KFDA – NewsChannel 10 / Amarillo News, Weather, Sports

By: Shannon Smith

LUBBOCK, TX (KFDA) – Some area law enforcement officers have played a big role in the filing of a new state bill meant to better assist first responders who are hurt while on duty.

House Bill 1688 proposes a state liaison be established for first responders who need help with medical care and worker’s compensation if they’re harmed doing their jobs.

St. Rep. Dustin Burrows (R-Lubbock) reached out to lots of officers and their family members for input.

He believes a state liaison for injured law enforcement would help them through the insurance and medical filings necessary during their recovery process.

“I want to know somebody who actually has experience in this, who can help navigate our guys so when somebody is in the hospital on the first or second day after something bad has happened there’s somebody there to kind of help them and guide them through the process,” said Burrows. “[Someone] to make sure they’re getting the things they need working and going through all of the different speed bumps there may be to getting better.”

Sgt. Houston Gass with the Pampa Police Department was one of the people who helped Burrows shape this bill.

He was shot in the face while on duty, requiring several surgeries.

Gass said he was lucky to have great insurance to help him out, and hopes others can say the same.

“I know several officers who have been denied time after time after time,” said Gass. “I’m friends with a lot of these guys and it’s really an undue hardship.”

Officer Justin Scherlen, who was injured in a car wreck while on duty, died this past summer nearly a year after the accident.

His wife Jessica said a liaison would have been helpful in his situation.

“I think Justin, had the medication been approved for him, I don’t think he would have had to spend 30 days in the hospital two weeks before he died,” she said.

Gass and Scherlen hope this proposal can help first responders all across the state.

“This is the best thing that any representative or any senator in the state of Texas has ever done for first responders.”

If the bill passes, first responders would start seeing changes on September 1st.

Read more here: http://www.newschannel10.com/story/34472685/new-bill-proposed-to-help-injured-tx-first-responders

By: Alyssa Goard
KAMC

Lubbock, TX – State Representative Dustin Burrows (HD-83) filed two bills in the Texas House Thursday to offer additional assistance to first responders injured on the job.

According to Burrows, HB 1688 will appoint a “law enforcement liaison” who would help injured officers navigate the workers’ compensation system.  HB 1689 will work with the Texas Department of Insurance to look into insurance policies and make sure workers’ comp insurance is getting officers the benefits they need.

“If you talk to the men and women who have been shot and injured [in the line of duty], it’s urgent for them to get better so they can get back on the streets back to protecting us,” Burrows said.

Burrows said around April, officers began speaking with him about their difficulties getting their medical needs met. Since then, he has spoken with families from Snyder to Amarillo who have faced the same difficulties in navigating workers comp.

“At first I thought it was maybe one or two people,” Burrows explained Thursday. “When I met with over ten of them, I realized this is a pervasive problem and I’ve talked to other representatives so I know it’s across the districts. And so what we want to make sure is that if someone gets hurt in the line of duty that they’re actually going to be able to get better, it’s important to me and it’s important to the district.”

Many of these injured officers have been pushing for the past year to get lawmakers to understand the difficulties they’ve faced.

Mary Duncan has been working to get injured officers recognized statewide. She is the area representative for Peace Officers Angels Foundation, and she believes that many officers who are injured in the line of duty face delays in workers compensation and medical care. One hurdle she sees often is delay in follow up care.  She explained that in most cases after a first responder is injured on the job, their bill is taken care of by their local government.

“However if you need any follow up visits for medical care, you have to get approval from workman’s comp before you can even see a doctor and in some cases you need to see that doctor right away,” Duncan explained.

In September she assembled four of these injured officers for the Star of Texas awards, many of whom expressed hope for more laws in support of injured officers.

Jacob Flores was present at that gathering in September and returned with Duncan again in Thursday to express support for Burrows’ legislation. Flores was working as an officer for Lubbock Police when in February of 2014, he broke his leg while on a chase related to an Amber Alert search.

His injuries ultimately forced Flores to medically retire from the Lubbock Police Department, though he moved to Lubbock for the position and planned to have a life long career in law enforcement.

After his fracture, Flores began developing blood clots.

“It was required to take blood thinners and my blood thinners had been denied for a refill because of the cost of the medication itself, so I went almost a week– week and a half without those blood thinners which was ridiculous,” Flores said. “Throughout this time I ended up developing other blood clots throughout my body, you have to wonder if those couple of weeks would have made a difference in not having those blood clots.”

