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LIV Newsletter: Oct. 21, 2019 ►Does LCRA need Bastrop’s groundwater?  Does LCRA “Need” Bastrop’s groundwater? No, they don’t. No, they don’t. In three days of hearings last week (and still underway today and tomorrow, Oct. 21-22), LCRA has brought it on their naked selves. By refusing to answer the question of why they need a mega-permit for 25,000 acre-feet of groundwater every year from Bastrop, they have opened themselves up to the accusation they too have bought in to making central Texas one big rotting real estate play. How is that?  Watch the KXAN report and read our full report here . ►Speaking of ratepayer abuse, did you see this article today? “ Town Relying on SAWS Stunned by Rate Increase ” Elmendorf’s Mayor Michael Gonzales is quoted in the San Antonio Express News stating, “We feel your pain and frustration,” adding his own water bill last month amounted to $305. Bottom line is SAWS is a PUBLIC utility but under increased scrutiny for appearing to act in full concert with private interests by raiding ratepayers and a critically important central Texas aquifer. Isn’t it high time for YOUR action? After all, the buck stops in your pocket, unless you do nothing. Go to LIV’s Vista Ridge Page and start calling your officials all the way to the Governor’s office. It’s a simple ask — audit, oversight, step up and do the right thing because the buck and vote stops with YOU. ►So, this is news?! Early voting started today, Monday, October 21 through Friday, November 1st. Election Day is Nov. 5th. Your ballot will have 10 statewide constitutional amendments to vote on. Your ballot may also have local measures, including bonds and candidates in some local elections. Visit this page by the League of Women Voters of Austin for info on Statewide Amendments and central Texas propositions and local elections. The Houston League of Women Voters ’ voter guide should be online tomorrow , October 22, with lots more on local elections, including a VERY hot contest for Mayor. Do an internet search for more in your community. ►VERY IMPORTANT EVENTS! click here to view details of events listed below • Redistricting Hearings, Houston (Oct. 22 & 23) • • Independent/Third Party Lawsuit Hearing, Austin (October 31) • • Corpus Christi Redistricting (Nov. 4) • Saving and sharing this Mark Cuban Tweet for Prosperity, Posterity and Rodney Reed. The Governor of Texas holds the power to stay this execution. We agree, Mark.  He needs to get it right. ► Want to talk with other independents about any of the above? Feel free to post a comment below . It’s open, but be nice. We do moderate for political trolls who need not apply. ► On that note, you opinionated non-trolls are cordially invited to LIV a little by becoming a dues paying member . Or to simply donate , including becoming a monthly sustainer. Thank y’all! #RodneyReed #MarkCuban #GovernorofTexas #ThirdPartylawsuit #RedistrictingHearings

Does LCRA Need” Bastrop’s groundwater? No, they don’t. “Does LCRA need Bastrop groundwater? They already have all that water in the Highland Lakes.” That was my Llano friend’s response when she saw this news on KXAN-TV that LCRA was in a legal proceeding pressing their demand on Bastrop landowners for a 25,000 acre-feet of groundwater (a “mega-permit”) from the aquifer underlying the Boy Scout Property – the Griffith League Ranch at FM 1441 and Highway 21. I sat through hours of testimony on Thursday and Friday. The testimony by Andy Wier , Board Member of the Simsboro Aquifer Water Defense Fund (SAWDF) was riveting.   Wier’s testimony was remarkable, even to seasoned attorneys representing private marketers with whom landowners are fighting in other forums involving other mega-permit disputes, including Vista Ridge (‘the San Antone Hose’). One of them, Paul Terrill, who represents the “dark side” of Vista Ridge said of Wier’s testimony: “It was the most informed citizen testimony I have ever heard.” The hearing will continue on Monday and Tuesday (October 21 – 22) in Austin, from 8:30 am and even through a portion of the evening at 300 W. 15th Street at the State Office of Administrative hearings. Many of our readers have been following the “water wars” east of Austin for years. LCRA has joined a chorus of public and private interests who, in our opinion, have fully heeled to the Big Real Estate Lobby’s obsession for building out a metroplex in central Texas. Therefore, it’s a good bet that those pushing for mega-permits are HOPING TO CREATE a need in a highly speculative game that is putting a sustainable water future at stake. Watch the KXAN report, come to the hearing if you can. But, here’s your real charge. Call your state legislators (House and Senate) and ask them to get involved in ending these unnecessary and potentially destructive water wars. They can tell LCRA, a public agency and river authority, to back off on joining the chorus with privateering groundwater marketers looking to make a quick big buck off our most precious resource. Find your legislators here . Call us or send us their responses or give them our number 512.213.4511. We’re happy to follow up or answer any questions you have before or after you make those calls. For you deep water policy divers, please visit these posts by the dynamic duo non-profits, Simsboro Aquier Water Defense Fund “ The Emperor Has No Clothes ” and Environmental Stewardship in depth update here . They form the core of the landowner/scientific team that has taken a piece of LCRA’s hide in these proceedings. Fun to watch! The most imminent water war threat in Texas is Vista Ridge, aka the San Antone Hose, slated to start pumping from a barely recharging aquifer (largely the Simsboro formation of the Carrizo-Wilcox Aquifer underlying Burleson, Milam, Lee and Bastrop counties) in April 2020. Visit our Vista Ridge page here . Posted by Linda Curtis. #Bastropgroundwater #KXANReport #LCRA #waterwars

