[applause] gov. abbott: thank you very much. thank you all very much. good evening to the members of the texas legislature, members of the texas supreme court, state officials, and to my fellow texans. as we gather tonight in san marco's, texas -- san marcos, texas, the state of our state has never been more exceptional. [applause] texans have inherited a legendary pedigree. a state first settled by brave pioneers, willing to risk everything for the promise of freedom and opportunity. texas is fulfilling that promise.

i'm speaking to you from the manufacturing floor of noveon. noveon is a cutting-edge business in the critical field of rare earth elements. they provide essential materials for things used every day, like refrigerators, trucks, mri machines, and oil rigs. they even materials for ballistic missiles for the united states of america to defend itself. most rare earth materials now come from china. but if that supply is ever disrupted, many of the things we do every day would come to a halt. the future of texas and the united states should not depend on china. [applause]

we must embrace innovation, like noveon, to make texas more self-reliant, to create our own products, and to secure the texas of tomorrow. -- secure the future of tomorrow. with the help of businesses like noveon, texas is number one in the united states for the most new jobs. since i became governor, texas has added more than 1.9 million new jobs. [applause] we're also number one for economic development, number one for exports, and number one for fortune 500 company headquarters. our $2 trillion economy makes texas the ninth largest economy in the entire world.

[applause] all across our state, business is booming. from our large metros, to rural texas, and everywhere in between, businesses large and small have led texas to be ranked the number one state for doing business every year that i have been your governor. [applause] that success has been driven by hardworking texans. it also has been aided by strategic economic development tools. to keep texas the best state for business, our local communities need new economic development tools this session. also, local businesses will flourish even more if we reduce the gridlock in our courts by creating specialized courts with

the expertise to deal with complex commercial litigation. our workforce is so important. one thing that the texas of tomorrow needs is a highly skilled workforce. i was at odessa college two weeks ago, working with senator sparks and representative landgraff, to see firsthand how community colleges are training the workforce of tomorrow. i met ariel aguilar, a young graduate, who was so grateful for the program. and we're proud to have him here with us tonight. [applause] he told me that instead of studying subjects perhaps irrelevant to his career, the job skill program gave him the ability to study what he needed.

it also quickly landed him a good paying career. our goal is to ensure that every texan is prepared to succeed in high demand careers like technology, healthcare, and energy. that's why this session, we will reward community colleges that produce skilled, employable texans. like ariel. [applause] as i travel across texas, -- as i travel across our great state, there's one thing i hear loud and clear -- property taxes are suffocating texans. we must fix that this session. hardworking texans produced the largest budget surplus in texas history. that money belongs to the

taxpayers -- to you, the taxpayers. we should return it to you with the largest property tax cut in the history of the state of texas. [applause] working with senator huffman and representative bonnen, we have all proposed using $15 billion to cut property taxes. now we must ensure that it provides lasting property tax relief. to get that done, cutting property taxes is an emergency item this legislative session. [applause] our booming economy and growing population means we must bolster our infrastructure. we began preparing for this over the past decade. and tonight, i'm proud to tell

you that we will soon announce a $100 billion plan to build transportation infrastructure in texas. i want to thank senator nichols and representative canales for their leadership on this issue. also, we have already passed 14 bipartisan laws that strengthened the power grid. and since that time, no texan has lost power because of the state grid. [applause] but listen, we all know that increased demand will be placed on the grid, as texas continues to grow. so, we must build a grid strong enough to power texas for the next century. in just the last month, multiple electric generation projects have been announced that add

reliable power to our grid. one thing you will know -- one thing you all know, people have been coming to texas in search of liberty for almost 200 years. we must protect that liberty. and that's why i'm announcing an emergency item tonight to end covid restrictions forever. [applause] we must prohibit any government from imposing covid mask mandates, covid vaccine mandates, and from closing any business or school because of covid. these actions will help texas close the door on covid restrictions. [applause] also, we must change how government responds to future pandemics, including requiring

the legislature to convene, if another pandemic is ever declared. [applause] we must also protect the freedom and rights of parents who have children in school. -- children in schools. our tremendous public schools in texas play an essential role in our state. they educate our future entrepreneurs, scientists, and leaders. we must ensure that our education system works for every child. -- every child in our state. and thanks to legislators, per student funding is at an all time high. we've provided more funding for public education and more funding for teacher pay raises than ever in the history of our state.

-- in the history of the state of texas. [applause] and this session, we will add even more. and importantly. many public schools in texas are excellent. and in fact, we are number one for national blue ribbon schools, and we have one of the best high school graduation rates in america. you know, when i grew up in first longview and then duncanville, we were taught the basics -- reading, writing, math, and science. but most of all, we were inspired by our country's founding, and how it stands apart from the rest of the world as the beacon of liberty and opportunity. the fact is that many children today are not educated like you and i were. -- not being educated like you and i were.

i hear frustrations from too many parents -- some are with us here tonight. the aly family grew frustrated watching their child fall behind while she was being forced to learn from home during the time of covid. eric richerson was astonished that his child's teacher would not work with him to address the specific needs of his child. hillary hickland was angry to -- was angry that a woke agenda was being forced on her daughter in school. let's be clear -- our schools are for education, not indoctrination. [applause] schools should not be pushing a woke agenda, period.