More recently, Flores needed to request a leg brace, but workers comp delays prevented him from getting the leg brace for three weeks.

“It impacts the entire law enforcement community because we’ll give up anything, we’ll give up our lives and all we ask is for basic simple healthcare,” Flores said.

Flores feels that Burrows’ bills will directly benefit him and other officers.

“I think if this had been passed when I first broke my leg in 2014,  I wouldn’t have had so many issues,” he said.

Flores has committed himself to pushing for legislative change, and for him hearing about these bills feels “empowering.”

“Being a law enforcement officer or a first responder that is injured, you are physically injured and you’re mentally injured because you have to go through this lengthy process of dealing with workers’ comp,” Flores said. “And being able to talk to a liaison who specializes in this and that’s their sole purpose is to advocate for the other officers, I think that relieves a lot of stress.”

Officer Ricky Wallace is a current Texas Tech Police Officer who was injured on the job in 2015 while chasing a fleeing subject. He has been involved with Flores and Duncan in this push for change as well. He was very excited about the prospect of a law enforcement liaison.

“I wish it would have been in place back with my injury  because we didn’t have anybody and to have somebody there to fight on your side would have been a very big help, because I’ve spent hours on the phone I’ve got an attorney and everything,” Wallace said. “Workers’ comp is supposed to help us, not to deter us from getting  back to the job we were doing before. Now if all this can go through  we actually have someone there in our corner who is there to fight for us and knows what to do.”

It’s not just Lubbock officers and their families who are invested in these bills, Jessica Scherlen of Amarillo traveled to Lubbock to express her support for the bills.

Scherlen’s husband Justin had worked for the Amarillo Police Department for over a decade when he was in a motor vehicle accident in 2015 as he was driving to a call.

Justin Scherlen worked on patrol for Amarillo Police, but his life changed after that accident. Justin Scherlen was in a coma after the accident and then spent two months in the hospital. He was in and out of the hospital  for nine surgeries after the crash, keeping him away from Jessica and his four children.

In August of 2016, Justin Scherlen passed away as a result of the injuries he sustained in the line of duty.  His wife wonders what things could have looked like if he could have received some care sooner.

“We had to deal with a lot of waiting, and as far as surgeries, there is always a 72 hour hold and sometimes you don’t know within 72 hours, sometimes it takes longer and then you only have a certain– once it’s approved if it’s approved– you only have 30 days to get it done,” Scherlen explained. The hold she refers to is the delay time between requesting services from workers’ comp and waiting for approval.

Since her husband’s passing, she has turned her attention to helping other injured officers.

“The things that Justin had to fight for and the things that he had to go through just to get the care that he needed and the medications he needed, and I didn’t hesitate once [I said] I’m on this lets go,” she said, explaining her willingness to get involved with other officers looking to raise awareness.

Scherlen said she knows other officers who have been injured in the line of duty who are still having problems with workers’ comp in the same way her husband did.

“I think it will really help them and their families in that they don’t have to fight and stress about things  that should never have to be a stress and a fight for them to begin with,” Scherlen said. “They are all hurt in the line of duty, in the aspect of they were helping another citizen or they were doing their jobs that they were paid to do. They shouldn’t have to fight for any of this any more.”

Representative Burrows said Thursday he believes these bills will be positively received in the legislature, and he hopes that these injured West Texas officers and their families can continue to share their stories with the lawmakers and the entire state.

Read more here: http://www.everythinglubbock.com/news/kamc-news/help-for-injured-officers-rep-burrows-files-2-texas-bills/654342480

KCBD NewsChannel 11 Lubbock

By: Presley Fowler

LUBBOCK, TX (KCBD) – Texas House Representative Dustin Burrows filed two bills on Thursday that could eventually help law enforcement officials injured in the line of duty, as they attempt to file for worker’s compensation.

House Bill 1688 will create a “law enforcement liaison” within the Texas Department of Worker’s Compensation Agency to help injured officers.

House Bill 1689 would allow the Texas Department of Insurance to have oversight and take legal action if needed.

While creating this bill, Representative Burrows met with current and former law enforcement members from our district who were injured on the job.

We spoke with some of them today, to find out how this bill would help them.

Mary Duncan is the area representative for the Peace Officers Angels Foundation, advocating on behalf of officer’s injured in the line of duty.