LIV Newsletter, October 8, 2019 A new LIV member recently asked us this very important question. Why are we so focused on water? We’re not. We’re much more focused on gold. The gold rush is on in Texas for our most valuable resource — groundwater — as big real estate has turned central Texas into one big real estate play. So on that cheerful note, here’s the good news. San Antonio Water System’s Vista Ridge behemoth got a little comeuppance on KSAT-TV , thanks to our growing cross-partisan team in the Alamo City. We might be cross, but we’re not partisan. Enjoy the KSAT report! (Note: the 52% rate hikes are already in place…anything goes after 2020.) The Vista Ridge privateering water marketers, who seem to think they own the Post Oak Savannah Groundwater Conservation District in Burleson and Milam counties , might be wrong about that. Read our report and help us get ready for the next round. Date not set yet. The wonderful water watchdogs; scientists, attorneys, residents and landowners at Simsboro Aquifer Water Defense and Environmental Stewardship , have an urgently important hearing on ANOTHER mega-permit demand — this one, by the LCRA — for 25,000 acre-feet of groundwater in the Lost Pines District — Bastrop and Lee counties. It’s at the Bastrop Convention Center starting on Oct. 15 and lasting up to 6 days. If you can get there, do it please. Read this SAWDF release and this ES post . Though LIV does not endorse candidates, it’s important for you to know there is someone running for Houston Mayor who actually is talking about the real deal for Houston — flood control and political reform. Read Bill King’s blog here . Did any of y’all see Austin Mayor Steve Adler in the news recently talking about how those pesky petitioners need stiffer petition rules? What has the Mayor been smoking these days, other than his competition? Y’all Austinites better get your LIV game on. We’re waiting for you. Redistricting hearings are on this week in Worth and Dallas . Look for LIV’s own Jeff Harper or call him at 512.999.2701. Details here . We hope to see you in San Antonio at the next SAWS Rate Advisory Committee meeting on October 16, 6 pm at SAWS. Reply for more information or call us. Did you see this crude oil pipeliner decided not to traverse the Edwards Aquifer recharge zone? Good deal! We just got word about this EPA hearing on changing some methane emission standards to be held in Dallas on October 17th . It’s the only one in the USA! If you can be there, we have some comments from LIV we’d like to share. Donate or just pay some membership dues , if ya haven’t already, will ya? #KSATTV #LIV

It’s time to pay the Pied Piper at SAWS who brought you 52% rate hikes (and anything goes after 2020) via Vista Ridge, an unnecessarily massive groundwater transfer that threatens more than just rates. Before you do, watch this KSAT-TV report on October 1. Enjoy! According to legend, the Pied Piper, lured rats away. But when it came time to pay him, citizens refused to pay. The Piper then used his instrument to lure the children away. The similarities of Vista Ridge to the legend stops there because as far as we know, the Pied Piper never lied to his customers. It’s now time for SAWS ratepayers to pay for the project heavily promoted by the SAWS Pied Pipers – a legion of attorneys, public relations people and lobbyists. Starting in April 2020, landowners will pay with a massive transfer of water out from underneath them into the Vista Ridge pipeline. Regardless, SAWS can no longer hide that Vista Ridge is most expensive water in Texas. They also can’t hide that they cannot use nearly one-third of the water (15K acre-feet/year) for the life of the contract – 30 years. In February, 2018, in fact, SAWS told the San Antonio City Council they were trying to sell off those 15K acre feet, to no avail. Why in the Heck does Vista Ridge Want More Water? James Murphy, Esq., attorney for landowner, Sidney Zgabay, surrounded by Vista Ridge’s CEO Ross Cummings (L), attorney Paul Terrill (R), and Vista Ridge hydrologist James Bene of R. W. Harden & Associates on far right. Last July, the private partners for Vista Ridge filed for additional water, approximately 5,000 acre-feet of water per year for 30 years. The permit just came before the Post Oak Savannah Groundwater Conservation District Board in Milam County on October 3. Board Members of Post Oak and local landowners in attendance wanted to kno w why Vista Ridge is asking for more water when San Antonio cannot use it. Lee County Judge Paul Fischer was particularly insistent on this point. Thank you, Judge! Vista Ridge attorney, Paul Terrill, danced about