Democrats can vote in May 29 Republican primary; and Brannon answers critics about job history

Aside from a few up ballot contests, including for U. S. Senate (a long shot in November), the election of precinct chairs and county chair, voting in the Democratic primary will be a lot less interesting

Note: If you're a registered voter – Republican, Democrat, Libertarian, Independent, Green or other – mark your calendar for Tuesday May 29th, 2012. Texas will hold its open primary elections on that day, and about the only reality show in town will be the contest for the Republican presidential nomination, plus a couple of important local races. The Democratic Party primary in Hays County arguably will be less consequential than the Republican primary since there are far fewer, if any, contested local races among Democrats. Redistricting has left the county split into three congressional districts – the 21st, 25th and 35th – so, the county's influence in picking winners in the congressional races is now so watered down as to be negligible. Aside from a few up ballot contests, including for U. S. Senate (a long shot in November), the election of precinct chairs and county chair, voting in the Democratic primary will be more an exercise in housekeeping and a lot less interesting. The one exception for east Hays County Dems will be the primary contest for the new 35th congressional district. Obama for President, we know, will be a shoo-in among Dem voters across the state, despite primary opposition from two or three little known challengers.

Texas allows "open" primaries, which means voters of any political stripe can vote in the other party's primary and still vote for the candidate of their choice, from President on down, in November. It's called 'cross-over voting' and it's perfectly legal. Only party officials are prohibited by rules from voting in the other party's primary. The open Republican primary in Hays County will feature not only the contenders for president, the Fearsome Foursome – Mitt Romney, Rick Santorum, Newt Gingrich and Ron Paul, but also two important local races.

Will Conley

Cutler & Ratliff

The two local Republican races are for Sheriff and County Commissioner Precinct 3. Incumbent Sheriff Gary Cutler is seeking re-election to his first full 4-year term. The likable former Sheriff Tommy Ratliff is challenging Cutler. The county commissioner's race has up-and-comer Sam Brannon of San Marcos challenging two-term incumbent Will Conley of Wimberley. The winners will be the only candidates for these two offices on the ballot in November. No Democrat had filed for sheriff or Pct. 3 commissioner as of the deadline Friday March 9. So for Democrats, what you see is what you get to vote for in November. The only way Dems can influence these two critical races is by voting in the Republican primary. Not surprisingly, Cutler, Ratliff, Conley and Brannon are all actively courting Democrats and Independents, who could very likely swing the election their way. The offices they are vying for carry considerable authority and power, and the winners will be with us for the next four years. Dems and Indies should be discussing amongst themselves which primary to vote in. We heartily suggest the Republican primary. You can help pick a winner or a loser and have some fun while doing so. Either way, please VOTE.

Brannon: "I spent the better part of 20 years
solving problems for clients"

Even before San Brannon decided to challenge Will Conley for county commissioner in Pct. 3, his confrontations with officials against closed county government practices and runaway spending and debt began to earn him the ire of critics and cronies. Most of the attacks Sam has received have centered on his current job status, or lack thereof. We know that when attacks become personal, it's a sure sign the critics are running from the truth and their own bad practices. Sam answers his critics in the Q&A.

With the primary election on the way, the candidates’ backgrounds are relevant. The RoundUp certainly welcomes background statements from Mr. Conley, as well as from Sheriff candidates Cutler and Ratliff.

RoundUp: Tell us about your professional experiences, past and present.

Brannon resume/click to enlarge

Brannon: My resume is attached, and you’re welcome to post it.

I’ve been working with SMCISD as a Substitute Teacher since January of 2011, and have been on long-term assignments since the beginning of the 2011-2012 school year. When the senior officer of the ROTC program at the high school was out for a few weeks in September, I was requested by the school Principal to fill in. As that assignment was ending, the Focus Program at the middle school had taken on new students and needed additional help, and I’ve been there since early October.

The Focus Program concentrates on kids with various challenges, such as slight autism or ADD, and who tend to have behavior or disciplinary problems. The goal is to help them progress with the help of individual attention, while still integrating them with the general student population, and without creating a disruption to the learning environment. It can be pretty challenging work some days.

RoundUp: Why did you choose substitute teaching?

Brannon: Hays County doesn’t have the kind of work that I used to do, so I realized that I’d probably have to find a new profession since I intended to make this my home. I enjoy working with kids, and have always related well with them. I’ve been a Big Brothers volunteer in the past, and have also done volunteer work with other youth organizations.

Teaching has interested me for a long time, and I’ve spent some time teaching English as a Second Language (ESL), and enjoyed it. I thought this would be a good way to help me determine whether I was interested in becoming a certified teacher.

RoundUp: What have you learned in school this time around?

Brannon: I have a great appreciation for the teachers and administrators. Their jobs are not easy. It has also been a good exercise in patience and understanding. Our young people and their families face many challenges.

RoundUp: Why just 4 days per week?

Brannon: I spend Tuesday of each week attending the Commissioners Court meetings and following up with staff or researching the issues.

RoundUp: You were a consultant in Turkey?

Brannon: One of my ESL clients was a medical doctor, and had just left her General Manager position at a pharmaceutical firm to co-found a consulting practice that serves European pharma companies with operations in Turkey. What began as a language review of one proposal led to me developing and presenting the final proposal, and that led to projects on market targeting and process design.

My ESL clients were largely business owners and senior executives of European subsidiaries, and we spent a lot of time talking business. Turkey is about 20 years behind the U.S. in business methods, so I was a great resource for them at times.

RoundUp: Your resume indicates that you spent 10 years in “Supply Chain Consulting and Software”. What is “Supply Chain”?

Brannon: “Supply chain” is a term used in the manufacturing industries that refers to a broad set of processes that involve purchasing materials, selling, manufacturing and being able to deliver the product, as promised. The goals are to eliminate waste, to decrease order delivery lead-times, and improve quality. In short, I helped companies improve their performance by making and delivering products better, faster and cheaper through a combination of process improvements and technology.

RoundUp: Your last role in the corporate world was as Vice-President at JCIT International. Explain the role and how you got there.

Brannon: JCIT, BORN Consulting and JD Edwards were business partners that offered complimentary products and services to manufacturers, and we regularly worked on projects together. I developed a solid reputation in sales and engagement management at JD Edwards and was hired to run a region for BORN, and then later was recruited by JCIT to run their North American sales.

At JCIT I reported jointly to the CEO and the COO. I had four sales people that would qualify the opportunities and set the appointments, and then I was on the road 3 weeks out of the month visiting the management teams of our clients, walking plant floors, and creating plans to help them improve their business.

