Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick has reaffirmed plans to hold Senate hearings examining concerns over Islamic law and a proposed Muslim-focused development.
Last month, Patrick said he would direct the Senate State Affairs Committee to convene a hearing titled “Preventing Sharia Law in Texas.”
The announcement came amid debate surrounding the proposed East Plano Islamic Center (EPIC) development in Hunt and Collin counties. The 400-acre project includes plans for a mosque, retail spaces and other facilities and has drawn scrutiny from some state leaders.
On Tuesday, Patrick revealed that his office had received correspondence from CAIR responding to the planned interim hearings. In a post on his official Facebook page, he wrote, "I will get to the bottom of the 'EPIC City' and 'Sharia Law' issues in Texas. Two weeks ago, I announced that the Senate would hold interim hearings. In response, we received this letter from an organization that the Governor has designated a foreign terrorist organization."
He added, "I will not back down to this group or any other organization that intends to undermine Texas law."
Patrick also shared a link to the CAIR letter without summarizing its contents and posed the question, “What are they trying to hide?”
In November, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott issued a proclamation identifying CAIR and the Muslim Brotherhood as foreign terrorist organizations under state law.
Patrick’s post included a link to a Feb. 9 letter from CAIR Texas which voiced concerns about what it called Patrick’s “unconstitutional” focus on the planned Senate committee hearings. The letter — which was signed only as “Council on American-Islamic Relations Texas (CAIR-TX)” — denied any effort to implement sharia and said the hearing “seeks to address a problem that does not exist.”
“There is no parallel judicial system operating in Texas. Judges are constitutionally bound, and any deviation would already be unlawful and subject to immediate judicial remedy,” the unsigned letter stated.
“Because the legal system already functions exactly as described in the charge, the Texas state government repeatedly singling out Islamic religious practices and communities does not strengthen constitutional protections. Instead, it manufactures a fictional threat and then legislates against it.”
Around the same time as Patrick’s announcement, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton disclosed an investigation into a separate 2,300-acre development in Kaufman County proposed by Dubai-based SEE Holding. Paxton described the project as a "potentially unlawful 'sharia city' development."
In a statement, Paxton said: "There will be no 'sharia city' in Texas under my watch. While you’re on American soil, you will obey America’s laws. I have launched this investigation to determine the nature of this development in Kaufman County and will be thoroughly investigating this matter for any unlawful actions."
