Texas House, District 144
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Mary Ann Perez
(Dem)
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Ruben Villarreal
(Rep)
Identify what you think are the 2 most important issues that affect the people in your district and give specific examples of measurable actions you will take to address these issues.
What specific criteria do you believe must be met in order to justify spending reserves in the Economic Stabilization Fund (Rainy Day Fund)? What requirements should there be to ensure that permanent funding solutions are developed going forward?
What will you do as a member of the Texas Legislature to ensure that all children living in Texas receive a quality education?
How can the state of Texas best partner with local governments and private providers to ensure Texans have access to mental health and addiction treatment services?
Education
University of Houston - Downtown
B.A. Business Administration
Community
Meadow Creek Civic Association (2007-2009); President 2008, 2009
National Hispanic Professional Organization Board (2007)
OFA Little League Board (1995-1998)
Phone
(713) 320-8512
People in my district need good paying jobs and the skills to take advantage of them. I have previously filed legislation to allow local junior colleges to offer Baccalaureate degrees in various technical fields. I will continue to support initiatives that strengthen our workforce. We also need to address the fallout from Hurricane Harvey. Homes and businesses were devastated and we should explore tapping the ESF in order to help our communities bounce back and prepare for the next storm.
The ESF is meant to help the state cope with economic downturns in oil and gas. However, the state has been reluctant to touch this fund, even when critical needs in areas such as the school finance system, healthcare, disaster recovery, and other areas persist. Lawmakers should not kick the can down the road. Finding long-term funding solutions will require the state to re-evaluate its spending priorities and invest more heavily in items that provide for the day-to-day well-being of Texans.
Helping provide quality education to my constituents is one of my main concerns. I support having full-day pre-K for all Texas children and making sure that the state pays its fair share rather than pushing the cost of education onto local government.
The state should protect and expand access to mental health services. This can be accomplished by investing sufficient resources into programs like Medicaid, providing mental health resources to those in the criminal justice system, providing schools with greater access to social workers, and supporting similar initiatives.
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