
In an ongoing effort to address what he deems an "ongoing and imminent threat" at the Texas–Mexico border, Texas Governor Greg Abbott has yet again renewed a disaster proclamation originally set forth in May 2021. This move persists to classify the situation as a disaster for numerous Texas counties and remains to mobilize state agency resources to manage the influx of undocumented individuals crossing the border, as per the Office of the Texas Governor.
The proclamation, renewed today, keeps the backing of Section 418.014 of the Texas Government Code as its legal justification. That section grants the Governor the capacity to declare a state of disaster if an occurrence is considered of such magnitude that local authorities would need state assistance to cope. The list of counties affected by the disaster proclamation has shifted since the initial declaration, reflecting the changing dynamics of border crossings and the state's perception of which areas are most impacted.
A detailed list of the included counties was provided in the proclamation, encompassing territories that stretch along the expansive Texas-Mexico border and reaching into the state's interior. The Office of the Texas Governor reaffirmed that the conditions which prompted the original proclamation have continued unabated, necessitating this extension of state-level disaster response measures.
The proclamation, as noted on the official website of the Office of the Texas Governor, declares "a disaster for Aransas, Atascosa, Bee, Brewster, and many other counties," covering a substantial portion of the state's area. All measures put in place since the original declaration, such as the deployment of additional resources and the suspension of certain regulations to ease response efforts, remain in full force.
In the document, the Office of the Texas Governor states, "I do hereby renew the aforementioned proclamation and declare a disaster for... all state agencies affected by this disaster." With the seal of state affixed by Governor Abbott and attested by Secretary of State Jane Nelson, this declaration marks another chapter in Texas' ongoing response to border security issues. It also serves as a reminder of the complex and enduring challenges that arise from human migration and the political responses they garner.