Texas Border Business
By Roberto Hugo González
MISSION, Texas — Standing before farmers, officials, and media at a press conference in Mission, Texas, Congresswoman Monica De La Cruz delivered a firm and emotional pledge to the agricultural community of South Texas: under her leadership, no more industries will be lost—unlike the Rio Grande Valley’s once-thriving sugar cane sector.
Her remarks came as she and Texas Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller announced the rollout of $280 million in federal drought relief funding secured through the 1944 Water Treaty Agricultural Assistance Program. The program is a response to Mexico’s failure to meet water delivery obligations to Texas, which has contributed to devastating agricultural losses in the region.
In her address, De La Cruz directly linked the collapse of the sugar industry to a lack of federal action under previous representation. “Sadly, I was elected just a touch too late,” she said. “And because of that, we lost our sugar industry under the prior leadership for Washington, D.C., for this community.”
“But it is a new day,” she continued. “Under my watch, we will not lose another industry. That is over with. There is new leadership with me, and that will not happen again.”
The sugar cane industry in the Rio Grande Valley had been a cornerstone of the region’s agricultural economy until years of water shortages, compounded by what De La Cruz described as federal inaction, forced it into collapse.
“This is bigger than just Texas,” she added. “This is the United States we’re talking about… Food security is national security.”
De La Cruz emphasized that her office had prioritized agricultural issues from the start of her term, ensuring South Texas received a dedicated $280 million carveout from $10 billion in federal disaster aid. She credited farmers and local communities for voicing their concerns and helping her bring national attention to the long-standing neglect of the region’s water and agricultural needs.
“I’m so humbled to hear from my farmers and ranchers how this became their lifeline,” she said. “With these dollars, their farms have been saved.”
As part of the press event, De La Cruz presented award letters to two recipients of the emergency funding: Dale Murden, a long-time agricultural advocate, and Frank Schuster, a multigenerational farmer. Both praised the congresswoman’s leadership and warned that, without immediate aid, citrus and other crops could face the same fate as sugar cane.
Commissioner Sid Miller echoed her message, stating, “We’ve lost our sugar cane industry… What the congresswoman did actually saved a lot of farms from probably filing bankruptcy.”
With drought and treaty violations still looming, De La Cruz made clear that protecting remaining agricultural industries—especially citrus and vegetables—is central to her agenda moving forward. Her office is now pursuing efforts to enshrine the 1944 Water Treaty within the USMCA, adding enforceability to ensure consistency in water deliveries from Mexico.
“There are only two states in the country that grow fresh citrus—Texas and California,” she said. “If we lose Texas citrus, the whole nation loses. That’s not happening on my watch.”