JCIT revolutionized American manufacturing during the late 80’s and 90’s with their Demand Flow methods. Jack Welch, then the CEO of GE, sang praises for the way JCIT transformed GE’s manufacturing businesses.

RoundUp: How did your business background prepare you for public office?

Brannon: I spent the better part of 20 years solving problems for clients, and for my employers. I come from industries where high degrees of complexity and ambiguity are the norm, and that presents interesting challenges in securing new business and finishing projects on-time / on-budget / as-expected. My job was to bring order and predictability in chaotic environments.

My constituents were the people in my firm, our business partners, and our clients. My clients often were literally betting their careers on the success of doing business with me and my firm. I take that seriously, and built a reputation for success, professionalism and leadership.

I have a lot of experience at processing information, context, personalities and patterns in real-time, and keeping track of what we knew and don’t know. I also had to account for the likelihood that there were things that we weren’t yet aware we didn’t know. The environment was often high stress, and I became convinced of the power of honest, direct and thoughtful communication.

In short, I developed a solid reputation for knowing my business and earning the trust of my constituents. Taxpayers expect both of these.

Exploding gun sales in Texas a forecast of Obama's re-election prospects?

There are enough guns in Texas for every man, woman and child to have two each. Every third NRA member lives here, and about a half million Texans have concealed handgun licenses. But with Obama heading towards re-election, Texans want more

By Jason Stanford
BehindFrenemyLines

You can forget the improving economy, the pundits and the polls. The surest sign that Barack Obama will be re-elected president is that Texans are hoarding guns.

The Fort Worth Star-Telegram ran a big story the other day about how gun sales were exploding, what with everyone afraid that the African-born Muslim socialist was going to get himself elected to another four years in the White House.

"Look who the Republicans are trying to put against Obama," said DeWayne Irwin, owner of the Cheaper Than Dirt gun store in Forth Worth. "It's the Keystone Kops and people are getting scared. People are terrified he's going to get re-elected and then he won't care about getting votes next time. He'll just pass whatever legislation he wants."

HoustonChron.com/AP Photo

I could tell DeWayne that I've worked on literally hundreds of congressional campaigns over the last decade, and I can't remember any Democratic candidate ever polling gun control. But really, if you're dumb enough to think that Obama will ever be able to pass whatever legislation he wants, then you are probably prone to the delusion that Democrats want to take away your guns. Suffice it to say that no matter how deep your paranoia runs, when they sell Russian-made ammunition for an AK-47 at Wal-Mart, this debate is over, and the gun nuts have won.

In Texas, being a liberal means owning only one firearm, and gun control means using two hands and gently squeezing the trigger. There are enough guns in Texas for every man, woman and child to have two each. Every third NRA member lives here, and about a half million Texans have concealed handgun licenses. But with Obama heading towards re-election, Texans want more. The FBI has been getting about 1 million requests for background checks on people wanting to buy guns every year just from Texas.

It is considered horribly impolite in Texas to mention the recent school shooting in Ohio that left three kids dead. The Star-Telegram story failed to mention it because to do so would open the reporter up to charges of being anti-gun. It is a local custom to observe your First Amendment right only to support the Second Amendment.

In Texas, the only logical response to gun violence is making sure it's a fair fight. This makes sense to Texans even when it makes no sense. When a mentally ill 22-year-old shot Arizona Rep. Gabrielle Giffords and killed six others with a legally bought Glock 19, Texas Republicans did not waste a second figuring out how to keep guns away from crazy people.

Instead, some proposed that politicians should be allowed to carry guns wherever they damn well pleased even in designated gun-free zones, such as schools and churches. The idea died not because of the inevitable crossfire but because it would be unfair to those constituents taking fire from both sides. They deserved guns in churches, too.

The problem with gun-free zones such as schools, say some, is that criminals don't care about the law. Fair point. But when a depressed 19-year-old math major named Colton Tooley shot his AK-47 at the University of Texas in 2010, SWAT teams had the campus locked down within a half hour. While Tooley holed up in the library, police, not knowing if he was alone, searched the backpacks of any student in the area.

Tooley killed himself without hurting anyone else, but that didn't stop the Texas legislature from demanding that all students be allowed to have guns on campus. Perhaps because some people still look at the UT tower and think of Charles Whitman, that proposal died too.

This is Texas, where you can get around the capitol's metal detectors with a concealed handgun license and our governor jogs with a Ruger .380. When Rick Perry bragged that he shot a coyote that was threatening his daughter's puppy, I didn't hear a blessed Texas soul question the wisdom of politicians exercising with deadly weapons. Instead, everyone kept asking where he put the gun when he jogged in those little nylon shorts. Apparently it's strapped to his hip with some kind of a jogging holster.

That's what passes for a fashion accessory in Texas, where guns are always the solution and never the problem.

A political consultant, writer and family man, Jason Stanford is a Texas resident. He is the co-author of "Adios Mofo: Why Rick Perry will make America miss George W. Bush," writes a syndicated column for Cagle Cartoons and blogs for The Huffington Post.

Commissioners approve new voting precinct boundaries, and new voter cards in the mail next month

If you are not already registered, you must register by April 30 to vote in the May 29 primary election

Press Release | March 14, 2012
Contact: Laureen Chernow
Hays County Communications Specialist
laureen.chernow@co.hays.tx.us
Office: 512.393.2296

Hays County Courthouse, San Marcos, TX – The Hays County Commissioners Court on Tuesday approved county election precinct boundaries, which in turn will allow voter registration cards to be finalized and mailed to Hays County residents who are registered to vote.

The Commissioners Court had approved election precinct boundaries in September 2011, but adjustments to those boundaries were necessitated by the change in redistricting maps ordered by federal courts.

“The changes to the precinct boundaries approved by the Commissioners Court are relatively slight compared to the original boundary map drawn in September 2011,” said Hays County Elections Administrator/Voter Registrar Joyce Cowan. “By law, we had to have our boundaries redrawn by March 20, so we are ahead of that deadline. We also expect to be able to meet the requirements for military and overseas ballots to be mailed by April 14 and new voter registration cards to be mailed by April 25.”

Copies of the map showing the new precincts will be available by early next week at all County Commissioner offices, the first-floor rotunda of the County Courthouse at 111 E. San Antonio Street and the Elections Department at the Government Center, 712 South Stagecoach Trail in San Marcos. It is also available on the Hays County website at www.co.hays.tx.us under the Government tab, Elections & Voting.

