Texas braces for Hurricane Rita
Federal, state, local agencies coordinate proactive measures

Federal, state and local government officials - coordinating one of the most complex and largest efforts in the state's history - have spent the past week planning for Hurricane Rita, which is expected to unleash a 13-hour barrage of hurricane-force winds starting late tonight.

As more than 1 million coastal residents make their way inland - principally on I-45 and U.S. 290 - officials have devoted much of their time to transit issues. The Texas Department of Transportation began yesterday reversing the flow of traffic on several major highways in and near Houston but drivers still face drives up to 26 hours. TxDOT and the military are now coordinating fuel tankers along the major evacuation routes, which are filling up cars that run out of gas. Texas' homeland security director, Steve McCraw, said he expects evacuees to be out of harm's way by later today.

"It's going to take a while. Be patient," Gov. Rick Perry said. "This evacuation is historic in its proportion."

Perry has asked President Bush for 10,000 troops to assist the 5,000 National Guardsmen that Texas has activated and the 1,000-plus Department of Public Safety officers on duty now. FEMA officials said there are 100 truckloads of water, ice, tarps, food and generators at Fort Sam Houston.

Waves of humanity continue to sputter into cities from San Antonio to Dallas. In Austin, more than 20 make-shift shelters - most in school gymnasiums - filled up early this morning, causing city officials to expand their plans to accommodate evacuees.

Federal, state, county and city officials on Wednesday began conferring at least three times a day by telephone to coordinate evacuation and security plans. Today, more than 30 state agencies, together with FEMA, the Red Cross and the Salvation Army, are monitoring Rita and preparing for her inevitable destruction from a bunker 40 feet underground at DPS' headquarters in Austin.

Sharp to head task force on school reform

Gov. Rick Perry has named former Texas comptroller John Sharp to head a blue-ribbon task force to study taxes to pay for public schools. The rest of the panel has not been named yet. Lawmakers struggled unsuccessfully - through three legislative sessions - to come up with new tax system that could pay for public education. The Texas Supreme Court is reviewing whether the current system, which relies on property taxes and shifts revenue between districts, is constitutional.

Dallas sets bond election for homeless shelter

On Nov. 8, Dallas residents will vote on whether to approve Proposition 14, which would authorize $23.8 million in bonds to fund the creation of a full-service homeless assistance facility. The proposal has divided residents, many of which are wary of the proposed site downtown.

Governor places three on Economic Development Corp.

Gov. Rick Perry this week appointed three Texans to the state's Economic Development Corporation. Robert Wingo (pictured) was designated the presiding officer. Wingo is an advertising and marketing guru from El Paso. Businessmen Paul Foster and Nicholas Serafy Jr. from El Paso and Brownsville, respectively, were also appointed.

Comal ISD puts bonds on the ballot

Voters in the Comal School District will go to the polls Dec. 13 to vote on two bond propositions totaling more than $189 million. If approved, the money would tide the district over for about five years, said Superintendent Marc Walker. With about 700 new students coming into the district each year, Trustee Frank Baker (pictured) said the bonds are absolutely necessary.

Prop. 1 will total $155.2 million, which would pay for two new elementary schools, a new middle school and renovations and upgrades to 14 other schools. It includes $8.2 million for technology and money for 75 new school buses, land purchases and district support facilities.

Prop. 2 would allow the district to borrow $34 million for two additional elementary schools projected to be needed in 2009.

College Station hunting for new transportation consultant

College Station will accept offers for transportation consulting services instead of renewing its current contract, council members decided earlier this week. The city has paid a Dallas-based consultant $240,000 annually, for the past four years, to help steer its transportation initiatives. The current consultant's duties include hosting an annual transportation summit and lobbying state legislators to fund transportation-related projects.

Austin's tab for Katrina about $3 million

Austin city officials said the city has spent about $3 million to accommodate Katrina evacuees - and that was only during a 17-day period. Only a few of the Katrina evacuees remained under the city's auspices this morning. Now city officials are forced to cope with Rita evacuees seeking sanctuary in the River City. Mayor Will Wynn (pictured) said he's confident much of the city's costs will be reimbursed by the federal government. Sens. Kay Bailey Hutchison and John Cornyn toured the Austin Convention Center - the main repository for evacuees - earlier this week.

