Congressman Crenshaw here. I hope you all enjoyed celebrating America’s birthday last week as much as I did. This week, we were back in Washington. The agenda included a hearing, votes, some interviews and everything in between. Here’s what it didn’t include: compromise, civil discourse, or solutions. 

On Friday the House voted on the National Defense Authorization Act. This national defense bill, which is traditionally bipartisan, was riddled with partisan provisions that will hurt national security. Here’s the truth on why I voted against it: 

Given the humanitarian crisis occurring at the border, a lot of questions have been raised about why DHS is legally prohibited from accepting private-citizen donations. Along with 13 other members of Congress, I sent a letter to Acting DHS Secretary Kevin McAleenan asking him why. This is an issue that must be addressed sooner rather than later. We need answers now.

Houstonians have experienced firsthand the destruction that storms can cause. Hurricane season officially began over a month ago. We want to make sure you are prepared.

Here are important numbers to keep available:

• Houston Fire Department: 713-247-5000

• Houston Police Department 713-884-3131

• Harris County Sheriff's Office: 713-221-6000 

• National Weather Service: 281-337-5074

• Houston Office of Emergency Management: 713-247-1000

• Harris County Office of Emergency Management: 713-881-3100

Many experts recommend knowing evacuation routes, signing up for flooding alerts, and purchasing flood insurance. A fantastic resource is Ready Harris. There you can find evacuation maps, checklists, alerts, pet preparedness, power outage tracking, storm tracking, and flood insurance information. You can also find your local Office of Emergency Management (OEM) here.

For more information, read this helpful article recently published by KHOU.

Additionally, ABC13 has published a “Live Hurricane Tracker” that you might find helpful. Stay safe, and please contact my office if you need assistance. We are ready to help!