“I believe that every officer, every injured officer, every injured first responder should be able to walk into any clinic at any time and receive the medical attention that they need,” Duncan said.

Her passion comes from personal experience, when her husband was shot and lost his left eye while serving as a police officer in Olney, Texas in 1977.

Mary says like many other officers injured on the job, her husband ran into problems when follow up procedures and necessary medications weren’t covered by worker’s compensation.

“You have to get approval from worker comp before you can even see a doctor. And in some cases this can be, I mean- you need to see that doctor right away,” Duncan said.

That’s why Mary and others affected by the system have been meeting and working with Representative Dustin Burrows to try and change the way it works.

“I was just blown away with the sheer number that were coming to me with these concerns and thought we needed to do something about it. So I called the Texas Department of Insurance and others and said what’s going on here? This isn’t right. And so we’ve come up with some ideas to try to make sure this doesn’t happen going forward to our law enforcement officers,” Rep. Burrows said.

Jessica Scherlen’s husband was severely injured in a head-on accident as an Amarillo Police officer. He ended up passing away from complications one year later, leaving behind Jessica and their four children.

“He had a serious serious infection that there was only one specific medication that would take care of this infection, and because it was a $15,000 medication, they denied it…a medication that is needed to get an infection out of your leg so it doesn’t get your bloodstream to where it kills you. It shouldn’t have to go through a board of oh well, you really don’t need this. Yeah, you really do need this,” Scherlen said.

Here in Lubbock, Ricky Wallace is losing his badge and gun as a Texas Tech Police Officer. Jacob Flores had to medically retire, both due to their on the job injuries, and hurdles they encountered receiving treatment.

“It’s just from a, what you’ve been doing for so long in your life and what you’ve wanted to do and you’ve worked your way to. Just destroyed and gone in one night. It hurts,” Wallace said.

They both say they feel this bill would be beneficial for any officer who is injured in the future, to receive guidance from a law enforcement liaison and hopefully speed up the recovery process.

“It’s not just for us, it’s for all first responders…hopefully we can start small, we can expand from here,” Wallace said.

“It’s still a long journey that we have to go. But it almost feels like getting ready for a race. You’ve been prepping this entire time. Talking about it. And having him present these bills feels like you’re at the starting line and ready for a big race that you hopefully will finish in your favor,” Flores said.

Representative Burrows says the next step is for this bill to be referred to a Texas House committee and eventually he hopes to get a full hearing on the house floor.

Read more here: http://www.kcbd.com/story/34472455/rep-burrows-files-two-bills-to-help-injured-law-enforcement-officials

By: Matt Dotray
Lubbock Avalanche Journal

Texas House Speaker Joe Straus announced House committee assignments for the 85th Legislature on Thursday, and South Plains area lawmakers were given a few high-profile positions.

Rep. John Frullo, R-Lubbock, will again have a chairmanship, but this time on the Culture, Recreation and Tourism Committee. He will also sit on the Licensing and Administrative Procedures Committee. Last session, Frullo was the chairman of the Insurance Committee.

On the licensing committee, Frullo will oversee legislation relating to the oversight of business, industries, general trade, and occupations regulated by the state. And as chairman, he will oversee policy matters related to development, promotions, state parks and historical resources in the state.

“I am honored Speaker Straus has entrusted me to carry out these important roles,” Frullo said in a statement. “There are many pressing issues related to culture, recreation and tourism. I look forward to getting to work.”

Rep. Dustin Burrows, R-Lubbock, will serve on the Agriculture and Livestock Committee as well as the Investments and Financial Services Committee. Last session, Burrows was appointed to the County Affairs Committee and the International Trade and Intergovernmental Affairs Committee.

Burrows said he’s excited to join the chairs in service on these committees.

“These committees are chaired by two colleagues who I admire very much,” he said in a statement. “These committees are aligned with issues front and center for all West Texans — agriculture for the critical function our farmers and ranchers fulfill, and, for financial services, insuring our banks — particularly those in our rural areas – are provided the tools they need to grow and service their customers.”

Drew Springer, R-Muenster, was appointed vice chair of the County Affairs Committee as well as given seats on the Redistricting Committee and the Ways and Means Committee.

Ken King, R-Canadian, will serve on the Calendars, Public Education, State Affairs and the State and Federal Power and Responsibility Committees.

