REP. JANIE LOPEZ VOTES TO HIDE TRUMP TARIFF IMPACT AS RGV FAMILIES FACE RECORD-HIGH GROCERY PRICES
Rep. Lopez blocked tariff transparency; now Trump’s failed economic policies have pushed food costs to historic levels
BROWNSVILLE, TEXAS — New consumer price data confirms what RGV families already know from their receipt at HEB: grocery prices have literally never been higher. But what South Texans may not know is that their representative, Rep. Janie Lopez (R-37) deliberately voted to keep them in the dark about exactly how much Trump's disastrous tariff policies are costing them at the checkout line.
Food prices are up more than 3%, hitting record highs under Trump — but Rep. Janie Lopez made sure you wouldn't get any accounting of the damage. When Democrats tried to require quarterly public reports tracking exactly how Trump's tariffs are destroying Texas jobs and driving up prices, Rep. Lopez voted to keep RGV residents in the dark. The amendment would have forced the Texas Comptroller to document the carnage every three months: which industries are hemorrhaging workers, which businesses are closing their doors, and which families can no longer afford to feed their kids.
Rep. Lopez said no. Because apparently RGV residents don't deserve to know why they're choosing between groceries and rent.
“South Texas families are paying record prices at the grocery store, and they have a right to know why,” said **Texas House of Representatives Minority Leader Gene Wu. **“Rep. Lopez voted to hide that information. The simple truth is that Republicans don’t want Texans to know exactly how much these reckless tariffs are costing them every time they go to the grocery store.”
Democrats recognized that Texans deserve to know how tariffs are affecting their jobs and their grocery bills. But Rep. Lopez was so committed to protecting Trump that [he/she] couldn't even join her own colleagues in supporting basic transparency for RGV families. This is what happens when politicians care more about fealty to their party than the people they're supposed to serve. RGV families deserve a representative who fights for transparency and accountability — not one who hides the truth to protect a failing president.
Texas House Democrats will keep demanding the transparency Rep. Janie Lopez voted against. And we'll make sure Rio Grande Valley voters remember who stood with them when grocery prices hit record highs, and who voted to keep them in the dark.