Standing Up for Farmers and Ranchers

As a seventh-generation Central Texan, I don’t just represent rural Texas—I live it. I was raised on the values that come from working the land, keeping your word, and fighting for what matters. I live on a farm that has been in our family since the late 1800s. Agriculture isn’t just a business—it’s a way of life.

That’s why I’ve made it my mission in the Texas House to fight for farmers, ranchers, and rural communities. Because if we don’t stand up for them, who will?

Urban lawmakers now outnumber rural ones nearly three to one in the Legislature. But I’ve never backed down from standing up for the people too often overlooked at the Capitol.

This session, when a bill in the Texas House threatened to require warning labels on widely used herbicides like atrazine and glyphosate, I co-authored the amendment to remove them. The debate revealed just how out of touch—or even outright anti-farm—some lawmakers have become. The Texas Farm Bureau praised our efforts to stop this harmful language from becoming law, and I’ll never apologize for putting Texas agriculture first.

I also proudly co-sponsored Senate Bill 17, a long-overdue measure to block hostile foreign entities—including the Chinese Communist Party—from buying Texas farmland and infrastructure. Texas has over five million acres of foreign-owned land, the most of any state. That’s a threat to our food supply and sovereignty when it’s in the wrong hands—and I was proud to help shut that door.

We also passed legislation tackling some of the most pressing issues facing rural producers. Senate Bill 7 directs billions toward rural water infrastructure—funding new water supply projects, improving storage capacity, and repairing aging systems. House Bill 43 strengthens the Texas Agricultural Finance Authority, helping young and small producers access financing they need to grow and compete. Senate Bill 1399 exempts animal feed from personal property taxes, offering direct relief to producers facing rising costs across the board.

Finally, after years of fighting, we saw an end to the high-speed rail project that threatened our farmland this year. The project would have seized family land through eminent domain without providing any benefit to rural Texans. Thanks to the efforts of Congressman Jake Ellzey, President Trump’s support, and grassroots opposition from lawmakers like myself, the project has been canceled. I’m now working to put as many nails in the coffin as needed to stop big-city interests from paving their way through our land and dividing farms in half.

But just as we secure these victories, new threats like the New World screwworm—a dangerous invasive parasite approaching South Texas from Mexico—pose serious risks to Texas livestock. I’m closely monitoring this emerging threat and working with local producers and officials to protect our herds and safeguard our agricultural economy.

Over the next few months, I’ll be attending Farm Bureau meetings across the district to update producers on the legislation we passed, answer questions, and most importantly—listen. There’s no substitute for hearing directly from the folks who work the land.

Rural Texas is my home, and you can count on me to keep fighting for the land, the people, and the values that raised me.

Make sure you stay connected and informed about the legislative process by calling our Capitol office at (512) 463-0600 or by following my social media page at www.facebook.com/AngeliaOrrForTX.

– Conservative State Representative Angelia Orr