Our veterans served honorably overseas, taking the fight to those set on doing us harm. Now, many of our vets are returning home sick with rare cancers and lung disorders. The cause? Open burn pits operated on our military bases.
Instead of properly incinerating our military waste, toxic materials were doused in fuel and set ablaze in open burn pits. Dangerous chemicals were aerosolized and transported deep into our service members' lungs as the toxic plumes washed over our bases each day. This threat is the new Agent Orange.
With over 1.4 million veterans, Texas leads the nation in the number of veterans in our state. Creating a comprehensive registry of those affected by toxic burn pit exposure helps get our veterans the benefits they and their families desperately need. In 2019, a registry was created, but now it needs funding to operate. HB 1315 fixes this problem, creating specialty Texas license plates to honor burn pit victims. This will raise awareness about this important issue and fund the registry.
Tweet at your lawmakers now to tell them to support HB 1315 to help our brave veterans.
Texas doesn't abandon its warriors. They took care of us. Now it's our turn to take care of them.