AUSTIN, Texas — In a letter to the Department of State Health Services on Monday, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick asked the department to not renew the camping license for Camp Mystic.

Patrick argues the camp should not operate this summer until the deaths of 27 campers last July are fully investigated and “any necessary corrective actions are taken.”

Investigating committees in both the Texas Senate and Texas House of Representatives are set to meet at an unspecified time later this spring to learn more about the circumstances surrounding the deaths at Camp Mystic.

“I would not feel comfortable sending my grandchildren to a camp where 27 young girls lost their lives less than a year ago, particularly while key questions remain unanswered,” Patrick wrote to DSHS Commissioner Jennifer Shuford. “Texans deserve transparency and clear answers before the Department of State Health Services (DSHS) issues a seal of approval allowing Camp Mystic to Operate.”

Patrick shared a copy of the letter on X on Monday as parents of nine children who died at Camp Mystic last summer filed a lawsuit in federal court.

ALSO | Camp Mystic parents sue state, accusing officials of failing to enforce evacuation plan

The lawsuit alleges that state health officials wrongfully issued a license to Camp Mystic, despite the camp not having a proper evacuation plan.

“They died because the camp had no plan to evacuate the riverside cabins where the girls slept,” the lawsuit states. “Instead, the camp’s stated policy was for campers not to evacuate during a flood.”

In a response to Patrick’s letter, Camp Mystic explained that only its Cypress Lake location plans to open this summer, which is a separate property from the camp that flooded in July.

Camp Mystic wrote in a statement to CBS Austin Tuesday:

Camp Mystic Cypress Lake is in compliance with all aspects of the state’s new camp safety laws. There is, consequently, no regulatory basis to deny Camp Mystic Cypress Lake its license. Camp Mystic Cypress Lake is a separate property that is not adjacent to the Guadalupe River and sustained no significant damage from the historic flood on July 4.

The camp also pointed to a letter it wrote to Patrick and House Speaker Dustin Burrows in October, inviting the investigating committees to visit Camp Mystic.

“Lt. Gov. Patrick has not responded to this invitation,” Camp Mystic wrote.

CBS Austin has contacted DSHS for a response to Patrick’s letter and the federal lawsuit.