Bill to abolish state parks department filed by rep on Texas’ version of DOGE

A Texas representative serving on a newly formed Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE)-style committee has filed a bill that would shutter the state’s parks and wildlife department.

House Bill 4938, filed March 13 and sponsored by Rep. Pat Curry (R-Waco), seeks the “abolishment of the Parks and Wildlife Department and the Parks and Wildlife Commission,” the bill reads.

Curry sits on the recently created Committee on Delivery of Government Efficiency, which is inspired by DOGE, the agency established by President Donald Trump’s administration and headed by Tesla CEO Elon Musk. DOGE has stirred controversy after initiating large scale federal spending and job cuts, including mass firings of National Park Service employees.

Like Musk’s DOGE, the new Texas committee purportedly aims to cut state spending and to “detect fraud, waste, and abuse in state government programs and operations.”.

If Curry’s bill is passed, the duties of the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department would be divided between three other Texas agencies: the General Land Office, the Department of Agriculture and the Department of Public Safety.

The bill has not been discussed in committee as of March 18.

Bosque County Sheriff Trace Hendricks, whose jurisdiction neighbors Waco to the northwest, was quick to speak out against the bill, saying “TPWD is a vital arm of Texas law enforcement.”

“Their role goes far beyond chasing poachers. Our game wardens assist in many of our investigations, they provide back up to our county deputies and city officers on a frequent basis. They teach our children hunter’s safety, water safety, first aid and much much more,” Hendricks said in a March 15 Facebook post. “I stand behind and beside our Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, and I support our Game Wardens fully. They are more than a law enforcement agency, they are a major contributor in our citizens safety.”

Curry’s problem with TPWD lies with its rules and enforcement, he told KWTX, a TV station in Waco. He specifically takes issue with regulations around deer breeding and the department’s measures to prevent outbreaks and spread of chronic wasting disease — a highly contagious illness that can be potentially devastating to deer populations.

Curry wants to loosen restrictions and ease back enforcement, both of which are taken too far by TPWD, he said, and HB4938 is the nuclear option.

“I don’t want us to get there,” he told the station.

“The intent of this bill is really to start a conversation and get a conversation going with the commission on let’s work together with the legislature on some of these rules instead of letting rules stomp on the rights of landowners and small business and legislatures,” he said.

Curry is a self-proclaimed outdoorsman who owns a ranch near the Texas-Mexico border. Based on social media posts, he and his family are avid deer hunters.

McClatchy News reached out to Curry’s office asking what kind of livestock he raises on the ranch, and if that includes deer, but didn’t immediately receive a response.

In a statement, the parks department said that while it cannot advocate for or against any piece of legislation, it is “proud of the important role our agency plays in managing Texas land and waters in coordination with our partners and private landowners to provide for hunting, fishing and outdoor recreation.”

“The Texas legislature has an existing Sunset Commission that reviews the efficacy of all state agencies, and TPWD underwent that process in 2021,” the department’s statement continued.

TPWD serves 9 million visitors at its 89 parks each year.