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U.S. Patent and Trademark Office Expected to Name Freeland CIO

It has been widely reported that the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) will name David Freeland, deputy commissioner for management information systems at the Texas Department of Human Services, as the agency's new chief information officer, pending clearance from the Office of Personnel Management. Freeland has 25 years of information technology experience. If hired by the USPTO, Freeland would be responsible for a $250 million budget, a staff of 500 career employees and a complex IT environment.

Note: We have attempted to contact Freeland to verify these reports. However, as of press time, we have not heard back from Freeland.


Transportation Commission Approves $50 Million For Projects in Border Region

The Texas Transportation Commission has approved $50 million to fund projects that will improve roadways in the Texas-Mexico border region. In 2001, Texas voters approved a $175 million bond package to support road improvements in the border region. Many of the state's border colonia communities are plagued by transportation and drainage problems caused by unpaved and deteriorated roads. The Commission approved the first $50 million round of projects in 2002. To date, 274 projects have been funded in 21 counties.

To view the list of projects receiving funding, click here.


Richard Fisher

Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas Names New President

The Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas has announced that Richard W. Fisher will become president of the bank, effective April 4, 2005. Fisher will succeed Robert D. McTeer, Jr., who resigned November 4, 2004, to become chancellor of the Texas A&M University System.

Fisher is currently Vice Chairman of Kissinger McLarty Associates, a strategic advisory firm chaired by Henry Kissinger, the former Secretary of State of the United States of America. He began his career as a banker at the private bank of Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. In 1987, he created Fisher Capital Management, an investment advisory firm, and a separate funds management firm, Fisher Ewing Partners, which focused heavily on investing in distressed banks, savings and loans, and thrifts. From 1997 to 2001, Fisher served as Deputy United States Trade Representative with the rank of Ambassador. In this capacity, he oversaw the implementation of NAFTA.

As President of the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas, Fisher will head one of the 12 regional Reserve Banks, which with the Board of Governors in Washington, D.C., make up the Federal Reserve System, the nation's central bank. The Dallas Reserve Bank serves the Eleventh Federal Reserve District, which includes all of Texas, as well as portions of Louisiana and New Mexico. The Federal Reserve is responsible for managing the country's money supply, supervising banks and depository institutions, and serving as fiscal agent for the federal government. The Federal Reserve also provides services to depository institutions.


David Gutierrez

Lubbock County Sheriff to Head State Jail Standards Commission

Gov. Rick Perry has appointed David Gutierrez, sheriff of Lubbock County, as presiding officer of the Texas Commission on Jail Standards. The commission establishes standards for the care and treatment of county prisoners and the construction, maintenance and operation of county jails.

Gutierrez has served in law enforcement for 27 years. He is a member of the law enforcement committee of the Texas Association of Counties, the Sheriff's Association of Texas, the American Jail Association and the American Correctional Association. He is also a former president of the Texas Jail Association.


Issues Facing the 79th Texas Legislature

In the December 10th issue of the Insider, we announced the House Research Organization's biennial publication Topics for the 79th Legislature. The Senate Research Center (SRC) has just released its counterpart document called Issues Facing the 79th Texas Legislature. This 101-page document is organized along committee lines.


State Workforce

Did you know that the average state employee is 42 years old, makes an annual salary of $32,681 and has been with his or her agency for 8 years? Those are among the findings of a recent state auditor's report State of Texas Workforce for Fiscal Year 2004 published this month. According to this report, the composition of the state workforce generally mirrors that of the state's civilian labor force, although there are more females and more minorities in Texas state government. The aging workforce can be seen by the fact that about twice the number of employees were eligible to retire in 2004 compared with the average of the prior five years. The full time state workforce has dropped about 6% from FY2000 to 2004. The current turnover rate is 14.8%.

Other useful HR-related reports are:


TWC Awarded $1.2 Million in Federal Funding

The Texas Workforce Commission (TWC) has been awarded eight grants totaling $1.2 million by the U.S. Department of Labor. The grant money will be used for enhancements to the unemployment insurance system. The enhancements will help prevent fraud and abuse, make tax and wage reporting easier for employers and update security measures.

