Federal Legislative Agenda

General Business & Economic Development

• Supports providing a tax credit for office buildings over 25 years old to convert to another use modeled after historic tax credits.
• Supports a legislative solution that authorizes nonstop flights from San Antonio (SAT) – Military City USA – to Reagan National (DCA).
• Supports SAT Airport Terminal Expansion.
• Supports actions to address supply chain constraints and encourages the free flow of goods and services with U.S. Trading Partners.

 Aerospace

• Supports passage of the FAA Reauthorization enabling additional support to the growth of the advanced air mobility industry in Texas and creating incentives for testing and implementing infrastructure to support that industry.
• Supports authorizing and appropriating additional funding to improve Department of Defense (DoD) military readiness rates and reduce the maintenance backlog in tactical aviation in our military services.
• Supports efforts to increase aviation workforce development funding and grant programs.
• Supports legislation that increases funding to aerospace education programs in pre-K through 12 and post-secondary institutions.

 

Broadband

• Encourages Public and Private Partnerships between broadband providers and local organizations for the best product in construction, service, upgrades, and security.
• Encourages utilization of federally funded affordability programs in areas where cost concerns are high. 
• Supports digital literacy and online safety programming for communities.
• Supports the FCC vision to establish a baseline definition of broadband speeds beyond 100 megabits per second download and 20 megabits per second upload.
• Supports the funding and continuation of the Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP), facilitating internet access by alleviating the cost of internet service plans for qualifying households for at home internet service.
• Support legislation that will reduce barriers to deployment of broadband infrastructure including streamlining permitting process and interagency coordination.
• Incentivizing investment to expand network access and removing barriers to efficient broadband deployment projects.
• Bolstering network expansion by making internet service more affordable for Americans.

Cybersecurity

• Supports programs to help small businesses prepare for and combat cybersecurity threats and build resilience.
• Supports increases in funding for cybersecurity education, workforce training, education, and retraining.
• Supports the creation of inter-departmental guidelines for cybersecurity products and services to be exported to southern partners, supporting their efforts to secure critical infrastructure and financial services.
• Supports FBI and CISA Cyber Incident Response Support and Investigation Reform of incidents.
• Supports legislation standardizing privacy, compliance, supply chain verification, and certification requirements across states.

Education & Workforce Development

Energy & Sustainability

• Supports carbon-reduction proposals that are resource-neutral, economy-wide, and give San Antonio the flexibility to invest in and transition to low- and non-emitting technologies in a manner consistent with our community’s priorities and the Climate Action & Adaption Plan.
• Supports additional federal funding for programs such as the Low-Income Home Assistance Program (LIHEAP) as it provides invaluable support and financial assistance to our San Antonio community members unable to pay their energy bills.
• Supports legislation to prevent unreasonable and exorbitant natural gas price increases during a declared natural disaster, thereby protecting customers from unnecessary financial hardship as experienced during Winter Storm Uri.
• Supports the allocation of federal funding, in particular opportunities through the IRA and IIJA, and grant programs to incentivize research, demonstration, and deployment of evolving technologies that will promote innovation, infrastructure growth, and assist with net emissions reductions in Bexar County in a cost-effective manner.
• Supports all actions to address supply chain constraints and encourage the free flow of goods and services with U.S. Trading Partners.
• Supports retention in federal energy tax policy of a direct pay option for public power and a change in tax policy to reinstate the ability of public power to advance refund existing debt.
• Supports appropriating $1 billion to the Department of Energy for implementation of the Defense Production Act to address the shortage of distribution transformers.

Healthcare & Bioscience:

• Supports additional federal funding for programs such as the Low-Income Home Assistance Program (LIHEAP) as it provides invaluable support and financial assistance to our San Antonio community members unable to pay their energy bills.
• Encourages the Department of Energy to withdraw proposed energy efficiency standards for distribution transformers. The electric sector continues to face supply constraints for distribution transformers impacting economic development and threatening grid reliability. DOE's proposed rule would make these constraints worse even while the pace of electrification of the economy accelerates. DOE should withdraw this rule and reassess how best to address current supply chain constraints.
• Supports reforms to federal laws that currently slow the process of obtaining necessary permits for critical infrastructure. Reforms should streamline the permitting process without compromising the integrity of environmental reviews.
• Supports the passage of the Farm Bill as the nation’s largest investment in voluntary conservation, restoration, and management of agricultural and private lands, - providing food, fiber, clean water & air for the nation.
• Supports for the continued use of liquid fuels for transportation.
• Opposes arbitrary deadlines, such as net zero emissions targets that are not achievable, nor backed up by data that proves their validity. Arbitrary deadlines stifle innovation and increase costs to consumers.
• Supports ALL vehicles on Texas roads contributing to the creation and maintenance of our roads and highways. Road use taxes for EV drivers must be collected annually since they circumvent taxes paid at the gas pump for roads and schools.
• Supports availability of low carbon incentives for business investments in environmentally friendly technologies or products.

