If all goes as anticipated in next November’s state representative elections—and in conservative West Texas, there’s not much reason to think it won’t—residents of Dickens and Kent Counties will be among those getting to know a new legislator who’s already served the Lubbock area for four terms.
One outcome of 2022’s legislative redistricting was to expand House District 83 to embrace several rural counties near Lubbock. Attorney Dustin Burrows, who was first elected to HD83 in 2014 when Charles Perry ran successfully for state Senate.
Burrows, who has hewed closely to Perry’s positions on many issues, launched a series of Town Hall meetings in the district’s new communities to introduce himself and get “an idea of what these counties need, what are their core competencies, and how to help.”
Over the past couple of weeks Burrows has visited Jayton, Spur, Post, Crosbyton, and Floydada, and also sat down with The Texas Spur for an interview in his Lubbock law office Dec 6.
Burrows, a Lubbock native who enjoyed participating in ag programs when he was at Monterrey High School, handles legal cases for primarily West Texas agricultural clients these days when he’s not in Austin. He met his future wife, Elisabeth, when they were both students at Rhodes College in Tennessee. After they married in 2004, Burrows returned to Lubbock in 2005 to pursue a degree in law and eventually practice in his father’s law office.
“A basic love of the constitution” as well as Christian values drove his growing involvement in the local Republican party, Burrows said. He served as local precinct chair, walked blocks, became active in the party, and attended multiple state conentions and even the national convention. He worked on getting conservative candidates such as Charles Perry and Ted Cruz elected.
Burrows currently chairs the House Calendars Committee. Additionally, he is a member of the House Committee on Corrections and the House Committee on Land and Resource Management. His activism in the capitol hasn’t been without controversy; as chair of the Republican caucus in summer of 2019, he was recorded discussing a target list of sitting legislators for challenges in the 2020 races. The episode cost newly elected Speaker of the House Dennis Bonnen his position a few months afterward, and Burrows resigned as caucus chair, but voters, according to a Texas Tribune story, didn’t pay much attention in general.
While Burrows opted in last week’s Kent County Town Hall to spotlight his track record in the extended 2021 session on issues such as passing an election integrity bill and banning critical race theory in schools, he also touched on matters related to the state’s economy, school finance, and the energy grid that resonated with locals.
“Winter Storm Uri posed problems we didn’t know we had,” Burrows said. He pledged to prevent what he perceives as an over-reliance on renewable energy sources, and to encourage bringing more natural gas online.
Kent County attendees asked about school finance overhaul, among other issues. Burrows cited passage of a budget bill that “fully funds the Legislature’s commitement to public education investments. . . . including $3.1 billion for enrollment growth for FY22-23.”
This bill and others were outlined in his seven-page handout “Notable & Conservative Accomplishments of the 87th Legislature.”
Burrows also noted ways that his office aids economic development in less populous rural counties just as in Lubbock.
Asked what he’s learned about the varied communities he has served—and may well serve in the near future—Burrows said, “Every one of those counties has a unique, different driver that is important.” He stands willing, he said, to help put communities in touch with state agencies with programs that can help. “We value consituent service,” he said, “and try to make sure that peope are well served when they have issues.”
“You have to have a strong guiding compass to run for office,” Burrows said, “but there are a lot of issues that are just about people.”
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