Six grants totaling $600,000 will be used to improve online services for employers and ensure that only qualified applicants receive unemployment benefits. The money will also be used to improve overpayment early detection and reduce fraud. A grant worth $500,000 will ultimately give employers the option to make and pay online adjustments to tax and wage reports, request refunds for overpayments, rewrite existing online quarterly tax and wage reports and allow tax payments with credit cards. The final grant, worth $100,000, will be used for security enhancements.


New Open Market Purchases Procedure

TBPC has just issued a revised Section 2.8 of its Procurement Manual. This section deals with open market purchase procedures as authorized by sections 2155.062(a)(3) and 2156.061 of the Texas Government Code. This section of the Procurement Manual provides instructions for how to administer the competition in an open market purchase. It does not dictate who administers the competitive process, a subject which is covered elsewhere in the manual.


Texas Supreme Court Begins Posting Recorded Oral Arguments

The Texas Supreme Court has begun posting links to audio recordings of oral arguments on its Web site.

"The Court has implemented this service as an interim step toward broadcasting all arguments on the internet through streaming audio and video software, assuming the Legislature provides funds for this project," Chief Justice Wallace B. Jefferson said. "The obvious benefit is that the general public, legal community, media and students will have the ability to observe the legal process via the internet without the inconvenience and cost of traveling to Austin."

Online users will be able to click from a link to choose from posted recordings listed by the first two digits of the case number (those digits reflect the year a case was filed with the Court) or by argument date. Click here to view current postings.


State Wants to Upgrade Communication Systems for Public Safety Agencies

Within two years, police officers and firefighters should be able to communicate with any public safety agency in the state, regardless of what radio frequencies or systems they use, according to Steve McCraw, Texas' homeland security director. Instead of implementing a new statewide radio system for all law enforcement and firefighting agencies, officials say the new system will most likely involve a network of regional patches to link the communication systems of different agencies, which sometimes broadcast on different radio frequencies. It is not known at this time how much the project will cost. Some local agencies have already begun improving their communications systems using state homeland security grant funds. The federal Department of Homeland Security announced this month that it awarded Texas $138.6 million for 2005. To date, Texas has received $587 million in homeland security grants.


SA City Public Service Raises Operating Budget to $936.6 Million, Construction Budget to $479.9 Million

The Board of Trustees of San Antonio's City Public Service (CPS), the nation's largest municipally owned energy company providing both natural gas and electric service, has adopted an operating budget of $963.6 million and a construction budget of $479.9 million for the fiscal year starting February 1. The adopted operating budget represents an increase of $103.4 million over last year's budget while the construction budget is a $168.9 million increase over last fiscal year.


Information Security Center Established at UT-Austin

The Center for Information Assurance and Security (CIAS) has been founded at The University of Texas at Austin to address the nation's growing cybersecurity problems. Primary center objectives are conducting research that will lead to innovative cybersecurity solutions and addressing the national need to produce more trained professionals in the field.

The center will operate as a multi-disciplinary initiative involving business, government and academia. The university's CIAS team will include faculty, researchers and students from the Department of Computer Sciences, College of Engineering, McCombs School of Business and the Applied Research Laboratories. Future CIAS plans include work toward becoming a National Academic Center of Excellence in Information Assurance Education, participating in a multi-university cybersecurity exercise and competition, and increasing collaborations with business, government and academia.

Dr. Frederick R. Chang, who chairs the board of the Austin Technology Council, will serve as director of the CIAS. Chang previously served as president of technology strategy for SBC Communications.


SA City Council Selects Developer for $200 Million Convention Center Hotel

San Antonio's City Council has selected Austin-based Faulkner USA as the developer for a 1,000-room convention center hotel. The hotel, which is slated to open in 2008, will cost an estimated $200 million to build. The hotel will be the second-tallest structure in San Antonio.



WIN TEXAS GOVERNMENT BUSINESS! SPI has a dedicated Information Services Division that researches governmental entities and analyzes data for future and current business opportunities. Our team studies and reviews strategic plans, legislative appropriations requests, appropriations bills, and budgets to identify potential business projects. For a FREE TRIAL of SPI's Future Opportunity Analysis and Bid Monitoring services click here.


