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Legislative Committee Assignments Announced

Lieutenant Governor David Dewhurst and Speaker of the House Tom Craddick have announced their selections for chairs, vice chairs and members of the Senate and House of Representatives committees and sub-committees.

Dewhurst's selections for committee chairs and vice-chairs include:

  • Business and Commerce: Troy Fraser, Chair and Kip Averitt, Vice-Chair
  • Education: Florence Shapiro, Chair and Royce West, Vice-Chair
  • Finance: Steve Ogden, Chair and Judith Zaffirini, Vice-Chair
  • Health and Human Services: Jane Nelson, Chair and Kyle Janek, Vice-Chair
  • Natural Resources: Kenneth Armbrister, Chair and Mike Jackson, Vice-Chair
  • State Affairs: Robert Duncan, Chair and Tommy Williams, Vice-Chair
  • Transportation and Homeland Security: Todd Staples, Chair and Gonzalo Barrientos, Vice-Chair

For a complete list of Senate committee assignments, click here.

Craddick's selections for committee chairs and vice-chairs include:

  • Appropriations: Jim Pitts, Chair and Vilma Luna, Vice-Chair
  • Business and Industry: Helen Giddings, Chair and Gary Elkins, Vice-Chair
  • County Affairs: Ray Allen, Chair and Wayne Smith, Vice-Chair
  • Economic Development: Allan Ritter, Chair and Byron Cook, Vice-Chair
  • Public Education: Kent Grusendorf, Chair and Rene Oliveira, Vice-Chair
  • State Affairs: David Swinford, Chair and Sid Miller, Vice-Chair
  • Transportation: Mike Krusee, Chair and Larry Phillips, Vice-Chair

In addition, Craddick has named Rep. Sylvester Turner to his second term as speaker pro tempore for the 79th Legislative Session and appointed Vilma Luna, Fred Hill, Jim Pitts and Jim Keffer to serve on the Legislative Budget Board.

For a complete list of House committee assignments, click here.


David Daniel

David Daniel is Only Finalist For UT-Dallas Presidency

Iowa State University chemistry professor Thomas Barton has dropped out of the running for the University of Texas at Dallas presidency, leaving only David Daniel, engineering dean at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, as a finalist for the job. Barton dropped out for personal reasons. Two finalists dropped out in November leaving Barton as the only finalist. UT System regents made Daniel a finalist for the position in December after Dr. James Baldwin, associate provost for health affairs at Dartmouth College, and Gary Schuster, chemistry professor and science dean at the Georgia Institute of Technology, dropped out. Regents said they liked Barton but wanted to be able to have at least one other choice for the job. Regents will interview Daniel on Feb. 10 and then decide whether to offer him the job, add more finalists or restart the search.


Bill Would Help Communities Keep Military Bases

A bill introduced this week would allow communities to use local sales tax funds for improvements around military bases or to redevelop areas if installations are closed.

The Pentagon plans to close about 25 percent of its military installations and infrastructure nationwide to free up funding for new weapons systems. Texas has 18 military installations and some officials are concerned the state could lose some of its bases during the Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC) process.


Contracting Opportunities Abound at Houston Port

On Monday, the Port of Houston Authority (PHA) Commission authorized the PHA to advertise and receive competitive sealed proposals (CSPs) for the following projects:

Bayport Phase 1A facilities:

  • Amenities building (estimated cost range: $800,000 to $1 million)
  • Elevated water storage tank (estimated cost range: $1.4 million to $1.61 million)
  • Marine terminal gate (estimated cost range: $18 million to $20 million)

Relocation and reconstruction of Port Road (estimated cost range: $8 million to $9.9 million)

Two projects at the Barbours Cut Container Terminal:

  • Maintenance dredging at berthing areas (estimated cost range: $750,000 to $950,000)
  • Pavement replacement (estimated cost range: $800,000 to $1.1 million)

The Port of Houston Authority owns and operates the public facilities located along the Port of Houston, the 25-mile long complex of diversified public and private facilities designed for handling general cargo, containers, grain and other dry bulk materials, project and heavy lift cargo, and other types of cargo.


