Senate Bill No. 780 establishes the Homeland Security Division within the Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) to enhance the state's security and resilience through coordinated efforts across various agencies and sectors. The bill amends Section 411.002(a) of the Government Code to incorporate the Homeland Security Division into the DPS structure and introduces a new Subchapter S that outlines the division's responsibilities, including strategic planning for border security, intelligence coordination, and critical infrastructure protection. The division will also be responsible for developing comprehensive homeland security plans, conducting risk assessments, and facilitating outreach programs to improve preparedness among public and private organizations.

Additionally, the bill mandates that the Homeland Security Division confer with each state agency involved in homeland security before legislative sessions to discuss budget requests and aims to eliminate redundancies while improving the effectiveness of these efforts. It also allows the division, in collaboration with the Legislative Budget Board, to establish rules for sharing information among agencies that submit budget requests for homeland security activities. The bill further outlines the responsibilities of the governor and the Homeland Security Council in developing a statewide homeland security strategy and includes provisions for the transfer of management and operations of the Border Security Operations Center and Joint Operations and Intelligence Centers to the Texas Homeland Security Division. The act is set to take effect on September 1, 2025.

Statutes affected:
Introduced: Government Code 411.002, Government Code 421.002, Government Code 421.024, Government Code 421.045 (Government Code 421, Government Code 411)