and around answering this question. Michele Gangnes, attorney and landowner from the Simsboro Aquifer Water Defense Fund, pointed out that Post Oak’s own rules require an answer to this question and others. Read her testimony here . Though Judith McGeary of Farm and Ranch Freedom Alliance and Milam County farmer, was unable to attend the hearing, she, as usual, did her homework. McGeary, an attorney with substantial knowledge on water issues, covered some of important concerns about the water leases that underlie Vista Ridge, suggesting a thorough review by the District. Read it here . The good news is the hearing was “continued” for another date, which gives landowner, Sidney Zgabay (R), and his attorney time to prepare a contest to this permit. The Zgabay family has owned their property for over 100 years and feels it will be harmed by Vista Ridge pumping. Sidney plans to pass that land on to his heirs, unspoiled. On the left with Sidney, is Walter Hurd, a neighbor who celebrated his 77th birthday attending the hearing. “What We Do Making…San Antonio Waterful” …the Rate Advisory Committee That phrase in quotes is prominently displayed on the SAWS website homepage. Perhaps this is the simple answer the question. SAWS wants to claim San Antonio is “waterful” (a made up word) in order to keep wooing people to the area. But, just how this benefits ratepayers now is something we hope the SAWS Rate Advisory Committee members will be asking. At the first meeting of the RAC, held on September 24, there were a number of questions about Vista Ridge. The RAC’s next meeting is on Wednesday, October 16 at 6 pm at the SAWS. We hope to see some of your smiling…or not…faces there. Here’s the RAC’s webpage at SAWS. Ratepayers and Landowners Unite! Call your officials. The Vista Ridge Resolution calls for a thorough review and audit of Vista Ridge and ordinance for proper oversight at SAWS. Now, all you reading this have to do is make the calls to your officials. What you need is here on the Vista Ridge page. As Ben Franklin once said, “We must all hang together, or assuredly we shall all hang separately.” Let’s Hang Together! Again, all you need is right here on our Vista Ridge page . And, never hesitate to call us at 512.213.4511 or send us a note at info@independentleaguetx.org . Thanks to Andy Wier for the great photos. #BillKing #Redistricting #PostOakSavannahGroundwaterConservationDistrict #SteveAdler #VistaRidge #LCRA #piedpiper

To us at LIV, Whining IS Allowed for PARTICIPANTS! Is the obsession to build massive unaffordable and unlivable metroplexes in Texas becoming intolerable to you? This is uniting rural and urban Texans who are catching the drift: ever rising taxes and fees, homelessness, concentrated poverty, increased public safety risks, and harm to critically important land and water resources. Fact:   San Antonio just won another dubious award — the highest poverty rate of the nation’s top 25 cities, surpassing Detroit! Fact: The only thing transparent about the Vista Ridge (San Antone Hose) obsessed SAWS is what’s driving this destructive project — big real estate’s new developments between Austin and San Antonio. We pay, they make hay. Fact:   Austin continues in its quest to densify so quickly, even more displacement of current residents is on the way. Here’s what you can actually DO about this, other than whine! Austinites, sign the Community Not Commodity Petition here . * San Antonians , call the Mayor and City Council at 210-207-7040 to urge they pass the Vista Ridge Resolution.  We have also have thousands of fliers you can distribute. Details here , reply or call us. “Simsboro counties” — Burleson, Milam, Lee and Bastrop come to this critically important hearing on Thursday, October 3,  5:30 pm, 310 East Avenue C, Milano, TX 76556! Tell your friends, democracy is not a spectator sport. In our book, whining IS allowed for all PARTICIPANTS . PS If you get this in time, some of us will be at tomorrow’s SAWS Board Meeting, 9 am. Join us or watch it on the stream at: https://apps.saws.org/video/live.cfm #waterhearing #IndependentVoters #SAWS #VistaRidge #transparency #displacement

The Carrizo-Wilcox aquifer is under siege but working together we can protect it and leave a legacy of water for all Texans. You heard about the climate crisis, right? Lots of people have and lots of people talk about it and do nothing or even do real harm, while they’re talking about it. Here’s what we need from you — straight up — this week. All Texans, please CALL your legislators — county and state. San Antonians, do the same, but start with Mayor Ron Nirenberg and your Council members. The officials can get real by supporting the push for independent audit of the destructive Vista Ridge water pipeline project and getting a rein on the rogue public water utility — SAWS. ►Use our catchy “Vista Ridge, Son of Sam” flier to know who to call and what to say . Question:  What happens when SAWS Comes for Water They Don’t Need? Answer:  They Demand More! That’s right, Vista Ridge is coming back to the Post Oak Savannah Groundwater Conservation District on October 3 for more water they cannot use. Why? Hmm…let’s see. Do you think it might have anything to do with the aggressive growth-metroplex agenda of big real estate and their pals in public office and public utilities? Rural and urban Texans are catching the drift — greater indebtedness, rising taxes and fees, homelessness, concentrated poverty and potential harm to our homes and to critically important land and water resources. — Details on Oct. 3 here . ► Check out this week’s article, “ Conservative Calls Vista Ridge Manmade Climate Crisis “ Question: Is the elimination of the Electoral College a hot idea…or are there other ways to reform the system to actually expand democracy? ►Check out this week’s brilliant article from Mark Miller, “Electing Electors “ Have you taken independent voter survey? How many of our 15 points can you get and is that enough to entice you to pay some dues to the LIV ?  