Texas Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick is asking state budget officials to approve $50 million to buy bullet-proof shields for school district police officers. His request follows the deadly school shooting in Uvalde.
"If every member of law enforcement across the state, approximately 80,000 officers, had a bulletproof shield in their vehicle, their ability to respond to an active shooter situation would be greatly enhanced," Patrick said.
The state budget for the year has already been set by the Legislature. Patrick is asking Texas House Speaker Dade Phelan and members of the Legislative Budget Board to make the official request for $50 million, which could be used by the Governor's Office or the Texas Department of Public Safety to purchase the shields.
"We will start by providing the shields to every school district officer in the state who does not have one. There could be a supply-chain issue at present, but we should buy every quality shield we can find and order the rest so we are at the front of the line when more become available," Patrick said. He wants the Texas Education Agency to draw up a plan for distributing the shields to school districts across the state.
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