Housing

International Trade

• Supports legislation that promotes increased trade, partnerships, and infrastructure investment to facilitate lower border wait times, implementation of the USMCA, and expansion of NAD Bank.
• Supports efforts to increase onshoring, reshoring, and nearshoring of manufacturing factories, centers, and headquarters to US, specifically Texas.

Manufacturing

• Supports changes to the tax code to encourage innovation and protect research and development investments.
• Supports making permanent the incentive of a 100% deduction for the purchase of equipment and machinery in the tax year purchased.
• Support efforts by Congress to help businesses finance their growth and reverse stricter limitations on interest deductibility.

Military Affairs 

• Supports the advancement of resiliency (infrastructure, climate, mission) for installations through collaboration with communities by continuing investment in programs that mutually benefit communities and military missions such as: Office of Local Defense Community Cooperation (OLDCC) Military Installation Resilience Review (MIRR) grant, Defense Community Infrastructure Program (DCIP), and Defense Manufacturing Community Support Program (DMCSP).
• Supports the strengthening efforts for the resilience of military service members and families through efforts to address unique challenges including:
  • ensuring safe and quality on-base housing.
  • advocating for adequate housing support payments, such as 100% coverage of housing expenses through the Basic Allowance for Housing (BAH).
  • strengthening the Veterans’ Administration Home Loan Program.
• Supports in addressing Active-Duty Service Member housing challenges by:
  • Restoring 100% BAH.
  • Reform the BAH Calculations Process.
  • Build more housing in off-base communities.
• Supports the efforts of Congress, the Department of Veterans Affairs, and the Department of Defense to reduce military and veteran suicide.
• Supports increasing advocacy for community-led initiatives that enhance military spouse employment and promote military-community efforts to ensure military families have access to high-quality schools, childcare, spousal employment, and special needs programs.
  • Supports policies that facilitate long-term and meaningful employment for military spouses.
  • Supports the expansion of the Work Occupancy Tax Credit to include military spouses.
  • Continue advocacy around childcare solutions for military service members and families to include:

• Fully funding Fee Assistance programs
• Resolving Staffing and Capacity Challenges
• In-depth study of the impact of childcare challenges on recruiting, readiness, and retention.
• Supports fully funding Impact Aid to offset the costs incurred by districts educating large numbers of military children.

• Supports in holding future Department of Defense Warrior Games in the Alamo Region and works with Army Leadership to ensure support and collaboration of public and private business support.
• Supports continued federal investment in the San Antonio region’s growing cybersecurity/national security ecosystem, including support for a DoD/USAF partnership with Port San Antonio to build a new, consolidated campus for the 16th Air Force and related agencies, addressing critical USAF facilities need and further strengthening and leveraging San Antonio’s regional cyber and defense capabilities.

Nonprofit

• Supports the restoration of a universal charitable deduction and other incentives for individual giving for taxpayers to benefit nonprofit organizations working to strengthen our community.
• Supports the establishment of structural mechanisms in the social sector to help shape and improve federal policies that allow the nonprofit community to serve our community more effectively.
• Supports in requesting Congress urge the US Department of Labor to withdraw changes to regulations governing employee exemptions to federal overtime pay requirements under the Fair Labor Standards Act.
• Supports the extension of the New Markets Tax Credit Act past the expiration in 2025.

Transportation

• Supports annual appropriations and local grant applications (County, City, VIA, etc.) consistent with surface transportation through the Infrastructure Investment & Jobs Act (IIJA)/Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) signed into law November 21, 2021.
• VIA priorities pending internal leadership approval.
  • Grants being pursued by VIA:
    • Low or No Emissions grant for 17 articulated buses
    • Bus and bus facilities grant for second maintenance facility.

Water

• Supports continued federal funding through U.S. Army Corps of Engineers for the Westside Creek Ecosystem Restoration Project.
• Supports for more research on the blind catfish in the Edwards Aquifer before listing them as Endangered Species.
• Supports increased federal investment in water and wastewater infrastructure to help utilities address pressing needs.
• Supports laws and regulations that provide a stable and equitable framework for managing water utilities.
• Supports ongoing water conservation efforts, such as improving water use efficiency and the reduction of water loss.
• Supports Water and Wastewater Emergency Assistance Program.