Local business and civic leaders met with some of the state's top elected and appointed officials during ¡VIVA! San Antonio, our biennial advocacy day at the Texas Capitol.
The delegation got valuable insight into the 89th legislative session from Rep. Tom Craddick, Chairman of the House Transportation Committee, Bruce Bugg, Chairman of the Texas Department of Transportation, Steve Munisteri, Senior Advisor to Gov. Greg Abbott, Catarina Gonzales, TCEQ Commissioner, and others.
Led by Co-Chairs Kevin Matula of USAA and Krista Piferrer of FirstDay Foundation, various issues teams had one-on-one meetings with members of the House and Senate to discuss the Chamber's state agenda. Topics of discussion covered water resources, transportation funding, energy, healthcare, cybersecurity, workforce development and housing.
One of the delegation's priorities was voicing support for establishing the Texas Cyber Command headquarters in San Antonio. This initiative, which is one of Gov. Abbott's Emergency Items for the session, would enhance the state's cybersecurity capabilities, including threat detection, incident response and workforce development, by leveraging the expertise and resources of UTSA.
In addition to the plenary sessions and meetings, there were resolutions recognizing the delegation and the Greater San Antonio Chamber in the House and the Senate. And the day wrapped up with a reception at the Texas Association of Business. Thank you to USAA and FirstDay Foundation for their support of this valuable advocacy event!