MCC Board OKs $73.45 Million Bond Package

The McLennan Community College (MCC) board of trustees voted unanimously Monday to hold a countywide election March 29 on a $73.45 million bond package for campus construction projects.

If approved, the money would finance projects including:

  • a $24.73 million, two-story, 120,000-square-foot science building;
  • a $12.97 million, 80,000-square-foot building for general classroom space and to house the University Center, which offers students the chance to earn a four-year degree; and
  • a $8.35 million, 40,000-square-foot building which would house an emergency services training center.

The proposed construction project would take about three years to complete, according to MCC officials.


Transportation Commission Approves Creation of Advisory Committee for Trans-Texas Corridor

The Texas Transportation Commission voted this week to create an advisory committee for the Trans-Texas Corridor, the state's plan to build up to 4,000 miles of high-speed toll roads, rail lines and utility lines during the next half-century. The committee's first duty will be to oversee the design and construction of a toll road running roughly parallel to Interstate 35 from North Texas to San Antonio. Commission members said they are inviting toll road opponents to join the advisory committee. The number of committee members and frequency of meetings will be decided by March. Members could be appointed as early as April.


Lens on the Legislature: Monitoring Specific Legislation

This week's focus is on monitoring the individual items that go through the legislative process. The principal ones are:

  • House Bills (HB's) and Senate Bills (SB's)
  • Resolutions (HR's and SR's)
  • Concurrent Resolutions (HCR's and SCR's)
  • Joint Resolutions (HJR's and SJR's)

The definitions for these documents can be found in the Legislative Glossary that is on the Legislature's Web site.

The Legislative Council provides staff support for the legislature such as attorneys who help legislators draft bills and information technology (IT) professionals who develop and maintain legislative systems. The Council's IT staff has programmed a number of links on the Legislature's Web site to enable the public to follow legislation through the process. Here are some that are frequently useful:

A future Lens on the Legislature will discuss the legislative process and some of the specific terms you will see when using the above links, e.g. enrolled version, engrossed version.


Texas Awarded $64.4 Million to Help Homeless

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) has awarded Texas communities almost $64.4 million to help the homeless. The grants, announced this week, are part of the federal agency's Continuum of Care, Emergency Care and Shelter Plus Care programs and are aimed at moving homeless clients to self-sufficiency.

In this round of funding, Texas received almost $64.4 million, HUD announced. Houston received $18.7 million, followed by Dallas, $9.2 million; Fort Worth, $6.9 million; Austin, $4.3 million; San Antonio, $3.8 million and Galveston, $1.3 million.


Public Officials May Begin Open Records Training

Under a bill filed this week by Sen. Jeff Wentworth and Rep. Todd Baxter, most elected and appointed public officials would be required to take an approved training course in the open meetings and public records laws - then take a refresher course every two years.


A&M Regents Approve Land For SA Campus

Texas A&M University regents on Thursday authorized negotiations for a gift of land in Bexar County for a A&M campus in San Antonio. The Corporation for Education and Economic Development, a San Antonio-based nonprofit corporation, is willing to donate 550 acres to the Texas A&M University System for the campus, which is scheduled to open in the fall of 2009. The campus, which will be located in south San Antonio, will require legislative approval of $80 million in tuition revenue bonds. The bonds are needed to pay for construction of campus facilities, system officials said.


Texas Ranks 14th For Economic Development From Nanotech

Texas ranks 14th among U.S. states for economic development from nanotechnology, according to a report released this week by New York-based Lux Research Inc., a nanotech and advisory firm. The report ranked Massachusetts first, followed by California, Colorado and Virginia. To rank the states, Lux Research considered such factors as state nanotech spending, state nanotech initiatives, the number of nanotech companies active in each state and in-state nanotech patents.

U.S. states spent more than $400 million on nanotechnology research, operations and business incubation in 2004 while the federal government spent more than $1 billion.