Voters who are currently registered to vote will automatically be mailed new voter certificates to replace the ones that expired on Dec. 31, 2011. If you have changed your name or address contact the Hays County Voter Registration Department or call 512-393-7310 to update your information. If you are not already registered, you must register by April 30 to vote in the May 29 primary election. For more information about voting, including finding out if you are already registered, see www.votetexas.gov.

East Texas landowner wins right to take on Keystone in court; jury trial set April 30

While federal private property bill exempts pipeline, two judicial victories Friday in Texas clear path for Julia Trigg Crawford’s eminent domain challenge

Crawford speaks to supporters at a rally
in Paris, Tx / Reuters, PostMediaNews

Update from IndependentTexans. Read more at the website. Background from the Ft. Worth Star-Telegram.

Note: This story – a classic little guy versus the giant – is being reported all across the country. Rooting for the underdog is an old American (and Texas) tradition – remember The Alamo? We wish small farm owner Ms. Crawford luck in her legal battle against Big Oil.

[ In other news: GOP Aide Jumps Ship Over Women's Health Policy and Fees Climb in Texas, Millions Diverted From Original Purpose to Balance State Budget ]

LAMAR COUNTY, TX – Julia Trigg Crawford's fight to prevent TransCanada from seizing her property scored a big win late last Friday when an appellate court reinstated her temporary restraining order. With confidence renewed, Crawford and groups allied with her cause launched StandWithJulia.com this week to help Crawford raise funds for her April 30th jury trial with TransCanada.

“The support that’s been coming my way from regular folks is just unbelievable,” said Crawford. “But we know TransCanada sees my property as a key battleground and they’re going to come at us with guns blazing, so we have to be ready to defend ourselves.”

Meanwhile, a coalition of organizations in Texas who are backing Crawford is expressing “exasperation” that the “The Property Rights Protection Act,” H.R. 1443, will likely include an exemption for pipelines including Keystone XL. The bill recently passed in US House of Representatives and is now before the Senate Judiciary Committee.

“TransCanada and the Keystone Cushing/Gulf Coast segment are exempt,” stated Calvin Tillman, former mayor of DISH, Texas, “This leaves landowners like Julia Trigg Crawford in Oklahoma and Texas in the lurch, subject to the clutches of TransCanada’s ongoing eminent domain proceedings. But let’s remember that it was the bravery and the tragedy of the Alamo that inspired victory the Battle of San Jacinto. TransCanada’s bullying and lobbying has led to a groundswell of support for Julia and landowners like her, and I think TransCanada should be worried.”

Tillman urged citizens across Texas and America to stand with Julia and the Crawford’s lawsuit by giving to the Crawford Defense Fund.

The reinstatement of Crawford’s temporary restraining order against TransCanada was not the only big news for her case last Friday. The same day the Texas Supreme Court also denied a motion for rehearing in the Denbury-Green pipeline case, subsequently reissuing an opinion that decidedly favors landowners.

The groups maintain that TransCanada has yet to prove its own common carrier status in its case against landowner Julia Trigg Crawford. TransCanada says its T-4 permit issued by the Texas Railroad Commission makes it a common carrier, but the group points to comments from the Railroad Commission itself saying it has no authority to grant common carrier status.

Those interested in helping the Paris landowner can give money to help her cause by visiting the site and donating via paypal or by sending a check to the Crawford Defense Fund at:

Crawford Defense Fund,
PO. Box 155,
Sumner, TX 75486

Contact Ms. Crawford at: crawforddefensefund@gmail.com

Five file in May 12 Wimberley municipal election; lower speed limits set for RM 3237 & 12

The city council at its Thursday March 1 meeting voted to ease landscape watering restrictions and to resume issuing permits for the construction of in-ground swimming pools

Note: City Hall Briefs, written and edited by Bob Flocke to inform the citizens of Wimberley about city activities, is neither an official nor an authorized publication of the City of Wimberley. City Hall Briefs is distributed by email to anyone who wishes to receive it. Anyone who wishes to be added to the distribution list should send their email address to Mayor Flocke (below). The RoundUp has edited the Briefs for length and style.

Send your comments and questions to Mr. Flocke at rflocke@austin.rr.com, 512.847.5421, or click on the "comments" at the bottom of the report

Former Mayor Tom Haley to challenge Mac McCullough for Place 2

Tom Haley, right photo front, at an April 2010
county strategic planning meeting.
Mr. McCullough, below

At Monday's March 5 five o'clock closing time for the filing period for the May 12 municipal election, five persons had filed for the three city council positions up for election this year. Former Mayor Tom Haley and incumbent Mac McCullough are running for the Place 2 council seat, and local business owner Lance Cawley is challenging Place 4 incumbent Steve Thurber. Mayor Bob Flocke is unopposed as he seeks a second term.

New speed limits coming to Wimberley

The Texas Department of Transportation has advised city officials that the state agency has authorized lowering the speed limits on two state highways within the city limits. After numerous citizen complaints about high speeds on RM s 3237 and 12 and two speed studies, TxDOT gave the go-ahead to lower the seed limits. The new speed on RM 3237 from the city limit sign to RM 12 will be 45 miles per hour. The current speed limits range from 50 to 60 mph. On RM 12 south of town from the city limit sign – near CR 1492 – to the Blanco River the speed limit will be 45 mph. The current speed limits are 45 and 55 mph in that area. At its March 1 meeting the city council enacted an ordinance confirming the speeds. TxDOT has ordered new speed limit signs, and no delivery date has been established.

Work to reopen Las Flores begins next week

Wimberley will begin work next week to reopen the intersection of Las Flores and La Buena Vista Drives. The intersection was closed in 2010 in an effort to reduce the volume and speed of traffic through the residential neighborhood. Council voted last year to reopen the intersection and to emplace other traffic calming devices, but budgetary constraints didn't allow work to begin until now. The current work includes reopening the intersection, establishing one-way traffic west-bound on La Buena Vista from the intersection to La Buena Vista's western intersection. Left turns from west-bound La Buena Vista onto Las Flores will be prohibited. Later improvements will include speed humps on Las Flores.

Watering restrictions, swimming pool prohibition rolled back

The city council at its Thursday March 1 meeting voted to ease landscape watering restrictions and to resume issuing permits for the construction of in-ground swimming pools. The move will bring city watering restrictions into harmony with those of the Wimberley Water Supply Corporation – landscape watering is allowed two days a week during specified hours. The vote to roll back the restrictions was unanimous. The action on the issuing of permits for swimming pool construction comes 90 days after the council voted in November to stop issuing such permits. The council voted four to one in favor of lifting the prohibition with Mayor Pro Tem Steve Thurber voting against it.

