To stay the least, the Rio Grande Valley is absolutely booming. It's one of the fastest growing regions in the entire state of Texas. Crowded as it may be already, the Valley’s population is expected to double by the year of 2045.
The millions of people who live and work in the Rio Grande Valley truly are instrumental to the future success of our state, because of who you are, because of how large you are, because of everything that you all contribute to the state of Texas, that is why I have come to the Rio Grande Valley more than any governor in the history of the state of Texas.
The fact is, y'all are an extremely important part of the Texas economic juggernaut. Texas has been ranked by CEOs, the people who make business decisions, as the number one best state in America for doing business for 21 years in a row. And it's not just a ranking. They put their money where their mouth is, because Texas has won the national championship for economic development for the past 13 years in a row.
Texas currently ranks No. 1 for the most new jobs added over the past year. We've ranked number one for exports for well over 20 years, knowing full well the important role this region, the RGv region, plays in Texas leading the nation in exports.
When you add it up all together, the Texas economy annually produces more than $2.6 trillion. There are only seven countries of the world with economies larger than Texas. Obviously, the United States, China, India, Japan, the United Kingdom, Germany and France. If you pay attention to foreign news and see the challenges going on in France right now, if you see the success going on in Texas right now, you would not be surprised to see sometime soon, Texas surpassing France to have the seventh largest economy in the entire world.
The growing Rio Grande Valley needs an expanded Weslaco Mid-Valley Airport. To put this in some level of context, if you go back in time to more than a half a century ago, back when the Dallas-Fort Worth Airport was created, that was the stimulus leading the DFW region to become one of the economic juggernauts of America.
If you look at what happened in Austin when they moved the airport from the old Mueller airport to the new airport they have now, that was a catalyst for economic growth in Austin, Texas. Airports are vital to a community and also vital to economic growth. And so what your members of the legislature helped get to my desk this past session is a tremendous stimulant for the future economic growth of this area.
Part of it is $10 million for a major runway extension at the airport that will allow the airport to increase its traffic and have larger aircraft land here. Second, $8 million is for the City of Weslaco for water and drainage improvements to accommodate the expanded airport. And third, emergency and first responders facilities are a critical component for this airport and for the entire region.
As the Rio Grande Valley grows, Weslaco’s Mid-Valley Airport will be a key part of that success, And the state of Texas will be there with you every step of the way.
Editor's Note: The above commentary was provided by Gov. Greg Abbott at an event held at Weslaco's Mid-Valley Airport on Sept. 23, 2025. At the event, Gov. Abbott anounced $26 million in funding to expand and modernize the airport. The funding was appropriated by the Legislature earlier this year. Of the $26 million, $10 million will go towards runway expansion to accommodate larger aircraft and regional growth, $8 million will go towards new hangars supporting Texas DPS, law enforcement and emergency response, and $8 million will go towards infrastructure upgrades to improve drainage and long-term resilience.
