WASHINGTON, D.C. – Congressmen Tony Gonzales (R-TX-23) and Henry Cuellar (D-TX-28) on Wednesday joined Senators John Cornyn (R-TX), Kyrsten Sinema (D-AZ) and Mark Kelly (D-AZ) in sending a letter to Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas to urge the need for an orderly transition plan as the Administration considers plans to repeal Title 42 public health protections.

Read the full letter here.

“…this group would like to renew that request about the status of Title 42 and DHS’s plans for its expiration,” said the letter. “Such a plan should be in place and executed before Title 42 authorities at the border are lifted. The plan should also be developed with the safety of border communities in mind and in consultation with local government leaders and community organizations, including those providing services to migrants. A rapid and significant increase in the migrant population will have a direct impact on border communities, and the government agencies and non-governmental organizations that know the border region and the migrant population are best-positioned to advise DHS on a transition plan.”

Congressman Gonzales has been a vocal supporter of Title 42, a pandemic-era policy that has allowed DHS to rapidly expel migrants who come to the border during the coronavirus pandemic. The letter comes only a few days before Vice President Kamala Harris makes her first visit to the southern border. Congressman Gonzales represents Texas’ 23rd Congressional District, which encompasses over 820 miles of U.S.-Mexico border, almost 40 percent of the total border territory in the country.