Bill Text: TX HR68 | 2025-2026 | 89th Legislature | Introduced
Bill Title: Recognizing February 4, 2025, as McAllen Day at the State Capitol.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Introduced) 2025-02-19 - Referred to Local & Consent Calendars [HR68 Detail]
Download: Texas-2025-HR68-Introduced.html
| 89R10259 BK-D | ||
| By: Guerra | H.R. No. 68 | |
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| WHEREAS, Residents of McAllen are gathering at the State | ||
| Capitol on February 4, 2025, to celebrate this vibrant South Texas | ||
| community; and | ||
| WHEREAS, McAllen traces its history to 1797, when Spanish | ||
| settler Jose Manuel Gomez founded the Santa Anita Ranch in what is | ||
| now southern Hidalgo County; the ranch grew in size and was | ||
| eventually inherited by Mr. Gomez's great-granddaughter, Salome | ||
| Balli, who married John McAllen; together, they continued to add to | ||
| the property and renamed it McAllen Ranch; and | ||
| WHEREAS, In 1904, the St. Louis, Brownsville and Mexico | ||
| Railroad arrived, and that same year, Mr. McAllen and other early | ||
| settlers launched the McAllen Townsite Company and established a | ||
| community that was named for John McAllen; other developers founded | ||
| East McAllen in 1907, and the two towns eventually merged, becoming | ||
| home to a growing number of businesses, churches, residences, and a | ||
| newspaper; by 1920, the city had a population of some 6,000 | ||
| residents; and | ||
| WHEREAS, Over the last five decades, McAllen has grown into a | ||
| thriving center for business, commerce, and government in the Rio | ||
| Grande Valley; as a result of its retail tax strength, the city has | ||
| one of the lowest property tax rates in the region, and it continues | ||
| to be listed among the fastest-growing metropolitan statistical | ||
| areas in the country; U.S. News & World Report ranked McAllen No. 3 | ||
| in the category of best places to live in the U.S. for quality of | ||
| life for 2020-2021, and it was recently rated by the publication as | ||
| the second-best place to live in Texas for 2024-2025; furthermore, | ||
| SmartAsset ranked McAllen as the third-safest city in America in | ||
| 2023; and | ||
| WHEREAS, McAllen is renowned for its natural beauty and is | ||
| home to Quinta Mazatlan, a Spanish revival estate set amid | ||
| sprawling tropical gardens; this unique conference and events | ||
| center encompasses quiet trails winding through more than 15 acres | ||
| of birding habitat that is visited by more than 500 species; and | ||
| WHEREAS, The city also features a rich array of cultural | ||
| attractions, and in 2022, Governor Greg Abbott announced that | ||
| McAllen had been named a Music Friendly Community by the Texas Music | ||
| Office, a designation that will help the city to foster further | ||
| economic development related to the music industry; and | ||
| WHEREAS, McAllen has built a reputation as an outstanding | ||
| place to live, work, and raise a family, and its citizens may indeed | ||
| take great pride in the prominent role that their city continues to | ||
| play in the Lone Star State; now, therefore, be it | ||
| RESOLVED, That the House of Representatives of the 89th Texas | ||
| Legislature hereby recognize February 4, 2025, as McAllen Day at | ||
| the State Capitol and extend to the visiting delegation sincere | ||
| best wishes for a memorable visit to Austin. | ||