Wimberley community moon walks
resume next week

After a three-month break for the winter, Wimberley's community moon walks will resume next Monday, March 12. For the next few months, the walks will begin on the Wimberley Square at the Wimberley Cafe at 6:30 in the evening. This non-competitive fitness walk follows a course of about two miles over mostly level, smooth surfaces. Pets on leashes are invited to participate. Now beginning their third year, the community moon walks are one of the Mayors Fitness Council's programs to make Wimberley the fittest little town in Texas.

'The Essence of Corruption'

A fox would be embarrassed to ask for the kind of access Toomey got to Perry’s henhouse, but Texans have become so numb to this kind of corruption that no one has the good manners to pretend to be surprised anymore

Send your comments to the complete story link or click on the "comments" at the bottom of the post

BehindFrenemyLines | by Jason Sanford

Read the complete story

Matteson Ellis is an international man of mystery, literally. An international anti-corruption lawyer based in Austin and DC, Ellis has spent years looking for what he called “the red flags of corruption” in some of the riskiest parts of the world. He used to help an international development bank ensure that the billions it loaned to rickety governments actually ended up building bridges, schools and roads.

“We pursued companies for paying bribes to corrupt officials in developing countries,” said Ellis. “These cases almost never involved bags of cash. Unusually, they involved manipulation of high-dollar procurement processes. For example, contracts are steered to friends and relatives. Normal processes are bypassed. And the government officials receive benefits in return.”

What about a hypothetical of a governor steering a billion-dollar contract to his best friend who recently donated $100,000 to his super PAC?

“That’s an obvious example,” said Ellis. “That’s the essence of corruption.”

Under Rick Perry, the kind of corruption that Ellis rooted out in places like Tajikistan is just a slow news day in Texas.

Even if you read every newspaper in Texas, you probably didn’t know that shortly after lobbyist Mike Toomey gave $100,000 to a pro-Perry super PAC, Toomey’s client, United Healthcare, landed a $1 billion contract to provide health insurance for around 440,000 retired state employees.

A political consultant, writer and family man, Jason Stanford is a Texas resident. He is the co-author of "Adios Mofo: Why Rick Perry will make America miss George W. Bush," writes a syndicated column for Cagle Cartoons and blogs for The Huffington Post.

The great Texas water crisis, it's not IF but WHEN

It's half past time, do you know where your water's coming from in the next 10 to 20 years?

Note: We'll leave it with ya for a short station break. Please use this space to comment about any subject or to contemplate our water future. Will it be one of abundance, severe shortages, a slow emptying, too expensive for the less well off to afford? Will it be a time of plenty for some and extreme rationing for others? You might ask your local elected officials what answers they have to offer.

YNN | By John Salazar Experts stress action to curb Texas' water crsis – It's only been a month since water experts announced the 2012 state water plan, but many worry Texas' precious resource will continue to disappear if the one-inch thick book of recommendations is not put into practice.

The Texas Water Development Board's Executive Administrator Melanie Callahan said the state’s water situation is so dire, the worst-case scenario is closer than we think.

"It's a resource and it has to be managed. It's not always going to be there,” she said. “If we don't take care of it, you may go to the tap at some point and it may not be there.”

Texas: 'Send us your packaged garbage, your air pollution, your nuclear poisons'

graphic by: Todd Wiseman / Jay Root

Note: More on the subject from The Texas Tribune . . . By Jay Root Pipeline Sparks Property Rights Backlash – As the White House and Congress battle it out over the controversial Keystone XL pipeline, the Canadian company that wants to build it is still using its land-seizure powers to get property easements for the ambitious project. And it’s ruffling some feathers in a politically conservative patch of Texas.

“I’m just an angry steward of the land,” (Lamar County farmer Julia Trigg) Crawford said. “A foreign-owned, for-profit, nonpermitted pipeline has taken a Texan’s land. Doesn’t sound right, does it?”

Texas Observer | By Forrest Wilder Billionaire wins another radioactive favor from TCEQ – Bureaucrats at the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality will be nervously watching the stock market for the next five years. That's because the agency, in an unprecedented move, has allowed Dallas billionaire Harold Simmons to financially secure his burgeoning West Texas radioactive waste dump with stock in one of his companies.

Send your comments to the story links above, to retired educator and Wimberley area resident Barbara Hopson at hopsonbarbara@yahoo.com or click on the "comments" at the bottom of the post

By Barbara Hopson
Guest Commentary

WIMBERLEY, TX – The U.S. – especially the Texas Gulf Coast – is fast on its way to becoming the dumping ground for the rest of the world.

BP has a meltdown of huge proportions, polluting the Gulf Coast from Texas to Florida and receives a slap on the wrist from the U.S.oil-igarchy.

Congress has authorized tax incentives of between $1-2 BILLION to Texas refineries which will retrofit themselves to refine Saudi "sour" oil which WILL BE SHIPPED to Texas to be refined. (The Saudis don't want to pollute their own country by refining that dirty oil, and they don't want to put a dent in their huge treasury by building refineries in Saudi Arabia to do the dirty job.) Let Texas take the pollution and pay to do it!

TransCanada wants to send its hot liquid tar sands from Alberta, Canada to Texas via the Keystone XL pipeline built over the Ogallala aquifer. The pollution from refining will be spewed onto Port Arthur and the rest of the Gulf instead of further devastating Alberta. And the kicker is that the refined oil won't even be used in the U.S., but will be tanked from Port Arthur to places where TransCanada can demand a higher price for it than we will pay in the U.S.

Meanwhile, Gov. Perry has agreed for West Texas to take nuclear waste from other states.

Maybe we should erect a crying Statue of Liberty off Port Arthur, holding a tablet that says, "Please don't give us your packaged garbage, your air pollution, and your nuclear poisons, yearning to break free!"

Breaking update on the Texas Keystone face-off

DALLAS (CBSDFW.COM/AP) Court Blocks Keystone Oil Pipeline From Crossing Texas Farm (Thurs. Feb. 15, 2012) – Texas Farm owners of a northeast Texas farm have obtained a court order to block TransCanada from crossing the farm with a proposed pipeline planned to carry Canadian oil to refineries along the Texas Gulf coast.

Late May primary is best bet in Texas redistricting drama; and the undramatic Conley-Brannon race

The ramifications are national because Texas was awarded four new congressional seats after the 2010 Census. Whether they go Democratic or Republican could affect the balance of power in the U.S. House

Read more here: http://www.star-telegram.com/2012/02/14/3735337/april-primaries-ruled-out-in-texas.html?storylink=addthis#.TzwHVpM2-s4.twitter#storylink=cpy

Update: State GOP Chair Steve Munisteri yesterday sent this lengthy advisory to rank and file Republicans.

