Dade Phelan

Dade Phelan (born September 18, 1975) is an American real estate developer and politician who is a Republican member of the Texas House of Representatives for District 21, which encompasses half of Jefferson County and all of neighboringOrange County in the far southeastern corner of the state.

Phelan is a 1994 graduate of Monsignor Kelly Catholic High School in Beaumont and a 1998 graduate of the University of Texas at Austin. He is a senior partner and broker at his family-owned Phelan Investments, a real estate development company. He was a staff member for former District 4 State Senator Tommy Williams, U.S. Representative Dick Armey of Texas's 26th congressional district and District 21 State Representative Mark Stiles. Governor Rick Perry twice named him to the Lower Neches Valley Authority; he was the board president in 2013. He is a former board secretary to Catholic Charities of Southeast Texas and a former board member of the St. Anne Roman Catholic Church, the historic Jefferson Theatre, Southeast Texas CASA and the Golden Triangle Conservation Association. In 2019 he was installed as a Director to the Texas Lyceum. Phelan and his wife, Kim, live in Jefferson County with their four young boys.

Phelan succeeds former Democrat Allan Ritter, who was first elected in 1998 and switched to Republican affiliation late in his tenure in November 2010. Ritter announced in October 2013 that he would not run for a ninth two-year term. The district includes all of Orange County and the cities of Groves, Port Neches, and Nederland, and part of Beaumont, all in Jefferson County.

RepresentativePhelan currently serves as Chair of the House Committee on State Affairs. He has served previously on the Natural Resources Committee as Vice-Chair, the Calendars Committee, the Appropriations Committee, Elections Committee as well as the Select Committee on Ports, Innovation and Infrastructure. He is also a founding member of the House Criminal Justice Reform Caucus.

Representative Phelan has been named a Fighter for Free Enterprise by the Texas Association of Business, Legislative Champion by the Boys and Girls Club of Texas, Guardian of Small Business by the National Federation of Independent Business, Legislator of the Year by the Texas Apartment Association, Most Valuable Legislator by the Texas Association of Community Schools, a Champion for Children by Save the Children, a Mental Health Champion by Mental Health America, the Samaritan Center of Southeast Texas’s Inaugural “Servant Leader”, the Water Environment Association of Texas's Outstanding Public Official and a finalist for Newsmaker of the Year by the Press Club of Southeast Texas.

In 2015 Capitol Inside Magazine named him one of the most outstanding freshmen and in 2017 the magazine honored him again as the Most Valuable Sophomore member of the Legislature.

Texas Monthly recently recognized Phelan as one of the Best Legislators of 2019.