A bill to name part of U.S. Highway 67 after trailblazing Dallas congresswoman Eddie Bernice Johnson is on the governor鈥檚 desk.
The resolution was passed Sunday and would commemorate the late Johnson鈥檚 30 years in Congress. The Democrat represented Texas' 30th Congressional district, including parts of Dallas and Tarrant counties, from 1993 until 2023.
鈥淚t's a tremendous honor,鈥� said Dawrence Kirk Johnson, Eddie Bernice Johnson鈥檚 son. 鈥淭hat expressway or freeway is in the heart of the area that she served for 30 years in Congress and then even more years before that in the state legislature.鈥�
Born in Waco in 1935, Johnson started her political career as a Texas representative in 1972 as the first Black woman ever elected in Dallas. The former chief psychiatric nurse at the Dallas Veterans Administration hospital 鈥� now called the Department of Health and Human Services 鈥� during the Carter administration. She returned to the Texas Legislature in 1986, winning a race for the state senate.
While on the Senate Committee on Redistricting, Johnson helped . She's credited with redrawing the map of her own U.S. House District 33 in 1993, becoming the first Black person from Dallas and first nurse elected to Congress. She served until months before her death.
Johnson died in 2023 from a spinal infection while in hospice care at Baylor Scott & White. She was 89. Her family later threatened to sue for medical negligence but later settled the matter. The hospital system promised to rename a nursing scholarship after the longtime congresswoman and donated an undisclosed amount to a new foundation dedicated to causes Johnson championed while in office.
President Joe Biden, Dallas Mayor Eric Johnson, U.S. House minority leader Hakeem Jeffries and other prominent politicians all honored Johnson鈥檚 memory at her funeral, with former Vice President Kamala Harris commemorating her service in a video message.
State Sen. Royce West of Dallas, who authored the bill to rename the stretch of highway, praised Johnson on the Senate floor.
鈥淪he delivered hundreds of millions of dollars in transportation funding to the state of Texas,鈥� West said. 鈥淪he was the chair of the Committee of Science and Technology, a member of the committee on transportation and infrastructure, and an early advocate of STEM education programs.鈥�
The resolution was sent to Gov. Greg Abbott Sunday. A spokesperson for Abbott did not confirm whether he鈥檇 sign it. If the governor doesn't sign or veto the bill in 20 days after it hits his desk, it automatically becomes law.
鈥淕overnor Abbott will thoughtfully review any legislation sent to his desk,鈥� press secretary Andrew Mahaleris said in an email.