Click on the sticker and take the survey, already! Do you appreciate our work? Become a dues paying member of LIV. That’s how we do what we do — you make it happen. Thanks to the many of you who continue to work with us every day, year in year out. We appreciate you so much! #electoralcollege #SAWS #VistaRidge

When a Conservative Calls Vista Ridge Manmade Climate Crisis maybe some will listen but it won’t be SAWS or their private partners. Burleson, Milam, Lee and Bastrop countians, come to Post Oak Hearing October 3rd and be heard. It’s your water. Question:  What happens SAWS Comes for Water They Don’t Need? Friday’s #GlobalClimateStrike witnessed saw millions take to the streets all around the world demanding action on the world’s climate crisis. Many Texas rallied as well, including a large contingent at our State Capitol in Austin. Sadly, demands for global action ignored a man-made crisis in Central Texas that affects us all.  We’re talking about the Vista Ridge mega-groundwater conveyance pipeline, a private, for-profit venture that threatens to undermine an underground aquifer just 50 miles east of the Capitol. The Carrizo-Wilcox aquifer is under siege but working together we can protect it and leave a legacy of water for all Texans. Watch the video from Simsboro Aquifer Water Defense Fund . The reality is that there once was a major coalition that fought Vista Ridge, but the going has been tough and many of the tough are resigned to fighting their own battles. The good news is a better organized coalition – the Vista Ridge Resolution Coalition (VRRC) – has targeted the source of the problem and identified the solution. The VRCC is urging the San Antonio City Council to authorize an independent management, legal and financial audit of the project, while calling for a city ordinance to rein in the San Antonio Water System (SAWS), a rogue public agency ultimately responsible for this project. The VRCC sent this release , this cover letter and 10-page back up document to media and officials throughout the region. Just what they are going to do with it is a big question. Answer:  SAWS & Private Corporate Partners Demand More! San Antonio doesn’t need all the water they’re committed to purchase from the corporations behind this project, yet the private partners behind Vista Ridge just filed a permit for additional water! Robert Puente, the CEO of SAWS told the City Council on February 14, 2018 that he would sell 15K of Vista Ridge’s 50K acre-feet commitment so that ratepayers wouldn’t be paying for the water they neither needed nor could use. Mr. Puente knew about this problem for nearly two years, yet his efforts to sell water to cities along the 142-mile pipeline have come to nothing.  Mr. Puente’s attempt to sell far less expensive Edwards Aquifer water to developers outside the city failed when Governor Abbott vetoed House Bill 1806. This legislation was developed by the SAWS lobby team without approval from the San Antonio City Council, and would’ve undermined the Edwards Aquifer Habitat Conservation Plan by permitting SAWS to serve customers beyond its prescribed zones in Kendall County. Senator Lois Kolkhorst stood up in the Senate and publicly cried foul: “SAWS is now looking for new customers! And so, basically my district is supplying water to SAWS so they can supply water to other parts. And I don’t think it’s fair! I don’t think that’s what we signed up for!” (For more on the HB 1806 veto visit our news article here .) James Lee Murphy, Esq ., serves on the Advisory Board of the LIV and is a top Texas water lawyer. Today he said, “As conservative Republican I am appalled.  Vista Ridge is both an economic and environmental disaster, and no matter what your political stripes, this is a true climate catastrophe. Both left and right should be opposed to this reckless, wasteful project. We should demand that our media and local officials address this problem. Even environmentalists have their heads down – even those in the area that will be flooded with development fueled by water taken from an aquifer that does not recharge in human terms.” (Murphy, in this LIV article, also blew the whistle on Puente being “ way overpaid .”) Linda Curtis , LIV’s volunteer coordinator said, “If the San Antonio City Council and elected officials across the region step up and take these public-private partners on – the ones who left the rest of us out — this will benefit everybody; SAWS ratepayers, landowners, environmentalists and we don’t have to argue about whose fault this is.” Just get on the phone, people, and call your officials and demand an audit of Vista Ridge and a rein on SAWS and ask your friendly media folks to do what they do best – sound the alarm already! #SanAntonioCityCouncil #CarrizoWilcoxAquifer #LoisKolkhorst #GregAbbott #SimsboroAquiferWaterDefenseFund #SAWS #JamesMurphy #ClimateCrisisLindaCurtis #climatechange

