Governor Launches 'Texas Transition Alliance' Aiding Military Families With Employment Training

AUSTIN, TX — Gov. Greg Abbott on Tuesday announced the launch of the Texas Transition Alliance designed to assist military service members with employment training on Tuesday, weeks after he stripped funds from a specially tailored Veterans Court in Travis County with similar aims.

The Texas Transition Alliance is aimed not only at expanding employment and training opportunities for military members, but for their families as well, according to Abbott's office. The newly launched program is a partnership among Operation Welcome Home, the Governor’s Tri-Agency Workforce Initiative in which he charged the Texas Workforce Commission, Texas Education Agency and the Higher Education Coordinating Board to identify gaps in employment and education services—including those for veterans, and a number of veteran- and employment-specific organizations, he said. The program is designed to assist veterans and their families in the transition from active duty to civilian life, the governor added.

“This new program will provide the services and resources our veterans and their families deserve to complete a successful transition to civilian life,” Abbott said. “In order for Texas to compete in a 21st century economy, it is imperative we make investments in our workforce, and I can think of no better investment than our military service members. I thank the Tri-Agency Workforce Initiative for their work in developing this important program and look forward to building on its success in the coming years.”

Led by the Texas Workforce Commissioner Ruth R. Hughs, partners from state, local, and military entities met in Killeen, Texas, on Tuesday to review and enhance opportunities for military members who have expressed their intent to reside in Texas upon separation, according to the governor's office. The partners will coordinate to help streamline services to meet the needs of service members as they transition out of Texas military installations.

Abbott said the announcement highlights the state's commitment to partner with U.S. Military Installations in Texas to improve the state’s ability to offer employment, education, and outreach services on location during a service member’s 180-day transition period. The Alliance will develop and support events for military members transitioning from service to connect them with education and employment resources in Texas communities at the earliest stage of departure from service.

Texas Workforce Commission official Ruth R. Hughs echoed the sentiment: “The Texas Transition Alliance will work with partners and Texas employers to ensure they are provided with the skilled workforce needed to fill high-demand occupations. We know that veterans are hardworking and motivated team members that will bolster any employer’s business, and we want to inform them of the many opportunities available to them so they can have a successful transition into civilian life.”

In February, Abbott stripped Travis County of$1.5 million in grants to various county-run community programs—money on which county officials annually rely—as political retribution against county Sheriff Sally Hernandez. The sheriff found herself at odds with Abbott over the governor's insistence that all undocumented immigrants in the county be rounded up for deportation—not just the high-level offenders the sheriff's office prefers to target for detention.

When Hernandez stuck to her preferred method (a measure to promote community policing and foster police trust), Abbott responded by stripping grant funds from non-law-enforcement programs run by the county.

One of the programs affected by the governor's cuts is the Veteran Treatment Court, which has as its mission "...to successfully rehabilitate veterans by diverting them from the traditional criminal justice system and provide them with the tools they need to lead a productive and law-abiding lifestyle."

As a result of his disagreement with Hernandez, the governor in retribution cut funds that would've benefited the specialized veterans court where officials had expected to receive $191,380 in grant monies this year.

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