Note: Latest updates from tweeters following the courtroom drama live today in San Antonio over the redistricting cluster-mess are quoting that Texas's primary elections will be delayed until at least May 29, with a possible fallback date of June 26. Forget about a primary in April. Such late dates essentially wipe out any meaningful influence Texans will have on picking the Republican nominee for president, not to mention the high anxiety it is causing GOP and election officials across the state. Follow Dallas attorney Michael Li's excellent ongoing coverage here.

Send your comments and questions to roundup.editor@gmail.com, to the Star-Telegram link below, to Mr. Conley at will.conley@co.hays.tx.us, to Mr. Bannon at sam@samforhayscounty.com or click on the "comments" at the bottom of the post

By Paul J. Weber
The Associated Press
via the Ft. Worth Star-Telegram

SAN ANTONIO, TX (Tues. Feb. 14, 2012) – The chances of Texas voters having much influence in the Republican presidential race faded Tuesday after a panel of federal judges acknowledged that the state's deep divisions over political maps had made it nearly impossible to preserve an April primary.

Texas was originally scheduled to be a part of next month's slate of Super Tuesday primaries, but the redistricting clash forced the state to reschedule its contest to April 3. With that date now all but dead, too, elections workers who squeezed into a packed San Antonio courtroom Tuesday advocated a new date of May 22, which could be long after Republicans settle on a nominee to face President Barack Obama.

Mirror, mirror, who's the most fiscally conservative of all?

Meanwhile, here at home in Hays County, we have the remarkably undramatic, mostly under-the-radar campaigns in the GOP primary match-up between incumbent Pct. 3 County Commissioner Will Conley (Wimberley) and challenger Sam Brannon (San Marcos). Anybody heard from these guys lately? Conley sent out a nice letter (at county expense) last month welcoming new constituents/neighborhoods that were brought into Precinct 3 following the county's redistricting. "I am very excited to have you in my precinct and look forward to working with you in the future," Conley chirped in the letter. "Please feel free to contact my office if you have questions, or if I can be of assistance to you in another circumstance." Another circumstance? Conley may amp up his campaign for re-election to a third 4- year term later on (term limits anyone?) but for now appears to be satisfied that he has a leg up on Brannon due to a perceived good constituent services record and the allegiances he has won over the years with his many road upgrade projects and willingness to take over county maintenance of miles of private roads.

Map of Pct. 3 / link to enlarge (pdf)

Brannon has been quietly scoring points with fiscal conservatives by pointing out that Conley is very much the fiscal Un-conservative, having presided the last eight years over a huge growth rate in Hays County government size, spending and debt. County debt was approaching $500 million at the end of 2011. Not all of it can be explained by population growth alone.

This local primary is shaping up to be a real choice for conservatives between a challenger campaigning for lower spending and debt reduction and an incumbent who is unabashedly proud of his long and consistently pro-spending record.

"This election is about stopping the special interest politics in Hays County, and acting more responsibly and transparently in the business of county government," Brannon asserted in a recent e-mailed message. "A little focused effort from the people who care about our community will make the difference."

Brannon's campaign has scheduled two meet-n'-greet fundraisers, Sunday Feb. 19, 12:30-2:30 p.m. at Brewster's Pizza (512.847.3299) at the RR 12 Junction in Wimberley; and Saturday Feb. 25, 4-6 p.m. at the Price Senior Center (512.392.2900), 222 San Antonio St. in San Marcos. Live Bluegrass and gospel music will be provided by Sasquatch Holler at both events.

Bob Ochoa

Remore here: http://www.star-telegram.com/2012/02/14/3735337/april-primaries-ruled-out-in-texas.html?storylink=addthis#.TzwHVpM2-s4.twitter#st

In battle of the budget, poll says safety net trumps defense

Click on chart to enlarge

If this poll is any indication, Americans, by a solid majority, want to save their social entitlement programs and cut defense spending in the battle over the federal budget.

The Congressional Connection Poll surveyed 1,000 adults Feb. 9-12.

Read the details

Keystone Pipeline is getting personal

"Texas politicians talk tough on eminent domain, but with Keystone we have a private pipeline company acting as a ‘common carrier' and bludgeoning private property owners with eminent domain while many of our Republican leaders cheer from the sidelines . . ."

From The Vindicator/Liberty County | Houston, TX (Feb. 13) – A new statewide coalition of groups and advocates for private property rights has announced its support for landowners along the path of the Keystone XL pipeline in Texas. The groups charge that TransCanada, the company proposing to build the pipeline, has used eminent domain to bully landowners and condemn private property.

Despite a presidential permit denied to TransCanada for the Keystone XL project just weeks ago, the company continues to bully and pressure landowners along the Texas pipeline route.

The controversial Keystone XL pipeline would carry tar sands crude more than 1900 miles through six states including Montana, South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas, Oklahoma and Texas. In Texas, the pipeline crosses eighteen counties, from Paris to Pt. Arthur. Groups with landowners near the cities of Paris, Winnsboro, and Wells joined in press events held in Dallas, Austin, San Antonio, and Houston to ask for support from agencies and officials on the continuing plight of landowners who would be impacted by the pipeline.

"Texas, we have an eminent domain problem," said Terri Hall, director of Texans Uniting for Reform and Freedom (TURF). "There is absolutely zero oversight for pipeline companies that want to take private property from Texans - all you have to do is check the right box on a form and declare yourself a common carrier, no questions asked."

Yin & Yang: America's growing income gap and an expanding social safety net

He (Romney) would become the new American royalty – ironically a Mormon, to boot – and we, the 99% would be the serfs and farmers, like in ancient Rome. Is that what we want this country to become?

Send your comments to Rocky at arrowbiz@texasorp.com, click on the story links or click on the "comments" at the bottom of the post

Sunday read | From Daily Kos By Scott Emerson Thoughts about capitalism from a Baptist minister – Ancient Israel was built around the concept that nothing belonged to the individual. A farmer was required to give up to 30% of his crop to the community or the religious leaders. He was told not to go back and pick up what was dropped so that the poor and the widows could pick up what they needed. The story of Boaz and Ruth show this clearly. Jesus takes this concept a step further when he reminded his listeners that everything we own ultimately is not ours.

