Cornyn introduces mental health bill, Pharr PD applauds mental health department

PHARR — U.S. Sen. John Cornyn visited Pharr’s ONE Northside Center Thursday for a roundtable discussion with local law enforcement, mental health providers and city officials.

Cornyn was in town to discuss the Justice and Mental Health Reauthorization Act, which would reauthorize mental health courts, crisis intervention teams, and other initiatives that help law enforcement help individuals with mental illness, such as the Pharr Mental Health Unit.

Following the roundtable discussion, which was not open to local media, Corney toured the Pharr ONE Northside Center before hosting a news conference in which he praised the Pharr Police Department’s mental health unit.

“It’s great to be back in Farrer and we know that the resources and initiative and the great work that’s going on here in this relatively small town are not normally available to do the new things that are happening here today,” Cornyn said.

The Justice and Mental Health Partnership Reauthorization Act, introduced by Cornyn, would increase funding from $50 million per year to $60 million per year. The bill unanimously passed the US Senate on June 23. It is currently awaiting action in the House.

“One of the things we’ve been able to do is introduce legislation called the Justice and Mental Health Partnership Reauthorization Act to recognize that law enforcement has to deal with people with mental health challenges,” Cornyn said. “Unless you’re actually trained to defuse that conflict, sometimes it can be a danger to the officer, but also to the person who called 911.”

“It’s great to see the innovation happening here,” the senator added.

Cornyn said the purpose of the bill is to help ease the burden on law enforcement officers who may find themselves in mental health situations with no training.

The Pharr PD Mental Health Unit was established in December 2020 in partnership with Tropical Texas Behavioral Health, months after Andy Harvey took over as police chief.

“The roundtable was very informative, and it’s good to hear feedback from the federal government,” Harvey said after Thursday’s event. “In this case, Senator Corney has been talking to us about what he saw and said in Washington because we need their help. We cannot do this alone. We need help from the federal government, the state government, our local government, and we need help from other agencies like the tropical and district attorney’s offices. The truth is, it takes money. It’s not free.”

Harvey said the roundtable was intended to highlight the department’s achievements in the mental health department and to emphasize the need for it to not only continue at its current capacity, but to grow and improve.

“We’ve gotten to this point, and now we’re going to continue to provide a higher level of service, but we can’t do it alone as a police agency,” Harvey said. “We need to work with our other partners and agencies here. That’s how we impact not only our city, but our region as well.”

Terry Crocker, CEO of Tropical Texas Behavioral Health, who attended the roundtable, said Cornyn’s visit bodes well for future funding.

“When we get attention from elected officials, especially at the federal level, it increases our chances of attracting those federal dollars here to do different things and expand on what we’re already doing so well,” Crocker said. “Having the senator’s support is paramount.”