Today, Congressman Henry Cuellar (TX-28), Chairman of the Pro-Trade Caucus, and Congressman Francisco “Quico” Canseco (TX-23) announced their support for the decision to extend Mexico an invitation to join the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) negotiations.  The TPP is a free trade agreement that seeks to facilitate U.S. trade engagement in the Asia-Pacific region’s huge and growing… Read more »

Today, Congressman Henry Cuellar (D-Laredo) congratulated Workforce Solutions and the Border Workforce Alliance (BWA) after the U.S. Department of Labor announced that it has awarded a Workforce Innovation Fund Grant in the amount of $5,999,998 to Workforce Solutions of McAllen, as the lead entity for the BWA.  The BWA is a consortium of the five workforce boards located along the… Read more »

Today, Congressman Henry Cuellar (D-Laredo) announced his support for a new federal border initiative targeted at helping communities in the southwest border region confront chronic poverty.  The “Border Community Capital Initiative” (known as the “Border Initiative”) is a collaborative effort of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), the U.S. Department of… Read more »

Today, Congressman Henry Cuellar (D-Laredo) announced that the Department of Transportation has awarded $3,317,353.00 to the City of Laredo to fund improvements at the Laredo International Airport.  These funds will be used to support an ongoing project to rehabilitate the Laredo International Airport’s apron—enhancing airport safety, increasing the airport’s capacity to handle large… Read more »

Yesterday evening, Congressman Henry Cuellar’s (D-Laredo) amendment to H.R. 5743, the Intelligence Authorization Act for FY12, passed the House of Representatives.  Cuellar’s amendment seeks to leverage the force of the intelligence community to enhance border security and combat drug trafficking by expanding intelligence agencies’ information sharing with their counterparts in… Read more »

Today, Congressman Henry Cuellar’s (D-TX 28) bill H.R. 915, Jaime Zapata Border Enforcement Security Task Force (BEST) Act of 2011 passed the House of Representatives on a bipartisan vote of 391-2.  The bill enhances border security by promoting coordinated efforts and information-sharing among federal, state and local border and law enforcement officials.  The Jaime Zapata… Read more »

Every year since 1963, the President has proclaimed a National Small Business Week to recognize the contributions that small businesses play in creating an economy built to last.  As a former small business owner, I know firsthand that small businesses drive our economy, and I am proud to join workers and employers across the country in celebrating National Small Business… Read more »

Today, Congressman Henry Cuellar (D-Laredo) announced that South Texas school districts will now have the opportunity to compete for federal funding under the Race to the Top program.  Race to the Top is a United States Department of Education contest created to encourage innovation in public education. Under guidelines announced today, the Race to the Top district-level competition… Read more »

Today, Congressman Henry Cuellar (D-Laredo) sent a letter to Department of Defense Secretary Leon Panetta in support of the Texas Department of Public Safety’s (TX DPS) request for the procurement of excess equipment from the Department of Defense (DoD).  The letter was signed by fourteen of Cuellar’s colleagues in the Texas congressional delegation. “With the drawdown in Iraq… Read more »

Today, Congressman Henry Cuellar (D-Laredo) released the following statement after the Texas Army National Guard (TXARNG) reached a determination that it will not establish a South Texas Training Center in McMullen County: “I am pleased that the TXARNG has responded to the concerns of many in McMullen County and decided to look elsewhere to locate its new training center.  Over a… Read more »