Preceded by Corbin Van Arsdale Name Allen Fletcher Nationality American Role Texas politician | Political party Republican Party Republican Party Children Three children | |
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Born April 9, 1955 (age 69)
Place of birth missing ( 1955-04-09 ) Spouse(s) Penelope Suzanne Benn Fletcher Residence Tomball, Harris County, Texas, USA Education Sam Houston State University | ||
Billy Allen Fletcher, known as Allen Fletcher (born April 9, 1955), is a security company owner from Tomball, a suburb of Houston, Texas, who is a Republican former member of the Texas House of Representatives. He represented District 130 in northwestern Harris County from 2009 through 2017.
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Fletcher did not seek re-nomination in the Republican primary held on March 1, 2016. Anethesiologist Tom Oliverson won the party nomination to succeed Fletcher by defeating Kay Smith, 16,988 votes (70 percent) to 7,265 (30 percent).
Background
Fletcher holds three degrees, Associate of Arts, Bachelor of Science, and Master of Science, from Sam Houston State University in Huntsville in East Texas. He is also a graduate of the East Texas and the Houston police academies.
For nineteen years, Fletcher was a Houston city police officer. His last assignment, which ended in 1998, was in the office of the inspector general. He is affiliated with Rotary International, the Chamber of Commerce, and the Emergency Preparedness Committee, all in Tomball.
Fletcher's wife is the former Penelope Suzanne Benn, known as "Penny" Fletcher (born c. 1958), was born and raised in Jamaica and came to the states at the age of 19. He has three children and, as of 2014, three grandchildren. Representative Fletcher is a member of the Spring Creek Church of Christ at 14847 Brown Road in Tomball.
Political life
In the 2008 Republican primary, Fletcher unseated the three-term incumbent Corbin Van Arsdale, a lawyer from Tomball, previously from Cypress, Texas. Fletcher polled 9,246 votes (52.2 percent) to Van Arsdale's 8,454 (47.8 percent). Fletcher then defeated Libertarian Party nominee, William B. Gray, Jr., in the general election 63,945 (87.6 percent) to 9,031 (12.4 percent). Never has Fletcher faced a Democratic opponent.
Fletcher is the vice chairman of the House Homeland Security and Public Safety Committee and sits as well on the Transportation Committee.
Legislative voting records
Representative Fletcher in 2013 supported the ban on abortion after twenty weeks of gestation; the measure passed the House, 96-49. He voted for companion legislation to increase medical and licensing requirements of abortion providers, a move which opponents said could lead to the closure of many abortion clinics in the state. These issues brought forth an unsuccessful filibuster in the state Senate by Wendy R. Davis of Fort Worth, who in 2014 is the Democratic nominee for governor against the Republican Greg Abbott. In 2011, Fletcher supported two other anti-abortion measures. One forbids state funding of agencies which perform abortions. The other requires that a woman undergo a sonogram before procuring an abortion. This legislation is based on the view that a woman could change her mind about an abortion once she witnesses the development of the unborn child through the latest technology. Despite his votes on those four issues, the Texas Right to Life Committee, according to Project Vote Smart, rated Fletcher 78 percent favorable in 2013 and 64 percent in 2011. The National Abortion Rights Action League rated him 0 percent in 2009.
Fletcher opposed the taxpayer-funded school breakfast program, which passed the House, 73-58. He co-sponsored legislation to provide marshals for school security as a separate law-enforcement entity. He co-sponsored the successful bill to extend the franchise tax exemption to certain businesses. Fletcher voted for the adoption of the biennial state budgets in 2013 but not in 2011. He voted to require testing for narcotics of those individuals receiving unemployment compensation.
Fletcher sponsored the bill to prohibit the state government from engaging in the enforcement of federal regulations of firearms. He also sponsored the bill to allow college and university officials to carry concealed weapons in buildings and vehicles in the name of campus security. He supported the bill to reduce the time required to obtain a concealed-carry permit. He backed the redistricting bills for the state House and Senate and the United States House of Representatives. He voted against term limits for certain state officials. In 2011, Fletcher voted to permit texting while driving. Fletcher voted in 2013 against an "equal pay for women" bill, which passed the Legislature but was vetoed by Governor Rick Perry.
In 2011, Fletcher supported a resolution to reduce funding for state agencies. He voted to expand the sales tax to Internet transactions to match existing laws for brick and mortar stores; the measure passed the House 125-20. Fletcher voted against a bill to prohibit smoking in public places. He voted to establish eligibility for indigent health care. He voted against corporal punishment in public schools; the bill nevertheless passed the House, 80-64. Fletcher voted to require colleges and universities to make student centers compatible with traditional family values. Fletcher supported picture identification of voters. In 2013, Fletcher supported related legislation to forbid a voter from turning in multiple ballots.
Interest group ratings
Phyllis Schlafly's Eagle Forum, managed in Texas by Cathie Adams, a former state chairman of the Texas Republican Party, rated Fletcher 88 percent favorable in 2013, 44 percent in 2011, and 92 percent in 2009. The Young Conservatives of Texas gave him a cumulative score of 83 percent. The interest group Texans for Fiscal Responsibility, founded by Michael Quinn Sullivan, rated Fletcher 81 percent favorable in 2013, 75 percent in 2011, and 86 percent in 2009. The Texas Association of Business awarded him a cumulative career score of 92 percent. The Texas League of Conservation Voters rated him 71 percent in 2013; the Sierra Club, 20 percent in 2011. The National Rifle Association scored Fletcher 92 percent in 2012 and letter-grade "A" in all of his previous term. The Libertarian Party rated him 81 percent in 2009 on matters of economic issues and personal liberties.