New York Times | By Binyamin Appelbaum and Robert Gebeloff Even Critics of Safety Net Increasingly Depend on It LINDSTROM, Minn. (Saturday, Feb. 11, 2012) — Ki Gulbranson owns a logo apparel shop, deals in jewelry on the side and referees youth soccer games. He makes about $39,000 a year and wants you to know that he does not need any help from the federal government. Yet this year, as in each of the past three years, Mr. Gulbranson, 57, is counting on a payment of several thousand dollars from the federal government, a subsidy for working families called the earned-income tax credit. He has signed up his three school-age children to eat free breakfast and lunch at federal expense. And Medicare paid for his mother, 88, to have hip surgery twice.

From the American Dream to Income Hoarding

By Rocky Boschert
Guest Column

Every day we hear that income inequality continues to increase in this country. Somehow we are supposed to accept it, as if it is a law of the natural world. Yet Americans are recoiling increasingly at least against extreme income inequality.

Aren’t we supposed to live in a democracy? Isn’t the democratic process supposed to guarantee that everyone participates to some degree in who we can vote for – as well as who gets elected? Clearly the answer is NO.

What we average income Americans are now up against in the political process is the unfettered power of money that the rich and the very rich possess. The power of money is winning big time. No matter how many 99%-ers there are, if your net worth is only 1,800th of the net worth of the likes of a Romney you can kiss your income equality dream good-bye.

The American Dream is now about income hoarding. To achieve income hoarding, the rich and super rich are increasingly using their “material Power” to control the political process, pitting it against the traditional electoral “participation” power of the many.

A recently created Material Power Index (MPI) shows that people with extreme wealth have an MPI 10,000 higher than an average citizen. The elephant in the national room, and the cause of most of America’s current economic problems, is that the rich have very effectively used their MPI to rewrite the tax code almost entirely for their benefit.

["Measured by income, oligarchs at the very top of American society have an MPI just over 10,000, which happens to approximate the MPI of Roman senators relative to their society of slaves and farmers. When measured by wealth, the MPI for the richest Americans is 30,000 (it jumps to 50,000 if home equity is excluded). The weakest American oligarchs have between 125 and 200 times the material power of an average citizen."]

When taxes were first introduced in this country, only the richest 10% of Americans were being taxed. But they have managed to shift an increasing burden of taxation downward ever since. And even in our newest revision of our “progressive income tax” system, the rich have all the advantages, as we see with Mr. Romney's 14% tax rate. And have no illusions about his candidacy and what he represents: protecting the interests of his very rich class.

What makes the political process in the Republican primaries even more telling is we are now witnessing a new battle between the rich and the super-rich (as if their unbridled greed and avarice isn’t already too much). Romney, one of the 'super-rich' (net worth $250 million), is battling Gingrich, the 'merely rich' (net worth $6.7 million). One is being accused of vulture capitalism, the other of having profited as a high paid lobbyist for Freddie Mac.

This is, on its face, absolutely pathetic. How exactly does that help you and me and the rest of the non-rich decide who in the Republican Party, if elected President, would be the best representative for us non-rich citizens?

This telling sort of infighting in the Republican Party exposes the naked and corrupt excesses of 21st century American capitalism. Whereas in the past the rich and the super-rich were in the same camp, they are now attacking each other. The mountain top is not that big and everybody wants to stand on it.

America is morphing into an oligarchy and oligarchies are bad for democracy. We do not elect our government leaders anymore. They are selected for us by the rich and the super rich with their Super-Pacs and their owned and propagandized corporate media.

As the situation stands now, no matter how many crooks in high places we expose, there are no repercussions for them. What is the point of exposing corruption and the bad guys if we the people don't have the power to do anything about it? Even President Obama – who campaigned on getting justice for us against the corrupt perpetrators of the Iraq invasion and the financial collapse – has failed to display the courage of his pre-election rhetoric.

It is said that Americans do not hate the rich, but admire them. We are told we are supposed to emulate them as role models. Sadly, this is all part of the great brainwashing. Who wants to be governed by someone whose net worth is 2,000 times more than yours? There is a limit to what even Americans will tolerate in terms of economic inequality and political castration.

Until recently, the very rich have been smart enough to not be too much in the political limelight. It once was more effective to use your money in the background to influence politics. But with someone like Romney in the White House, things would be different. He would become the new American royalty – ironically a Mormon, to boot – and we, the 99% would be the serfs and farmers, like in ancient Rome. Is that what we want this country to become?

Whenever the 99% criticize the 1%, their pat reply is that we are engaging in “class warfare or envy.” This works very effectively with the ignorant and within an idolatry mindset, because in America, anyone accused of “class warfare” is considered an evil “socialist” or a Kenyan-born “Manchurian Candidate.”

All of this, of course, underscores another huge problem in America. Public education (even private education) has clearly failed to instill critical analysis and intellectual problem solving in the minds our current adult population. Let’s just hope for the sake of our country we don’t continue to let that happen to our children and grandchildren.

Week in review: Sonogram law takes effect & state's budget is in a world of hurt

WND (WorldNetDaily) WASHINGTON | 20% of Republicans Leaning to Obama (Wed. Feb. 8, 2012) – For critics of Barack Obama, 2012 has been portrayed as a do-or-die year for the country – an election that will determine whether America stays on the road to European-style socialism or veers right to reclaim its positions as the most vibrant economy in the world and the home of individual liberty. But the 2012 election is looking more like a replay of 2008 than a do-over. The latest WND/Wenzel Poll shows none of the current crop of Republican presidential candidates has solidified the base of the party, with one in five GOP voters leaning toward support of Obama in November.

" . . . the bloody fight for the Republican presidential nomination – by most estimations the nastiest GOP fight in memory – has really hurt the images of the challengers in the eyes of both Republicans and, especially, independent voters. For Republicans, each candidate carries with them now some taint that cannot be ignored.”

Houston Chronicle | By Zain Shauk & Todd Ackerman Sonograms evoke strong reactions as mandate takes effect (Wed. Feb. 8, 2012) – Some women covered their ears as the sounds of fetal heartbeats echoed into their exam rooms at a Houston abortion clinic. Others tried to drown out the noise with their own voices, said Planned Parenthood officials, nervously humming or talking over the sounds of fetuses in their wombs. Still others turned their heads away from ultrasound images, an effort to opt out of part of the state's new sonogram requirement for abortions, which the Department of State Health Services began enforcing Tuesday.

"These patients are livid, they are hurt," said Tram Nguyen, director of Planned Parenthood Center for Choice in Houston, describing recent scenes at her clinic. "They feel that we are the ones being condescending and questioning their decision when we are just messengers."

Elizabeth Graham, director of Texas Right to Life, said she's not surprised to hear that many women are reacting strongly to the evidence of life they're carrying.

