Team Hinojosa August 2022 Wrap Up
You probably have felt it. We are closing out the Summer with a surge in energy, not just as reflected on our electricity bills, but increased activity and fellowship in our Austin community. So many are refocusing on ways to help make a difference in our local community and beyond. It’s the energy that immediately drew me to Austin many years ago as a Freshman at UT, and it is still alive and well today. Some highlights from Team Hinojosa’s busy August:
On August 5th, Rep. Hinojosa traveled to Washington, D.C. to visit with Vice President Harris and other Latina state lawmakers to explore creative, legal options for Texans and other Americans to access abortion care. If you missed the public portion of the roundtable, you can view Rep. Hinojosa’s remarks above.
In yet another plea for a Special Session to address yet another crisis in Texas, Rep. Hinojosa joined Democrats in an August 8th letter to Governor Abbott asking for a special session to address urgent failures within the Texas Juvenile Justice Department. The Texas juvenile prison system has been plagued by underfunding, understaffing, and a disturbing history of sexual abuse. Latest reports revealed teens are spending up to 23 hours locked in their cells because of these failures. Thanks to Rep. James Talarico for leading this effort.
On August 9th, Rep. Hinojosa joined her Democratic colleagues at a press conference on anti-corruption reforms needed in response to the CNN special “Deep in the Pockets of Texas.” If you missed the airing of this special, you can rewatch it here.
On August 11th, Rep. Hinojosa joined a request to the Biden Administration to reconsider and approve Texas’ application for extending postpartum healthcare coverage for new mothers in our state. Because Texas has failed to approve Medicaid expansion and has failed to authorize coverage for 12 months, it is increasingly difficult to persuade the federal government to invest in our system of care.
This same day, Rep. Hinojosa joined with Democrats on a letter spearheaded by Rep. Bobby Guerra to the Health and Human Services Commission on unacceptable processing delays for Medicaid provider contracts.
On August 13th, Rep. Hinojosa joined Rep. Donna Howard and Rep. Vikki Goodwin for the kick off of Blue Action Democrat’s 2 Million Texans Launch. 2 Million Texans is an initiative to build an unprecedented multimillion voter statewide relational network and mobilize them to get to the polls through their own friends and family. Interested in learning more? Get involved with Blue Action Democrats.
On August 15th, Rep Hinojosa joined a handful of legislators in the House Climate Caucus to submit “official comments” to the Railroad Commission on its proposed rules relating to weather emergency preparedness standards. After the grid failed in February 2021, the Texas Legislature made some improvements, but still left important pieces, like natural gas weatherization, to the RRC rulemaking process. These comments, led by House Climate Caucus Chair Erin Zweiner, ask the RRC to ensure that facilities are adequately prepared to operate fully during weather emergencies, as well as provide valuable information about the natural gas system to help deter market manipulation.
On August 20th, Rep. Hinojosa joined the Travis County Democratic Party for their Campaign Office Open House Weekend. The Travis County Democratic Party opened offices at three locations across town: Pleasant Valley Office (2614 East 7th Street, Austin, TX 78702), Pflugerville Office (902 Old Austin-Hutto Road, Unit 402, Pflugerville, TX 7866), and Southwest Office (6156 US 290, Austin, TX 78735). Sign up online to get involved with the TCDP.
Later that evening, Rep. Hinojosa joined friends for the Annual Austin Pride Parade!
On August 27th, Rep. Hinojosa joined parents from Uvalde, survivors from Sante Fe, and youth activists from across Texas and the country to demand that Governor Abbott immediately call a special session to raise the minimum age to purchase an AR-15. Immediately following the Uvalde tragedy, House Democrats wrote another letter to Abbott requesting a legislative session to address gun violence, and in particular, to raise the age to purchase an AR-15 to 21. We’ll keep fighting for this issue and other common sense gun safety legislation.
Now is a Good Time to Verify Your Voter Registration.
Make these changes ASAP, and ideally before the end of September, in order to ensure sufficient time for the county to update.
***Call For Education Stories!!!***
Our office is collecting positive stories, photos, and videos about the great work happening in our District's exceptional schools. Please submit your stories about great things happening in our public schools. You can be a parent, teacher or student to submit your story! These stories may be shared on our social media.
https://forms.gle/bRNQmgbba7rPtmQe7
President Biden Forgives Some Student Loans
On August 24th, President Biden announced his plan to provide student loan relief for borrowers who need it most. The highlights of the program are below:
Some of the less talked about, but still important, pieces of President Biden’s proposal include the following updates for Income Driven Repayment Plans:
Raise the amount of income that is considered non-discretionary income and therefore is protected from repayment, guaranteeing that no borrower earning under 225% of the federal poverty level—about the annual equivalent of a $15 minimum wage for a single borrower—will have to make a monthly payment.
Forgive loan balances after 10 years of payments, instead of 20 years, for borrowers with original loan balances of $12,000 or less. The Department of Education estimates that this reform will allow nearly all community college borrowers to be debt-free within 10 years.
Cover the borrower’s unpaid monthly interest, so that unlike other existing income-driven repayment plans, no borrower’s loan balance will grow as long as they make their monthly payments—even when that monthly payment is $0 because their income is low.
Contact your student loan financer to learn more about how you can benefit from these new proposals.
Travis County Commissioners Court Seeks Applicants for the Housing Authority of Travis County (HATC) and Strategic Housing Finance Corporation (SHFC)
The Travis County Commissioners Court seeks residents interested in working creatively in public and affordable housing. The Court must fill vacancies on two boards, the Housing Authority of Travis County (HATC) and the Strategic Housing Finance Corporation (SHFC).
Applicants should be interested in working with experienced board members to shape the future of key county assets. As the community grapples with housing needs, the Court seeks to build a team of appointees to work proactively on policy, staff development and innovative business processes that will strengthen the two entities to provide leadership in this important arena. County staff is engaged with the boards to assist in developing a roadmap that will assist new and current members in planning for action. The deadline to apply is September 23, 2022.
To learn more and apply, visit https://www.traviscountytx.gov/intergovernmental-relations/board-appointments.
Nominations Open for Texas State Musician, Poet Laureate, and Texas State Artists (visual arts)
On behalf of the Texas Legislature, the Texas Commission on the Arts (TCA) is seeking nominations for the positions of 2023 and 2024 State Poet Laureate, State Musician, State Artist two-dimensional media (i.e., painting, photography), and State Artist three-dimensional media (i.e., sculpture).
All Texas citizens are encouraged to make nominations, and self-nominations are accepted. Citizens can nominate more than one artist. The nomination form and complete information are available online at http://www.arts.texas.gov/nominate. The deadline for Texas State Artists nominations is October 15, 2022.
Coming Up Next Month
On September 7th, Rep. Hinojosa will join the House Criminal Jurisprudence Committee for an interim hearing. Check out the meeting agenda, here when posted.
On September 17th, Rep. Hinojosa will be starring in Over the Lege, a political satire show based solely on the Texas Legislature. Buy tickets here.
Texas Tribune Festival is happening September 22nd - September 24th. Buy tickets and check out the line up here.
As always, we’d like to encourage you to remain engaged and to reach out to us with any additional questions or concerns you may have at District49.Hinojosa@House.Texas.Gov. Remember—we work for you!
- Team Hinojosa