AUSTIN, Texas (KAMR/KCIT) — State government officials, including Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick and Speaker Dade Phelan, announced Tuesday the transfer of $105.5 million to support additional school safety and mental health initiatives through Aug. 31, 2023.
This comes after 19 students and two adults were killed earlier this month at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde. The gunman used an AR-style rifle in a single classroom in the school during the shooting, before he was eventually killed by law enforcement officers.
According to a news release from Abbott’s office, $5 million will be used by the Hill Country Mental Health and Developmental Disabilities Center to help evaluate mental health services in the Uvalde area. The other $100.5 million is expected to be spent on the following:
- $50 million for bullet-resistant shields
- $5.8 million to expand the Texas Child Health Access Through Telemedicine program statewide
- $4.7 million to the Health and Human Services Commission to increase Multisystemic Therapy across the state
- $950,000 to HHSC to expand Coordinated Specialty Care teams across the state
- $7 million for rapid response training by the Advanced Law Enforcement Rapid Response Training Center and $3 million for local law enforcement agencies to offset travel expenditures associated with the training
- $7 million to the Texas School Safety Center for on-site campus assessments to evaluate access control measures
- $17.1 million for school districts to purchase silent panic alert technology
- $5 million to the Texas Department of Public Safety to expand fusion center research and capabilities
“The State of Texas is acting swiftly to ensure our schools are secure and that children, teachers, and families across Texas have the support and resources they need to be safe as we work to prevent future tragedies like the heinous crime committed in Uvalde,” Abbott said in the release. “Our communities – urban and rural – are stronger when Texans are safe and healthy, and I thank my partners in the legislature for quickly addressing the need to expand critical mental health and school safety initiatives in the Lone Star State.”
For more information about what the money will be going towards, visit the Governor’s webpage.