Denton passes $357M budget

Denton City Council members unanimously approved on Tuesday a $357.5 million budget that includes a reduction of city jobs and a reduction of funding for social services. Despite that, City Manager Mike Conduff (pictured) said the budget reflects the goals and ideals of the council. Denton's 2005-06 budget, which takes effect Oct. 1, has 56 fewer city jobs, many of which were already unfilled.

Friendswood ISD eyes bonds

Friendswood school district trustees, near Houston, have called an $8.25 million bond election to be put before voters Dec. 13. About $5.5 million would be earmarked for various district-wide improvements, including a $1.34 million revamp of roofing and air systems at several schools. Another $1 million would go toward a new track and artificial playing field at Henry Winston Stadium, and $398,000 would be set aside for new food service equipment.

Rep. Miller: $750K coming to House District 59

State Rep. Sid Miller of Stephenville said that the Office of Rural Community Affairs (ORCA) will award his district more than $750,000 in grants. Evant, Hamilton and Hico will each receive $250,000 to address water and sewage needs. The grant gives Hamilton the ability to provide first-time sewer service to many of its residents.

$3M grant to put Katrina victims in San Antonio back to work

Alamo WorkSource officials in San Antonio have received more than $3 million in emergency federal aid to help find work for victims of Hurricane Katrina in San Antonio. San Antonio still has 2,351 Katrina evacuees housed at KellyUSA and Windsor Park Mall.

Alamo WorkSource officials say they will use the National Emergency Grant to provide job search assistance, temporary jobs to evacuees at shelters, vocational training skills that could be used to rebuild areas destroyed by Katrina and other work-related support services such as child care, transportation and clothing.

So far, Alamo WorkSource, which provides employment services to businesses and residents living in a 12-county region, has provided job assistance to 974 people displaced by Katrina. The $3 million grant came from the Texas Workforce Commission, which requested the grant from the U.S. Department of Labor. Worksource in Austin collected $1.3 million earlier this week through the same program and for the same purpose.

Midland council supports Lubbock's Bush library bid

The Midland City Council recently dedicated $10,000 out of its hotel and motel fund to support the costs of drafting the West Texas Coalition for the George W. Bush Library's proposal. The roughly $250,000 proposal outlines what a Lubbock-based Bush library would look like. Earlier, the Lubbock city council approved $50 million in public funding for a presidential library, contingent on Lubbock being selected.

Lens on State Government: Texas Court System
By Len Riley, Strategic Partnerships

Courts are very much in the news these days. At the federal level, the process is underway to select the 17th Chief Justice of the United States Supreme Court. At the state level, much of the last regular legislative session and most of the two subsequent special sessions were focused on education reform - a direct result of litigation dealing with the constitutionality of our current method and adequacy of funding education. Those cases (which were consolidated for the oral arguments) are before the Texas Supreme Court currently and a decision is expected in the coming days.

State court structures vary considerably throughout the country. The interested reader can find more information about the various state courts on their individual Web sites.

Article 5 of the Texas Constitution establishes the framework for the Texas judicial system and states that "The judicial power of this State shall be vested in one Supreme Court, in one Court of Criminal Appeals, in Courts of Appeals, in District Courts, in County Courts, in Commissioners Courts, in Courts of Justices of the Peace, and in such other courts as may be provided by law." Today's structure, while quite complex, can be described pictorially and the state Office of Court Administration publishes an excellent online brochure that provides more detail.

Click here to read the rest of the article.

Opportunities abound at Texas ports

By Mary Scott Nabers, CEO of Strategic Partnerships, Inc.

Texas' ports along the gulf are faced with two developments that promise to open up a slew of contracting opportunities for companies of all types.

First, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security recently announced that Texas ports are in line to receive a total of $142 million, which will be used specifically for security projects. Then, of course, there is Hurricane Rita. Once this mega-storm passes there will almost certainly be opportunities for the private sector to help with the clean-up.

Click here to read the rest of the article.

[Editors note: Mary Scott Nabers' government contracting columns run regularly in the Austin Business Journal, San Antonio Business Journal, Houston Business Journal and Dallas Business Journal]

Austin police nab $6M grant

The Austin Police Department has been awarded $6 million to develop interoperable communications networks that enable emergency personnel to communicate directly during a crisis. The money came via the U.S. Department of Justice's Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS). Austin was the only Texas city allocated money. In all, COPS funneled more than $92 million to 26 law enforcement agencies across the country. A list of recipients can be found online.

Joshua seeks city manager

The City of Joshua, south of Fort Worth, is seeking a new city manager. The city council there terminated its contract with Earl Keaton earlier this week.

Montgomery County to increase spending

Montgomery County commissioners have adopted a $135.8 million budget for FY06 - $14.8 million more than the current budget. The increase will pay for the opening of a new 400-bed unit at the county jail, the addition of 94 county employees and raises for existing workers.

Humble OKs budget

City leaders in Humble have passed a $36 million municipal budget for a fiscal year that starts Oct. 1. The budget includes $18.2 million in operating expenses, including salaries, and $4.1 million in debt service for water and sewer bonds.

Upshur County creates road dept.

Upshur Council commissioners on Wednesday approved a new $15 million budget, which includes $2.3 million to kick start the county's new road and bridge department. The new department, to be led by Roads Administrator Bubba Pendarvis, will take much of the road-related duties out of the hands of county commissioners.

Colleyville adopts $26.8M budget

Colleyville's City Council passed a $26.8 million budget that adds police and firefighters and allocates $650,000 for street repairs. Another $371,863 in merit-based raises for city employees was included in the budget.

Procurement articles online

Click here to view recent articles on government procurement authored by Mary Scott Nabers, president and CEO of Strategic Partnerships Inc., and published in the Austin Business Journal and Houston Business Journal.

[Editor's note: Mary Scott Nabers' procurement columns run regularly in the Austin Business Journal, Houston Business Journal, San Antonio Business Journal and soon the Dallas Business Journal]

Event Links

2005 National Summit on Your City’s Families - 9/25/05-9/28/05

International City/County Management Association's 91st Annual Conference - 9/25/05-9/28/05

NCTCOG/ULI Development Excellence Education Day - 9/29/05

Homeland Security Conference: Mexico/Texas Border - 10/6/05

West Texas Regional Gang Investigators' Course - 10/18/05-10/20/05

Texas Municipal League Annual Conference - 10/26/05-10/28/05

OAG's 2005 Open Government Conference - 12/12/05-12/14/05

Texas Government Insider Archives

Volume 1, Volume 2 and Volume 3 Archives - 11/7/03 - 9/23/05

Resources

State Budget Resources

HUB Forms Library

State Contract Management Guide

State Procurement Manual

Who Represents Me? Texas Districts By Address

Diagram of Texas' Biennial Budget Cycle

Texas Fact Book

Strategic Partnerships, Inc. (SPI) is a research and consulting firm offering business development and public affairs services. Founded in Texas in 1994 by former government executives and public sector experts, SPI has developed a national reputation as the premier marketing partner dedicated to helping companies secure contracts in the $1.5 trillion state and local government marketplace. To learn more about SPI services click here or contact our sales department at 512-531-3900.

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Austin, Texas 78730

Governmental ethics conference

UT's LBJ School of Public Affairs will host a conference in October titled "Ethics in Government: Earning the Public Trust." The event will take place in Austin Oct. 6-7. Details can be found online.

EWTG 19th Annual Professional Development Conference

The 19th Annual Executive Women in Texas Government (EWTG) Professional Development Conference will be held on November 21 at the Renaissance Austin Hotel. EWTG is a nonpartisan nonprofit organization that develops and encourages leadership among women in Texas government and higher education. The theme of this year's conference is: Developing Leaders from Within. Click here for details.