Last Tuesday, I was honored to take the oath of office inside our Texas State Capitol to begin my second term in the Texas Legislature. As I have said many times, aside from my faith and family, serving the people of Andrews, Ector, Ward and Winkler counties in the Texas House of Representatives is my greatest privilege in life.
With opening day behind us, the 85th Texas legislative session is now fully underway and will run through May 29, 2017.
This session, with 133 days remaining, will present great opportunities and challenges for the Texas Legislature, and I will remain focused fighting for conservative solutions to the issues that we may face. While these issues are broad, there are several specific ones that I will fight to address.
One of the many opportunities is with regard to our Second Amendment rights, guaranteed by the United States Constitution. I will work to expand our existing framework of pro-gun laws.
In fact, I have already joint-authored House Bill 339, which will eliminate the fees that everyday Texans have to currently pay in order to obtain a license to carry a firearm. This type of legislation is emblematic of the support of the Second Amendment that Texans have, and I am proud to support this and other pieces of legislation that will further afford Texans the right to keep and bear arms.
I will also continue to work on reforming our current education system, including the “Robin Hood” funding scheme, as well as reducing our state’s reliance on high-stakes standardized testing and completely revising how accountability measures have been introduced.
For example, the current rollout of the “A-F” accountability standard greatly concerns me because it does not accurately reflect the issues that students or teachers face. No one-size-fits-all standard can take into account the all-encompassing challenges schools face, much less a standard created more than 300 miles away in a government building in Austin. I look forward to meeting with folks from all over West Texas to review these issues.
As the Texas Legislature continues to work toward protecting the rights of Texans as well as limiting the growth of government and increasing economic opportunity, I hope you will take the time out of your day to reach out to my office to have your voice heard. Our office exists to serve and you may reach us at (512) 463-0546.
Thank you for your prayers and trust and I look forward to ensuring that Texas remains the best state in the nation to live, work, and raise a family.
God bless Texas.
State Rep. Brooks Landgraf was elected in 2014 to serve House District 81, which encompasses Andrews, Ector, Ward, and Winkler Counties. Landgraf resides in his hometown of Odessa with his wife, Shelby, and their daughter, Hollis Rose. He works as a cattle rancher and practices law at the firm of Todd, Barron, Thomason, Hudman & Baxter, P.C. in Odessa. An Eagle Scout, Landgraf is also active in several local nonprofits.
