AUSTIN, Texas – During the upcoming special session, Texas lawmakers will examine everything from emergency communications to relief funding for the Hill country.
Four flood related items were added to the special session set to begin July 21st.
Few specifics have been given as to what lawmakers will try to pass into law, save for State Sen. Paul Bettencourt’s plan to add more sirens to flood prone areas.
One area of concern is the plans camps have in place to respond to natural disasters. The Texas Department of State Health Services inspects and licenses youth camps. However, DSHS officials told 2 Investigates they do not evaluate the efficacy of those plans.
DSHS said while inspectors check to ensure camps have a plan to respond natural disasters and that staff is trained on that plan, there is no determination made whether those plans are adequate or need improvement.
2 Investigates reported in 2018 on efforts to increase oversight of youth camps. CEO of Crime Stoppers of Houston, Rania Mankarious, spearheaded this effort with a Houston mother.
Mankarious said while that effort was not as successful as she hoped, in light of the recent floods and the questions surrounding warnings and evacuations, she will again push lawmakers to examine this issue.
“There needs to be a third party that’s interjecting, with the sole purpose of what’s best for camper, the kids, and I think we’re missing that,” said Mankarious. “We weren’t trying to hurt camps, or close camps or penalize camps because we love the camping culture. It’s a wonderful thing for children, but just to make sure that it’s as safe as can be when you have these young lives sleeping there for weeks on end, sometimes months on end. We must do everything possible to make sure that there aren’t just rules in place but that the rules make sense.”
There are 18 items on the agenda for this special session.
The Texas Constitution stipulates a special session can run no longer than 30-days, but Gov. Greg Abbott can call for multiple special sessions.