Harris County Hospital District Awarded $1.1 Million

Harris County Hospital District has been awarded $1.1 million in federal funding for 2005 to support continued expansion and renovation of Ben Taub General Hospital's Emergency Center and to improve its TeleHealth Program. Of the funds, $860,000 will help fund Phase II of Ben Taub's emergency center renovations, including expanding the center's laboratory, adding technology to speed patient diagnosis and making the most of space to reduce treatment and wait times. The remaining money will be used for improvements to the hospital district's TeleHealth Program, which gives primary care physicians at community health centers remote access, via telecommunications technology, to medical specialists and diagnostic testing.


ASID Trustees Create Community Bond Oversight Committee

Austin Independent School District (AISD) Trustees have adopted the charge and appointed a 22-member Citizens Bond Oversight Committee (CBOC) to monitor the $519.5 million Bond Program that Austin voters approved in September 2004. The first 11 construction, addition, and renovation projects, collectively carrying an estimated price tag of over $100 million, were approved by Trustees on January 10. For information on the bond program and CBOC, click here.

News From Strategic Partnerships, Inc.

Focus on SPI Consultants

Roy Hogan

Roy Hogan affiliated with SPI after his retirement from the Texas Department of Health (TDH) where he served as Deputy Commissioner of Administration. Roy has also held the position of Director of Administrative Services for the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department and served in the Governor's Budget and Planning Office. Roy's experience as a senior level executive in three major state agencies puts him in an exceptionally elite category of government experts in Texas. To read Roy's full bio, click here.

Outstanding Women in Texas Government Awards

Strategic Partnerships, Inc. is pleased to be one of the supporters of the Outstanding Women in Texas Government Awards luncheon ceremony on March 18 with the State Agency Council. The guest speaker is Texas Supreme Court Justice Harriet O'Neill. The Outstanding Women in Texas Government Awards recognize women who have helped shape Texas by contributing their talents and skills to state service.

The luncheon will be held from 11:00am to 1:00pm at the Doubletree Hotel located at 6505 Interstate 35 North. Complimentary parking is provided at the hotel. The cost to attend the luncheon is $25 per person. For more information, contact Lesley Guthrie at 512-475-2615 or lguthrie@governor.state.tx.us.


Recent Reports

The Legislative Budget Board (LBB) released two new reports this week:


Event Links

Texas Municipal Utilities Association Annual Conference - 02/03/05 - 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

5th Annual Internet Security Forum for Texas State Government - 4/13/05

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

TASB Summer Leadership Institute - 06/23/05 - 06/24/05

SPI’s Governmental Affairs experts provide a broad range of services, including:

Procurement Consulting - Early development of upcoming opportunities, development of strategies and competitive advantages for approaching the public sector with products and services and introductions to key public officials, decision-makers, potential teaming partners and preferred HUB vendors

Legislative Representation - Development of legislative and political strategies, advocacy for legislative initiatives, drafting bills and amendments, tracking bills and issues through legislative channels, monitoring hearings, and providing training on presenting public testimony

Agency Representation - Assisting regulated firms to resolve issues and to navigate government processes, participate in rulemaking and improve communications

Legislative Monitoring - Customized bill tracking and analysis

Please contact SPI's Crystal Kuhs at ckuhs@spartnerships.com for more details.

Past ABJ articles by Mary Scott Nabers

Government agencies often look outside for training help - 1/14/2005

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 - 1/21/05

Volume 1, Volume 2 and Volume 3 Archives - 11/7/03 - 1/14/05


Resources

TxDOT's 2006 Project Selection Process

DIR's Security Alert Page

Legislative Lexicon

Budget Resources

Diagram of Legislative Process

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

House Appropriations Committee--8:00am, January 31 and February 1, Room E1.030, Capitol and 6:30pm, February 1, 2113 West 11th, Austin

House Transportation Committee--8:00am, February 1, Room E2.014, Capitol

Texas Legislative Council--3:00pm, February 1, Room E2.012, Capitol

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Women's Legislative Days

On February 7 and 8, Women's Legislative Days, a seminar designed to educate and encourage women to become informed and actively involved in the legislative process, will take place at the UT Thompson Conference Center located at Dean Keeton (26th Street) and Red River. For more information, click here.

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.