Once again, we thank Mark Miller for this wonderful article, “Electing Electors.” Mark is a retired professor of Petroleum Engineering. But you likely remember him when the top major Texas newspapers endorsed him when he ran for Railroad Commission in 2016 — on the Libertarian Party ticket. He was the most qualified, by far! Mark also sits on the LIV Advisory Committee mainly focusing his efforts on election reform. As we enter our far-too-lengthy presidential election season, the political class begins its inevitable ruminations on the Electoral College – an institution that for many seems archaic and grossly undemocratic. Their concerns generally stem from three features: Unlike other elected US public offices, the Electoral College provides for an indirect means of selecting our President. The Electoral College violates the one-person-one-vote political equality principal by giving disproportionate representation to small state voters. The problem of disproportionate representation is magnified by the fact that all but two states (Maine and Nebraska) have winner-take-all provisions for choosing their electors. The first issue is largely moot, since electors very seldomly (though occasionally ) violate state-mandated statutes that require them to vote for the candidate from the political party to which they are pledged. The other two concerns, however, are clearly ones that deserve to be part of our national political conversations. It is important to recognize that the US is organized as a federal republic . Governing is divided between the individual states and the federal government. Over the course of our history, we have seen increased nationalization, effectively moving more and more responsibilities away from the states and to the federal government. This is in spite of the fact that the US Constitution was designed to limit the scope and duties of the federal government in favor of the states. The structure of both the Electoral College and the Senate were intended to foster federalism, in part by making certain that the federal government would not be dominated by larger states. Many, including me, believe that the trend of increased nationalization of US politics is one that should be resisted. Doing away with the Electoral College and/or altering the structure of the US Senate (and not replacing them with other mechanisms to preserve federalism) would undoubtedly exacerbate the nationalization trend we have already experienced. The structure of the US Senate and the Electoral College can also be thought of as ways to combat “tyranny of the majority”. Constitutional governments such as ours are intended to allow for collective democratic governance while still making certain that minority rights are protected. Our current state of political polarization seems to be aligning itself along rural vs. urban lines. Taking away some of the fail-safes in the system that protect rural concerns sounds like a recipe for increased, not decreased, political rancor. I am sympathetic, though, to the concerns of those who feel that their vote (and thus their voice) is diminished by the Electoral College. The dominance of two-party politics in the US makes this concern more significant. Presidential campaigns largely ignore states that vote reliably for one party (such as Texas in the recent past). Voters in those states justifiably feel ignored and even disenfranchised. Reduced voter turnout is a likely consequence, particularly in states for which elections for statewide offices are held in off-presidential years. There are many who believe that we should simply do away with the Electoral College. This would, of course, require a constitutional amendment – with its very high hurdles of 2/3 of the Senate and House or 2/3 of the states to propose an amendment, followed by ratification by at least 3/4 of the state legislatures. It’s hard to imagine that there is sufficient groundswell for this to occur. There is, however, an alternative move afoot called the National Popular Vote (NPV) Interstate Compact that would seek to essentially disenfranchise the Electoral College without eliminating it. The NPV Compact would require signatory states to award all of their electoral votes to whichever presidential candidate wins the national popular vote, ignoring how individual states voted. The compact would not be triggered until legislation was enacted in enough states to guarantee the necessary electoral votes to win a Presidential election. Thus far, 15 states and the District of Columbia (representing 196 out of the 270 necessary electoral votes) have passed enabling legislation. A bill was introduced in the 2019 Texas legislative session ( HCR 149 ). But it failed to even get a hearing in committee. Unsurprisingly, the states that have thus far signed onto the NPV Compact voted Democrat in the last presidential election. The Democrats are clearly stinging from losing two recent Presidential elections (2000 and 