National Geographic Water Currents | By Sandra Postel Texas water district acts to slow depletion of Ogallala Aquifer (Tues. Feb. 7, 2012) – A group of farmers in northwest Texas began 2012 under circumstances their forbearers could scarcely imagine: they faced a limit on the amount of groundwater they could pump from their own wells on their own property. The new rule issued by the High Plains Underground Water Conservation District, based in Lubbock, declares that water pumped in excess of the “allowable production rate” is illegal.

Texas Tribune | By Morgan Smith In Texas, a backlash against student testing (Mon. Feb. 6, 2012) – It is a precarious time for Texas school districts. Faced with roughly $5.4 billion less in state financing, districts this year will administer new, more rigorous state exams called the State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness, or STAAR. And for the first time in high school, the assessments are linked to graduation requirements and final grades.

There is anxiety among school leaders, educators and parents about meeting the increased standards with fewer resources. In the Panhandle, the Hereford Independent School District superintendent may withhold her district's test scores from the state. An Austin parent is considering a lawsuit to stop the rollout of the tests. Some legislators are mulling how to postpone some of the tests' consequences for students.

YNN | By Harvey Kronberg Key Perry Appointees Sound Budetary Alarm (Mon. Feb. 6, 2012) – [I]t was an extraordinary moment last week when three of (Perry's) highest profile appointees tasked with administering some of the biggest responsibilities of state government stepped up to all but say that Texas could no longer afford the Grover Norquist model of shrinking government until it was small enough to fit into a bathtub and drown.

Ted Houghton
. . . (Education) Commissioner Scott did personally and publicly apologize to educators for budget cuts that made it all but impossible to keep their schools properly functioning. Commissioner Suehs (Health and Human Services) did tell hospital administrators that Medicaid funding was going to be around $17 billion short next session and a third of that was because of smoke and mirrors adopted in the last session of the Legislature. And Chairman Houghton (Texas Transportation Commission/TxDOT) did publicly propose raising automobile registration fees to help deal with traffic-strangled cities and suburbs.

Charles Albert O'Dell • August 2, 1936 – February 1, 2012

Memorial service scheduled
Saturday March 3 at the Wizard Academy

Charles Albert O'Dell, who was born August 2, 1936, the second of four children to Maurice "Pat" O'Dell and Mary Frances Davis in a converted barn in Refugio, Texas, died tragically in an automobile-motorcycle accident in San Marcos, Texas, February 1, 2012. O'Dell was in San Marcos conducting business for Hays Community Action Network, the non-profit county watchdog organization he co-founded in 2003 and to which he had dedicated the past several years of his life.

Growing up on a farm in Lancaster, Texas, O'Dell was driven and industrious, and he loved a challenge. He raised prized calves, could pick a bale of cotton in a day and loved to fish and hunt. He and his brother were the first in his family to go to college. O'Dell attended Catholic Seminary in Kentucky. He graduated from Texas Tech University with a bachelor’s degree in agricultural education and a master’s in agricultural economics. He earned a Ph.D. in resource economics at the University of Maryland while working as an economist with the U.S. Department of Agriculture in Washington, D.C.

A strong believer in creating opportunity for all, O'Dell took time off from his doctoral studies to serve as a USDA federal liaison officer at Prairie View A&M College in support of a federal development project. When administrators blocked his recommendations, O'Dell supported students and faculty in their demands for reform. His analytic skills and expertise in commodities earned him assignments in both the public and private sectors. O'Dell served on President Richard Nixon's Cost of Living Council to provide food policy analysis, and he later worked as manager of materials planning for Anheuser-Busch Inc. in St. Louis. He also served as director of economic research and commodity analysis for The Kroger Company and as CEO of AgriShip International Systems Inc. in Washington, D. C.

O'Dell and his wife Susan moved to Hays County in 1999 where he saw the need for an organization to inform and educate Hays County citizens regarding public affairs and responsibilities. He joined with Erin Foster of Bear Creek to incorporate HaysCAN. The two began to attend meetings where public business was being conducted and to publicize their findings often through the Hays County RoundUp. When public servants were reluctant to conduct the public's business openly, HaysCAN learned to use the power of the open records request to get information that belongs to the public.

His research focused on issues that affect citizens, most often land and water use. Concerned about the effects of rapid growth on water quality in Hays County, O’Dell became a water quality monitor for Lower Colorado River Authority. He participated in numerous stakeholder processes including the Dripping Springs-LCRA Regional Water Quality Protection Plan, Hays County Subdivision Rules Revision committee, and Hays County Envision Central Texas. He served as a poll watcher, and he became a master naturalist. He served as president of the Ethical Society of Austin, as a scoutmaster in Virginia, and he served meals to the homeless at Austin Resource Center for the Homeless. He never was able to say "no" when someone asked him for help of any kind…even a 2 a.m. ride from the airport.

Charles knew how to have fun when he wasn't working for HaysCAN. He was a movie buff, he could "name that tune" in three notes if it was from the Big Band era, and he was a world traveler, not a tourist. He loved to dance, especially the two-step when Hank Williams was playing. He wrote poetry and he grew vegetables. In fact, his old blue pickup with the "Okra is Alright" sticker was known all over Hays county.

Surviving O'Dell are his wife Susan Doupé; his son Michael O'Dell and wife Beth Mertz and their daughter Madeline of San Francisco; daughter Alice O'Dell Brannon and husband Benjamin and their son Jonathan of Cincinnati; and daughter Kate O'Dell, also of Cincinnati; his children's mother Peggy Maloy O'Dell of Cincinnati. O'Dell is also survived by his sister Judy White of Seguin and several nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his parents and his brother Mike O'Dell and his sister Vera Ann Vaught.

A memorial service for Charles will be at 2:30 p.m. Saturday, March 3, 2012, at Wizard Academy just off County Road 1826 in Austin. All are welcome. Doors open at 2 p.m. More information can be found at http://hayscan.org/?p=108.

The family asks that in lieu of flowers contributions be made to radio station KUT 90.5, Hays County Food Bank, or www.instituteforcivility.org.

Isaac letter: TxDOT will have new plan to re-pave RR12 in two weeks

"I am confident that the urgency of the situation was conveyed by the passion of over 200 people who attended the meeting."

KVUE.com

Stretch of road lies between
Hwy 290 and Hamilton Pool Rd

Note: The letter from Rep. Isaac was received earlier today. Here's more background from KVUE.com Austin | By Andrew Horansky and photojournalist Robert McMurrey | TxDOT Ponders Compromise (Tues Feb 7, 2012) – Last summer Christy Vickrey lost her friend, a Bee Cave elementary teacher, in a head-on collision near Dripping Springs. A cross still marks the spot. The accident happened along Ranch Road 12. It is a road that Vickrey said went from bad to worse.