Government Job Opportunities in 25 Largest Counties

Here are some helpful links for those seeking employment with county governments: Bell, Bexar, Brazos, Brazoria, Cameron, Collin, Dallas, Denton, El Paso, Fort Bend, Galveston, Harris, Hidalgo, Jefferson, Johnson, Lubbock, McLennan, Montgomery, Nueces, Smith, Tarrant, Travis, Webb, Witchita (no web access), and Williamson.

Employment at State Universities

Here are some helpful links for those seeking employment at state universities: Angelo State University, Lamar University, Lamar State College – Port Arthur, Midwestern State University, Prairie View A&M University, Sam Houston State University, Steven F. Austin State University, Sul Ross State University, Tarleton State University, TAMU System, TAMU - College Station, TAMU - Corpus Christi, Texas Southern University, Texas State University - San Marcos, Texas Tech University, Texas Woman's University, UT System, UT-Arlington, UT-Austin, UT-Brownsville, UT-Dallas, UT-El Paso, UT-Pan American, UT-Permian Basin, UT-San Antonio, UT-Tyler


Legislative Staff Openings

To view a list of current job openings at the Texas House of Representatives, click here.

To find out about jobs at the Texas Senate, click here.


Event Links

19th Annual Texas Association of Fire Educators Instructor's Conference - 1/8/05 - 1/14/05

WSLCA Winter Conference 2005 - 01/09/05 - 01/13/05

Texas Career Education Conference - 1/19/05 - 1/21/05

Texas Municipal Utilities Association Annual Conference - 02/02/05 - 02/04/04

Texas Computer Education Association 25th Annual Convention & Exposition - 02/07/05 - 02/11/05

40th Annual Association of Mayors, Councilmembers and Commissioners Institute - 02/12/05 - 02/13/05

Texas Municipal League Legislative Briefing - 02/14/05

25th Annual Association of Texas Professional Educators State Conference - 3/31/05 - 4/2/05

Texas Library Association Annual Conference - 4/5/05 - 4/8/05

Texas Public Health Association's 80th Annual Education Conference - 04/24/05 - 04/26/05

2005 Excellence in Government Conference - 7/25/05 - 7/27/05

Past ABJ articles by Mary Scott Nabers

Texas' open records laws can offer wealth of information for contractors - 12/17/2004

Smaller agencies are hidden sources of contract dollars - 12/3/2004

Texas Government Insider Archives

Last Issue - 12/16/04

Volume 1 and Volume 2 Archives - 11/7/03 - 12/10/04


Resources

DIR's Security Alert Page

Legislative Lexicon

Legislative Information

Diagram of Legislative Process

Texas Legislative Sessions and Years

HUB Forms Library

State Contract Management Guide

State Procurement Manual

TBPC Facilities Master Plan

Who Represents Me? Texas Districts By Address

Diagram of Texas' Biennial Budget Cycle

Texas Fact Book 2004


Public Hearings/Meetings

Senate Criminal Justice Committee--9:00am, January 4, Houston Community College Conference and Training Center, 3100 Main, Houston

Alamo Regional Mobility Authority Board Meeting--12:00pm, January 12, 143 Billy Mitchell Blvd., Suite 6 (Greater Kelly Development Authority), San Antonio

Signing Up for the Texas Government Insider™

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40th Annual Association of Mayors, Councilmembers and Commissioners Institute

The 40th Annual Association of Mayors, Councilmembers and Commissioners Institute (AMCC) will take place February 12 and 13 at the Renaissance Hotel in Austin. The conference will include sessions such as: The Keys to a Successful Bond Election, Making Cents of the Budget and Budget Process and Building the Public's Trust: Responding to Ethical Challenges. For more information or to register, visit www.tml.org.

NEA's 23rd Annual Higher Education Conference

The National Education Association's 23rd Annual Higher Education Conference will be held March 4 - 6 in San Antonio. Participants will be able to explore the topic of diversity in academia from a variety of perspectives: diversity of the current student body and projections for the "echo-boomers," diversity in the workforce, diversity in what the work is, who provides it and how; and the impact of recent federal and state policy changes on the ability of higher education institutions to educate a diverse student body and employ a diverse workforce. For more information, click here.