Yesterday was the last day to file bills (other than local) to be considered in the 2017 Texas Legislative Session.
On the water front there’s been a flood (pardon the pun) of bad bills from…you guessed it, from water BULLies on rural Texas and urban ratepayers. Rep. Lyle Larson (R-San Antonio) who now chairs the House Natural Resources Committee, waited until late yesterday to file his omnibus water bill (HB 31). No doubt it will be comparable to the omnibus water bill (SB 1392) filed by Sen. Charles Perry (R-Lubbock), chair of the Senate Agriculture, Water and Rural Affairs Committee.
There were some VERY good ones too from both urban and rural legislators. Here’s a real doozy of a surprise:
House Bill (HB) 3996, filed by Rep. John Cyrier (R-Lockhart) also last minute, calls for Sunset Review of San Antonio Water System (SAWS)! Citizens across the region all know SAWS for its water bullying ways — including, of course, the water boondoggle of the century Vista Ridge aka the “San Antone Hose”.
Here’s what you can do to take the bull by the horns:
►Join us this Wednesday, March 15, at 7 pm at Bastrop City Hall for the Lost Pines Groundwater Conservation District Meeting to learn more about the bills.
►Register now for Our Water, Our Land, Our Elections Lobby Day on Friday, March 24th at the Capitol.
►Attend the Texas Populism Conference: Building the Independent Rural-Urban Alliance on March 25th at McKinney Roughs Nature Trail in Cedar Creek.
Make sure you’ve watched the 17-minute in-depth video, “I Oppose the San Antone Hose”
and share it with your rural and urban friends. Tell your friends it’s time to unite at these events!
The session ends on Memorial Day, May 29th. A whole lot can happen in between now and then.
We especially need more volunteers now. Call us or reply to lend a hand.
PS We will be testifying on Monday for HB 25 — ending straight ticket voting in Texas — and against a bad little petition bill, HB 907. Contact us for details.
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