Texas Gov. Greg Abbott awarded a $149 million grant to Texas Tech University to support the development of an electromagnetic pulse (EMP) testing site and make cybersecurity infrastructure enhancements, according to a press release from the governor’s office.
This investment, according to Abbott’s office, will strengthen “ongoing efforts to safeguard the nation by advancing research that addresses escalating threats to critical infrastructure across Texas and the United States.”
“This $149 million investment in cybersecurity will ensure that our state’s critical infrastructure systems are capable of withstanding attacks from hostile foreign adversaries,” Abbott said.
The funding is being awarded through the Governor’s Public Safety Office, which administers a broad portfolio of state and federal grant programs dedicated to protecting lives and property from a wide range of threats in coordination with federal, state, and local partners.
The governor’s office said the grant is intended to expand initiatives aimed at identifying vulnerabilities and reinforcing protections for essential infrastructure systems, including the electric grid, water utilities, communications networks, military systems, and other assets vital to Texas’s economic stability and national security.
Texas Tech University will collaborate with the U.S. Army, Air Force, and Navy, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, the U.S. Department of Energy, and private industry partners to advance national security research and workforce training, according to the governor’s office.
Additionally, Texas House Speaker Dustin Burrows said the grant will add capacity at the university’s Reese National Security Complex, formerly the Reese Technology Center, a research and business park located on the grounds of former Reese Air Force Base in western Lubbock.
“This investment strengthens that momentum, expanding cutting-edge initiatives at Reese National Security Complex to better protect our critical infrastructure and strengthen our nation’s defense capabilities,” Burrows said.