Letter to the editor:

Although Dripping Springs is a growing community, it's still the kind of tight-knit place where we know our neighbors and look out for one another. This was never more evident than at the Ranch Road 12 town hall meeting this week. Although the re-pavement of this road has affected us personally in different ways through decreased property value or slumping business sales, we all share the same basic concern for the community's safety.

Soon after the re-pavement, I met with TXDOT officials in November to share my constituent’s concerns about the new road. Although we were assured that using chip seal was the sound financial decision and that noise and gravel levels would abate, we are still dealing with the same issues four months later. I knew that TXDOT needed to hear directly from the local residents about how the re-pavement has affected their lives in order to understand the importance of this issue and was happy that they accepted my invitation to attend our town hall meeting.

I am confident that the urgency of the situation was conveyed by the passion of over 200 people who attended the meeting. Thank you for taking the time for your voice to be heard. For those of you who might have left early, our District Engineer, Carlos Lopez, was able to make the last part of the meeting and hear our concerns firsthand.

We have been told that TXDOT will have a new plan for how to proceed within two weeks, and I will distribute that information as soon as I receive it. If you weren't able to make the meeting or haven't already contacted my office about RR 12, please email me at Jason.Isaac@house.state.tx.us so that I can keep you updated on the progress.

Simple repairs to a job that was poorly done will not solve the problem. Although I don't have any direct influence over the decision TXDOT will make, I have strongly expressed the need for a hot mix overlay on the road to them. I am hopeful that our plea will be seriously considered.

Jason Isaac State
Representative House
District 45

Gasland filmmaker gets fracked, hauled out of a House committee public hearing

Note: Here's one for Charles O'Dell. He would understand the difficulty that front line journalists and government watchdogs often face in trying to report the facts about their government, regardless of the party or personalities in charge. First question always is, what have they got to hide? Charles' last bill estimate from the county for an open records document search to try to answer that question for an upcoming article was $241.15. Stiff-arming the public with high priced information is no way to instill confidence in our public offices and officials. Charles knew that, yet he always persisted.

Update: WOAI, San Antonio | Quakes in Karnes County Linked to Fracking Industry (Tues. Feb. 7, 2012) – After the third earthquake in four months rattled residents of Karnes County southeast of San Antonio over the weekend, there are increasing concerns that the earthquakes are being caused by the widespread oil and gas fracking industry, which is underway in the region.

Read more about the Oscar-nominated Gasland documentary (trailer here) and the flap over the EPA's findings earlier this week at a public hearing of the U.S. House Subcommittee on Energy and Environment. You should be very concerned if you or a loved one lives anywhere near natural gas drilling activity that is using the controversial underground hydraulic fracturing procedure. There's a lot of it going on around the Lone Star State.

Motorcycle accident claims life of Charles O'Dell

Editor's note: Charles penned dozens of hard-hitting columns for the RoundUp, many exposing political malpractice and possible criminal malfeasance inside Hays County. Here's one from Nov. 20, 2009 that was particularly prescient, "Thoughts on politicians, Pirahna and the public interest" By Charles O'Dell, PhD – Driving past Austin Memorial Park Cemetery the other day brought to mind a reflection that every one of us is heading in that direction. Such a sobering thought brought into sharp focus the importance of making the most of life’s journey . . . Our neighbors’ problems are our problems – unless we choose not to care. We need skilled individuals who will address the public interest first to run for office. Otherwise, the Piranha among us will devour our community.


My friend and the RoundUp's chief investigative political writer and columnist, Charles O'Dell, died today from injuries sustained in a motorcycle accident in San Marcos. At the moment, words cannot express the shock and sadness of Charles sudden passing. Our prayers go out to Charles' wife, Susan, and to his children and family. Charles will be missed by many friends and believers in freedom of information.

Charles co-founded HaysCAN, a community based government watchdog organization in 2003. Its mission statement and Charles personal commitment was to "provide clear and accurate information to help Hays County residents understand the actions taken by their elected officials." We believe Charles was in San Marcos to collect copies of documents from his latest public information requests from Hays County.

San Marcos PD dispatch said the department is investigating the accident that occurred on the 400 block of Hopkins St. No other details were made available.

Update, Thursday Feb. 2: From a report this morning from the San Marcos Mercury:

According to Sgt Brandon Winkenwerder, O’Dell was traveling east on Hopkins around 4:15 p.m, on a Kymco Grand Vista Motor Scooter behind another vehicle approaching the North Street intersection.

A westbound Dodge Durango driven by Joshua Matthew Eismann, 22, of New Braunfels, attempted to turn left on North Street and struck O’Dell’s motor scooter.

O’Dell was knocked off the cycle. He was taken by ambulance to CTMC where he was pronounced dead by Justice of the Peace JoAnn Prado shortly before 5 p.m.

Amber Land, a Texas State sophomore, told the University Star that she witnessed the collision and attempted to render aid to the victim, who she said was breathing but unresponsive immediately following the accident.

Eismann was cited for failure to yield the right of way. San Marcos Fire department, San Marcos-Hays County EMS and SMPD Collision Investigation Team responded to the scene.

New Dripping Springs ISD Sup to make $167,000

'It is unusual for a district to get to this level,’ said Debbie Ratcliffe, TEA director of communications

Dr. Gearing/Marshall NewsMessenger-Courtney Case

Note: The school district has scheduled a 'Meet and Greet' with the new superintendent on Thursday Feb. 9. See the details here.

By Curt W. Olson
COlson@TexasBudgetSource.com

Read the complete story

Dripping Springs Independent School District taxpayers should watch the next moves from the district now that it has a new leader.

Superintendent Bruce Gearing started working Monday after moving from Marshall ISD, now earning $167,000, a jump from the $150,000 in Marshall ISD, according to the contracts.

Dripping Springs ISD and Marshall have something in common. Both districts sought approval of Tax Ratification Elections and voters shouted with a resounding, “No.”

TREs drew attention last fall as school trustees in several Texas ISDs sought power to raise property taxes because they would receive less money from the state. State lawmakers appropriated $47.3 billion for public education in all funds for 2012-13, a decrease of $2.8 billion, according to the Legislative Budget Board’s Fiscal Size-Up document.

Voters in Dripping Springs and Marshall essentially told district leaders to live within their means.

Meanwhile, Gearing gets that higher salary despite Dripping Springs having a smaller student enrollment, about 4,256 compared to 5,393 in Marshall.