State Rep. Allen Fletcher is retiring

State Rep. Allen Fletcher has decided not to seek re-election to serve another term but plans on remaining active in the community.

Representing House District 130 seat, Fletcher described his experience as an honor but also life changing. Upon reaching tenure, which is four terms, he promised his wife he would retire.

“She has managed our company for the past eight years and it was time for her to spend sometime with our six-grandchildren,” he said. “I will continue however to serve my community in the private sector by helping manage our security company and working in several consulting roles with additional companies in private prisons, high speed rail for Texas and software for law enforcement.”

Fletcher added how he takes his involvement in all issues affecting out state very seriously. He was the only retired Texas Peace officer in the Texas Legislature for his four legislative sessions, while serving on criminal justice his first session.

He was the Vice Chair of Homeland Security and Public Safety for his second and third sessions and the Campus Carry Bill’s House sponsor. The bill was recently passed which requires public universities to allow handguns in dorms, classrooms and campus buildings. Improving state highways and stopping Medicare Fraud were other things Fletcher tackled while serving as a state representative.

“I passed legislation as a member of the Transportation Committee that has improved our infrastructure in District 130 for Harris County and Texas,” he said.

As Chairman of Emerging Issues for Texas Law Enforcement during his fourth session he also passed legislation which provided funding for the DPS gunboats on the border, border body cameras campus carry, cargo theft and police powers for health and human service inspectors.

“Texas leads the nation in Medicare fraud and giving the inspectors police powers should impede this dubious honor. The cargo theft bill should do the same by allowing for organized crime prosecution for these offenses,” he said.

There were many other law enforcement bills he was a part of including doubled death benefits for surviving spouses and dependents for officers and first responders killed in the line of duty. Despite all his accomplishments, there are some things Fletcher wants to change. Particularly how the Ethics Commission handles their investigations and also fundraising during elections.

“They don’t investigate ethical violations, it should be renamed, the regulatory are clerical commission,” he said. “I also would like to see the need for fundraising curtailed in some way so that elections could be earned rather than bought. Leadership has too much control over how legislation that is passed in our legislature.”

An evening with the Yellow Rose of Texas Republican Women for a “Texas House Update” at the Harris County Smokehouse in Tomball at 7 p.m. will feature Fletcher as the keynote speaker.

“We look forward to hearing from Representative Fletcher and his wrap-up of the 84th Texas Legislative Session,”said Lisa Townsend, president of YRTRW. “He played a big role in the expansion of Tomball Parkway which opened this last Spring. ”

Fletcher will speak about various topics including his retirement at the meeting. He wants his constituents of District 130 to know he is still and will be their representative until the second Tuesday of January 2017.

“The men and women who served as state representatives are just that, state representatives, the laws and issues we have the honor of overseeing are for all of Texas and I have been and will continue to be on the job 24/7.”