we must reform curriculum, get kids back to the basics of learning, and we must empower parents. [applause] parents deserve access to curriculum, to school libraries, and to what their children are taught. and we will do that with our parental bill of rights. parents also deserve education freedom. without that freedom, some parents are hindered in helping their child succeed. that must change this year. [applause] the way to do that is with school choice through state-funded education savings accounts. we've seen them work in other states, and we have also seen them work right here in the state of texas. i created education savings accounts for special needs

students. it worked so well, a bipartisan super-majority passed it into law, and are now seeking to increase funding for it. now what we want to do is expand that program to provide every parent with the ability to choose the best education option for their child. [applause] to be perfectly clear, under this school choice program, all public schools will be fully funded for every student. this issue is so vital to the future of our state, that i am making education freedom an emergency item this session. [applause]

children must also have safe schools. we must establish the safest standards, and then use the newly created chief of school safety to mandate compliance with those standards, and we also need to provide more health care professionals in our schools. we cannot let another school year go by, without making our schools safer. [applause] that is why i am making school safety an emergency item this session. [applause] in addition to protecting our children in schools, we must also help our seniors in nursing homes, by providing a pay increase for those who care for them.

you know, one of the most dangerous places is one you would least expect -- it's a courtroom with an activist judge, using low bail to let dangerous criminals back on the streets. last september, a law enforcement officer in harris county was murdered by a criminal out on bail from a prior murder charge. harris county's revolving bail practice is literally killing people. in just two years, more than 100 people were murdered in houston by criminals who were let out on multiple felony bonds. now, we did a lot last session with senator huffman and representatives murr and smith to impose tougher bail, but this

session, we must shut and lock that revolving door by passing laws that keep dangerous criminals behind bars, and holding accountable the judges who let them out. [applause] to get that done, i am making -- i am making ending revolving door bail an emergency item this session. another public safety issue is gun crime. some want more gun laws, but the fact is, too many local officials won't even enforce the gun laws that are already on the books. most gun crimes are committed by criminals who possess guns illegally. we need to leave prosecutors and judges with no choice but to

punish those criminals and remove them and their guns from our streets. i want a mandatory minimum sentence for criminals who illegally possess guns of 10 years behind bars. [applause] guns, drugs, cartel gangs. all kinds of illegal activities are assailing our border, all while washington has abandoned its duty. texans are furious about the lawlessness caused by biden's open border policies, and they should be. during the prior administration, we had the lowest illegal crossings in decades, but this past year, the united states set an all-time record high for the

most illegal crossings ever. working with lieutenant governor patrick and speaker phelan, texas has done more than any state ever to secure our border. [applause] we deployed the national guard to turn back illegal immigrants. the texas department of public safety has arrested more than 24,000 criminals, and they have seized enough fentanyl to kill every man, woman, and child in the united states of america. i also designated mexican drug cartels as terrorist organizations. [applause] and to relieve border communities from overcrowded conditions, i bussed migrants to sanctuary cities in other

states. and texas is the only state in the history of america to build our own border wall. [applause] to coordinate these efforts, i hired a former border patrol leader, mike banks, who is the first texas patrol border czar. [applause] texans should be proud of their national guard soldiers and dps troopers, who are working around the clock, under the leadership of major general suelzer and colonel steve mccraw, with dps. thank you all for your service. [applause] and importantly, let's also thank our texas sheriffs, who are on the frontline battling biden's border crisis. thank you, sheriffs.

[applause] members of the national border patrol council, including their president, brandon judd, work with us every day -- and they join with us here tonight. brandon, thank you for being here. [applause] but we know that more must be done. that's why the house and senate are proposing another $4.6 billion to strengthen our border security efforts. but know this -- illegal smuggling is being aided and abetted by united states residents. that must stop. we must impose a mandatory minimum jail sentence of at least 10 years for anyone caught smuggling illegal immigrants in texas. -- in the united states or here in texas.

[applause] doing more to secure our border is an emergency item this session. [applause] i look forward to working with senator birdwell and representative guillen to get that done. our porous border has a tragic side effect. fentanyl poisoning has now become the leading cause of death of americans between the ages of 18 and 45. this travesty must end. i've met with texas families who have been ripped apart by fentanyl. and with us here tonight is

veronica kaprosy, from san antonio. last year, she told me about her daughter, danica, a bright, young woman, lost in her prime, because she took a pill not knowing that it was laced with fentanyl. the story of danica, and too many others, inspired us to start the #onepillkills awareness campaign. mexican drug cartels make fentanyl look like legitimate medicine, even candy. but that one pill can kill. to end cartel killings of texans, we must do two things -- call fentanyl deaths what they are, poisonings, and prosecute them as murders. [applause]

we must also increase the supply of lifesaving narcan, so we can save more texans who are ambushed by fentanyl. addressing the fentanyl crisis is an emergency item this session. [applause] there is no doubt we have work ahead of us, but we're building on a storied legacy. 187 years after texas was founded, there has never been a better time to be a texan. [applause] texas is america's economic

juggernaut, where a small family business can aspire to employ hundreds and become leaders in their local communities. where all texans can chart their own destiny. texas is the seat of knowledge, where children will have safer schools to master the skills that will prepare them for the workforce of tomorrow. texas is the energy capital of the world, where we will strengthen the electric grid to power us for generations to come. texas is the home of justice, where dangerous criminals will stay locked behind bars, and law-abiding texans will have their liberty protected. -- their liberties protected. this session, we will ensure that texas remains the leader of

this nation and an unflinching force in this world. together, we will build a texas for the next generation, the texas of tomorrow. the first lady, cecilia abbott, joins me in saying thank you to our fellow texans. we pray to god for you and your families, and we pray that god will forever bless the great state of texas. thank you all. god bless you all. [applause]