Texas governor issues eight executive orders in response to mass shootings

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R) on Thursday issued eight executive orders intended to curb mass shootings following gun violence in El Paso and Odessa last month.

The orders signed by Abbott are intended to bolster reporting requirements for law enforcement involving suspicious individuals and raise public awareness about identifying potential mass shooters.
“Texas must achieve several objectives to better protect our communities and our residents from mass shootings,” Abbott said in a statement.

“I will continue to work expeditiously with the legislature on laws to keep guns out of the hands of dangerous criminals, while safeguarding the 2nd Amendment rights of law-abiding Texans,” he added.

The orders’ provisions include developing standardized intake questions to better identify information that should be reported to the state Suspicious Activity Reporting Network, as well as ordering the Texas Department of Public Safety to develop programs to raise awareness of how such reports are used to flag potential mass shooters.