop disaster mitigation programs for public and private sector concerns. Houston will no longer be on the losing side of federal emergency appropriations distribution.

Press Release Written for Houston Parks and Recreation Department

March 20, 2006

______

NEWS RELEASE

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASECONTACT:

March 20, 2006

HPARD To Host National Junior Wheelchair
Basketball Tournament

Come watch and cheer-on the best in youth wheelchair basketball, including your own Houston TIRR Hotwheels, as they burn up the court! The Houston Parks and Recreation Department welcomes top teams from across the nation as it proudly plays host to the 24th Annual National Junior Wheelchair Basketball Tournament on March 24th through March 26th. Tournament games will be played at the University of Houston-Central Campus Recreation and Wellness Center and will begin at 9:00 a.m. lasting throughout each day.

“What an exciting event for Houston, for Parks and Recreation, and for the advancement and awareness of adaptive sports,” said Joe Turner, Director of the Houston Parks and Recreation Department. “A heartfelt welcome to all the athletes, parents, and sponsors. Houston is ready to watch some great games of wheelchair basketball.”

The exciting three-day event brings the nation’s sixteen top youth wheelchair basketball teams to Houston to compete for the National Championship. The accomplished teams that include players aged 13-18 who hail from states across the nation including New York, Michigan, California, Washington, Georgia and Texas have already achieved regional championship status and are comprised of the most outstanding athletes in the league.

“This event will offer a unique opportunity for able-bodied children and adults to see sports at a whole new level,” said Peggy Turner, Division Manager for HPARD’s Adaptive Recreation Program and NJWBT Tournament Director. “Watching this sport and these athletes, it is apparent that they achieve their goals using hard work, determination, but most of all, a sincere love for sport and competition. I congratulate them all and look forward to a great tournament.”

The Houston TIRR Hotwheels will once again take the court in search of a National Championship. Last year, the Hotwheels placed 10th and expect to improve on this showing at the 2006 tournament. They enter this year’s competition ranked 5th.

For additional information on The National Junior Wheelchair Basketball Tournament, adaptive recreation, or the Houston Parks and Recreation Department call 713-845-1135 or visit our web site at

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Constituent Correspondence Letter Written For Houston Mayor Bill White

November, 2005

Dear,

I received your letter on October 18th recounting your harrowing experience during Houston’s community-wide evacuation from Hurricane Rita. I appreciate your taking the time to share your views.

In anticipation of this second devastating storm hitting the Gulf Coast, Houston’s public servants demonstrated steadfastness, professionalism and a tremendous desire to help those in need. While we worked hard to develop safe and efficient preparation and evacuation procedures, we did experience some problems. I sincerely regret any inconvenience you or your family endured, and I pledge to work to correct these problems for future evacuations.

You will be pleased to know that on September 30th, I announced, along with Governor Rick Perry and Harris County Judge Robert Eckels, the creation of a Task Force on Evacuation Transportation and Logistics. The purpose of this independent group is to provide our community with recommendations on improvements for large-scale evacuations. An estimated 2.5-million people evacuated an eight-county region in advance of Hurricane Rita. We intend to learn from this experience and follow the recommendations of community experts and citizens to ease the flow of traffic and expedite refueling in outbound evacuation lanes.

Sincerely,

Bill White

Mayor

BW:na