Congressman Gonzalez Advocates for Hands Off Our Boca Chica Beach Act in Congressional Hearing

On the evening of July 8, 2026, the BGN’s Domestic Names Committee provided less than 24 hours' notice to the people of Cameron County of an upcoming vote to rename Boca Chica Beach to “Cyber Beach.” The renaming request was driven by an individual from Mississippi and unanimously opposed by local officials and SpaceX. In response, Congressman Gonzalez immediately contacted the U.S. Department of the Interior and formally urged the Domestic Names Committee to reject the proposal. His call was heeded, and the proposal was rejected.

Geographic names established by an act of Congress, or those introduced as proposed legislation, are not bound by the BGN. Therefore, Congressman Gonzalez’s bill takes precedence over BGN’s principles, policies, and procedures, preventing future proposals to rename Boca Chica Beach during this Congress from being considered.

The full bill text can be found here.

A link to Congressman Gonzalez remarks during the hearing can be viewed here.

A transcript of Congressman Gonzalez’s remarks, as prepared, are as follows:

Chairman Tiffany, Ranking Member Neguse, and Members of the Subcommittee, I appreciate the opportunity to speak in support of my bill H.R. 9779, the Hands Off Our Boca Chica Beach Act of 2026.

Last month, both my Office and the residents of Texas –34th were blindsided by a proposal to rename one of our beaches – Boca Chica Beach.

The U.S. Board of Geographic Names’ Domestic Names Committee provided less than 24 hours' notice to the people of Cameron County before voting on a proposal to rename the beach “Cyber Beach.”

The proposal was driven by an individual from Mississippi with no ties to our community and has since faced unanimous opposition from local officials and even SpaceX itself.

For generations, Boca Chica Beach has been part of South Texas' history, culture, and identity.

Families across our region have gone there to fish, camp, gather, and build memories together. The beach is woven into the fabric of our community.

Fortunately, on July 9th, the Domestic Names Committee rejected the proposal after hearing strong opposition from our community

Local residents and elected officials opposed it. 

Cameron County opposed it. 

The Texas Geographic Names Committee opposed it. The City of Starbase opposed it.

People who may disagree about many other issues agreed on this one thing: Boca Chica Beach should remain Boca Chica Beach – a name that dates back to at least 1936.

Although we stopped this particular proposal, the process exposed a much larger problem: A federal committee was preparing to vote on the name change of a historic place in South Texas, they didn’t inform the community and the Representative of the provided notice of the scheduled vote. 

I was especially disappointed to see a federal entity fail to notify federal representatives of activity happening in their own district.

And to make matters worse, like many of my constituents, I found out about the vote through social media.

You have got to be kidding me! 

Fortunately, South Texans moved quickly. They flooded the Committee with emails and made their voices heard. 

The Committee received nearly 2,780 emails opposing the name change and just one email in favor.

But no community should have to depend on a last-minute scramble to make sure its voice is heard in a federal decision affecting its own backyard.

That is why I introduced the Hands Off Our Boca Chica Beach Act. 

My bill would federally protect the historic site from unnecessary name change. 

It would also require the Domestic Names Committee to notify the appropriate Member of Congress of a proposed name change that affects their district. It does not, however, prevent future policy updates from the Committee.

That simple requirement would give Members an opportunity to notify constituents, coordinate with local leaders, and ensure the community’s views are represented in the federal process.

Isn’t that why we are all here? To ensure our communities’ voices are heard?

Mr. Chairman, if this can happen in my district, it can happen in yours.

Whether that be Wisconsin, Colorado, Arkansas, California, or anywhere else in this country, our constituents deserve the same basic consideration and respect.

Republican or Democratic. Rural or urban. 

The bottom line is the same.

Give people proper notice. Give them time. Give them a voice.

Members of the Subcommittee, we stopped this particular proposal. 

But rejecting one name change does not correct the weakness we discovered in the process.

We have an opportunity to take what happened in South Texas and use it to improve transparency for communities across the country.

We must provide Members of Congress with the tools to do the job our constituents sent us here to do: represent their interests when federal decisions affect their communities.

The proposal to rename Boca Chica Beach exposed a problem. 

Now, we have an opportunity and an obligation to fix it. 

And my bill will do just that.

I respectfully ask the Subcommittee to work with me to advance H.R. 9779, the Hands Off Our Boca Chica Beach Act of 2026, and ensure transparency and that Boca Chica Beach remains the People’s Beach.

Mr. Chairman, I ask unanimous consent to insert into the following three letters of support from Texas State Representative Erin Gámez, Cameron County Judge Eddie Treviño, and SpaceX into the record.

Thank you, and I yield back.