Read more here: http://lubbockonline.com/local/2017-02-09/area-state-representatives-tapped-committees

The Brownfield News

Members of the Terry County Farm Bureau Board traveled to Austin recently for the Farm Bureau State Convention.

Barrett Brown, Mason Becker and Kyle Kelly made the trip down and had a chance to learn about some proposed legislation and other items that are of  concern to area producers and consumers.

Now, more than ever, producers have to stay involved in the government processes that affect their livelihood. These young guys are trying to stay on top of everything that comes out of Washington that has the potential to have an impact on the farm.

One topic that came up was Ag Liens. In the past, with certain commodities, producers brought their crop to the handling facility and then ended up losing their product when the company could not pay for the product.

Legislation is being introduced which would keep the producer as the primary lien holder until they have the check in their hands.

This would keep the producer from losing their commodity with no recourse to get it back or receive payment for the product.

This has been an issue on a couple of occasions in Terry County in which farmers ended up in court trying to regain their rights to their product or receive payment for that product.

They also had the opportunity to meet with State Representative Dustin Burrows.

Burrows is working on introducing legislation that would give more clarity to commodity contracts.

Mason stated, “This is all about producer protection. This is about clarity between the per bale contract as opposed to the per acre contract. Many times a producer signs a per bale contract and then is left holding the bag when his production is not up where it needs to be to match the contract. This legislation would help protect the producer in this situation.”

The per bale or per pound contract is usually a bit more lucrative than the standard per acre contract but is also much more risky.

Congressman Charles Perry spoke to the guys about water rights. “He is trying to be sure that our water rights in Texas are always protected,” stated Barrett. As the Ogalala Aquifer water level continues to go down, water rights could become an increasingly important topic to everyone, not just producers.

Mary Kay Thatcher, who is the American Farm Bureau Senior Congressional Relations Director also addressed the group.

Kyle stated, “She told us not to expect any Farm Bill without nutrition as a part of it. And 76% of the bill is nutrition and not directly related to farming as so many people assume.”

She also pointed out to the group that the last 10 year average data indicates there has been a 46% drop in farm income. Cotton has dropped 1.6% in price and peanuts have dropped 24%. This was, of course, not news to the group as most of them are living this.

Thatcher told the group that there is a chance in late April to have cottonseed oil reconsidered for seed oil designation. This would be a part of the second reconciliation bill. Reconciliation is a legislative process of the United States Senate intended to allow consideration of a budget bill with debate limited to twenty hours under Senate rules.

The guys also attended the Young Farmer and Rancher Conference while there and learned methods to get more people involved in learning about farming and ranching and  also how to keep more farm kids on the farm.

Barrett stated, “This was about showing the many different opportunities there are for younger people to be involved in agriculture.”
The average age of the American farmer is rising each year. The average age currently is 57. According to data produced by the National Geographic, only 6% of American farmers are under the age of 35, while 62% are age 55 are older.

Read more here: http://brownfieldonline.com/area-news/austin-trip-informs-local-farmers/

Fox 34

Austin, TX – Today State Representative Burrows (Lubbock) was elected to the Texas House Republican Caucus Policy Committee by his Republican colleagues for the duration of the 85th Texas Legislature.

The Policy Committee is comprised of sixteen members of the House Republican Caucus. Members of the Policy Committee are responsible for making legislative recommendations in the form of a daily floor report provided to all 95 Republican members of the Caucus. This session the House expects to address such issues as public education, child protection and mental health.

“I’m honored to be asked by my colleagues to join the Caucus Policy Committee and I look forward to being a voice on the Committee for West Texas during the 85th Session. Issues and legislation affecting our rural communities will be my main focus as I work with members of the committee,” said Burrows.

The Texas House Republican Caucus is comprised of all Republican Members serving in the Texas House of Representatives. The purpose of the Caucus is to provide research, education, policy development and other support to our Caucus Members and their staff. The Texas House Republican Caucus works to promote limited government.

Read more here: http://www.fox34.com/story/34347832/burrows-elected-to-the-house-caucus-policy-committee

Full video of Evan Smith’s 1/19 conversation with state Reps. Dustin Burrows, R-Lubbock, and Drew Darby, R-San Angelo, on the campus of Howard College in San Angelo. Topics discussed: the state budget, school finance, school choice, the so-called “bathroom bill” and border security.

