By Sherry Koonce

The News staff writer

Texas Senator Joan Huffman (R-Houston) spent the day in Port Arthur Monday where she saw first-hand what the city has to offer, and ways the state can help the area.

Huffman said this was her first organized visit to the city and that she enjoyed the day-long event.

“I found the people to be very friendly and welcoming to me,” she said. “I did not know what to expect, but was very pleased with the reception.”

The first-year senator toured Lamar State College-Port Arthur, area businesses and industrial plants including Motiva’s mammoth expansion.

“It was phenomenal to look at the scale of the Motiva project,” she said. “I am very proud of the industry here and the investment they have made in Texas.”

After touring the city’s business and industrial sector, Huffman said it was important for state leaders to do what they can to make sure a college education is available to all who seek it.

During the last legislative session, Huffman said she supported efforts to re-institute some form of regulations on higher learning institutions.

“I am leaning toward regulating, to get back to a situation where we are regulating tuition rates more. It did not make it into law this session, but I think we will be looking at that again,” she said.

Huffman said she realizes how beneficial education is, whether it is a college education or learning a trades skill.

“We have to look at a workforce skilled for industrial jobs. The question is how do we produce individuals from our area that have the skills for our area,” she said.

Education should start in the home with parents encouraging their children to stay in school.

On national issues, Huffman said, though still early, she had not seen many jobs created by stimulus money.

“If the stimulus money does help create jobs, I think they will be a short-term fix,” she said.

Whether in Port Arthur, elsewhere in Texas, or around the nation, Huffman said the health care crisis has to be addressed.

State leaders are watching to see what the federal government is going to do on the health care issue, she said.

“Clearly we need to address health care and find a way to lower cost and make health care available to more people,” she said.

Huffman, a former criminal district court judge in Houston, took office in December 2008 after winning a special election to fill the district 17 seat vacated by Kyle Janek, who resigned in June 2008 and moved to Austin.

During the 2009 session of the Texas Legislature, Huffman served on the Transportation and Homeland Security Committee, Health and Human Services Committee, Veterans Committee and the Government Organization Committee.

She was recently appointed to the Texas Sunset Advisory Commission.

skoonce@panews.com

skoonce@panews.com