Click here for more: https://www.texastribune.org/2017/01/19/darby-and-burrows/

KCBD NewsChannel 11 Lubbock
Shaley Sanders

LUBBOCK COUNTY, TX (KCBD) – The Texas State House and Senate have released their proposed budgets for 2018 and 2019, and they are billions of dollars apart.

The Senate is proposing a roughly $213.4 billion budget while the House is proposing about $221.3 billion.

District 83 Representative Dustin Burrows said the next step is meeting with agencies and taking a close look at their programs.

“We are going to go through their programs and find out if they are really necessary, if they are needs or wants. We are going to work our way back down to make sure we find something everyone can agree on,” Representative Burrows said.

Some of Representative Burrows’ top priorities are CPS reform, financial support for rural schools, I-27 expansion and making healthcare more affordable.

We asked him if he thinks those goals are still feasible under this proposed budget.

“Absolutely, in fact the House has set aside some money that I think would be a great opportunity to help rural schools,” he said.

“One of the really great line items in the budget right now is the House leadership heard that we need some more veterinarians in this area, and so I am very proud we have a line item in there for a Texas Tech vet school,” Representative Burrows said.

Right now, the only veterinary school in the state of Texas is at A&M.

“We do not have enough large animal veterinarians. The industry is crying out for it. Texas Tech has a phenomenal idea on what they can actually accomplish. It would be more affordable, provide better services,” Representative Burrows said.

When it comes to CPS reform, Representative Burrows said the changes need to start with lowering the case loads.

“The number one thing we have got to do is make sure we have more case workers. Number two, is we have got to pay them more. The House budget actually provide for those things,” Representative Burrows said.

Representative Burrows is also filing bills to make changes when it comes to healthcare.

“The absolute biggest issue that I see overtime is we have stopped being concerned with what the overall cost of healthcare procedures are and in some ways you are price insensitive. In emergency situations you are not going to care what the price is, but in non-emergency situations, if we can get people back engaged as consumers where they actually know what the costs of things are and then we incentivize them to go shop around, over time we will start bringing down healthcare costs,” Representative Burrows said.

“It will be a conservative budget, it will be a budget that is going to grow Texas without raising taxes and it is going to have a lot of good things in there for West Texas and our districts, our schools, our roads and other things that are critical concerns,” Representative Burrows said.

Copyright 2017 KCBD. All rights reserved.

Read more here: http://www.kcbd.com/story/34303949/rep-burrows-talks-dueling-budgets-plans-for-texas-tech-veterinary-school

San Angelo Live
By: Joe Hyde

SAN ANGELO, TX — The Austin-based non-profit state news website Texas Tribune held a lunch on the Howard College campus at noon today. The main event during the luncheon was a political discussion with Texas Tribune’s publisher Evan Smith and two west Texas state representatives.

Rep Drew Darby of District 72 and Dustin Burrows of Lubbock’s District 83 engaged in a spirited discussion about issues facing the legislature.

Smith began the discussion explaining that the Texas state budget is several billion short. “What are you going to cut?” he asked.

Burrows surprised the audience saying the Texas House budget addresses everything on his plate. “The priorities for my district are funded,” he said. Darby provided color, explaining that the House bill is $5 billion more than the Senate’s.

The legislature meets every two years, in odd years, and this session has just begun, so the representatives have not started “pulling the weeds from the garden,” as Burrows put it.

Smith was quick on his feet, and spoke quickly as the trio explored various issues facing Texas and how those issues match west Texas, or more rural priorities.

Among the issues discussed were budget, foster care, CPS funding, public school funding, school choice, border security, school accountability ratings (the “A through F” grading system of public school campuses), and transgender bathrooms.

Smith saved the transgender issue for last.

Attending the event were who’s who of San Angelo’s political class, including mayoral candidate Brenda Gunter who asked the first question. Last session, the legislature cut property taxes. “Why do citizens here feel like their taxes are still going up?” she asked.

Darby explained the increase in the amount of the statewide Homestead Exemption was only expected to put $100 into the pocket of every Texas family, so the impact was nil on citizens. But, he said, “It dug a hole for us to fill.” Darby said now the legislature needs to find a revenue source or spending cut to fill in for the lost revenue.

Even so, both Darby and Burrows were in favor of the increased Homestead Exemption.

Read more here: http://sanangelolive.com/news/politics/2017-01-19/texas-tribunes-evan-smith-talks-politics-darby-burrows-san-angelo