2016) in the Electoral College while winning the national popular vote (by pluralities, not majorities). We might be able to see this as a principled move, if it weren’t for the fact that the states (and District of Columbia) that have thus-far signed on to the compact all voted for the Democratic candidate in 2016. Though proponents of the initiative claim the NPV Compact would pass constitutional muster, there is some doubt that it would do so given Article II Section 10 Clause 3 of the Constitution: No State shall, without the Consent of Congress, lay any Duty of Tonnage, keep Troops, or Ships of War in time of Peace, enter into any Agreement or Compact with another State, or with a foreign Power, or engage in War, unless actually invaded, or in such imminent Danger as will not admit of delay. It would be imprudent to comment on how the US Supreme Court might rule on this issue. However, it would seem to that the NPV Compact, at the very least, violates the spirit of the Constitution, if not its letter. But even if this initiative fails, there are other things that might be considered to reform how we select our presidential electors. At the time of the 1790 census, each member of the US House of Representatives represented around 60,000 people. Only two states had a single representative (Rhode Island and Delaware). The largest state (Virginia) had 10. Over the years, Congress gradually increased the size of the House as population and the number of states grew. A law passed in 1911 capped the size at 435 at a time when there were 48 states (Arizona and New Mexico were admitted in 1912) and the US had a population of around 100 million people. Each representative represented a little over 200,000 people. Today the House represents 50 states with a population of nearly 330 million people. Each representative now answers to around 750,000 people. Seven states (Alaska, Delaware, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Vermont, and Wyoming) have only a single representative. Our largest state (California) has 53. The protection afforded to smaller states has clearly increased. Some have suggested that one solution to mitigate the over-representation problem is to adopt the Wyoming Rule . This proposal would increase the size of the House of Representatives so that the standard representative-to-population ratio would be that of the smallest state (now Wyoming). Based on the 2000 census, this would have required 569 House seats instead of the current 435. Increasing the size of the House of Representatives would increase the clout of large states in both the House of Representatives and the Electoral College ( e.g ., California would gain 13 representatives and electors, Texas 9, New York 7). Another possibility would be for large states to split into smaller ones. California voters recently attempted to use the state’s initiative process to force a vote to divide the state into three parts ( Proposition 9 ). Though the California Supreme Court removed this initiative from the 2018 ballot, the issue is not dead. California voters may yet be given a chance to weigh in on this proposal. It’s hard to imagine that elected officials in large states such as California would welcome a move toward power decentralization. But voters might just realize that such a move would provide for more responsive state governments as well as increasing their clout in both the US Senate and the Electoral College. Finally, we should consider perhaps the most egregious problem with the Electoral College – the winner-take-all provisions enacted by all but two states (Maine and Nebraska). Voters favoring the out-of-favor party in one-party states ( e.g ., California and Texas) most certainly feel disenfranchised when it comes to presidential politics. Not only are these states ignored during the campaigns (except the primaries), but many see little point in showing up on election day knowing how their state’s entire slate of electors is essentially pre-ordained. Maine and Nebraska deal with this problem by selecting an elector from each of their Congressional districts based on the votes in each district. The remaining two electors are selected based on the total statewide vote. In 2016, Maine had three Democratic electors and one Republican elector. Nebraska had five Republican electors. Not surprisingly, Maine’s most rural district voted Republican even though overall the state voted Democratic. This type of system should appeal to many voters. Imagine the electoral vibrancy (and voter turnout), especially in swing districts, where we could anticipate much local campaigning for both the district’s Representative and for President. The hurdle to this change would be the reluctance of either dominant political party to relinquish the benefits that accrue from winner-take-all. Voters and legislatures in swing states would perhaps be those most interested in considering this type of change. To either eliminate the Electoral College or bring the NPV Compact to enactment would require large national efforts with very high hurdles. Perhaps those interested in reforming our presidential election system might wish to consider engaging in state-by-state efforts that could prove to be more achievable. Mark Miller Dripping Springs, TX #electoralcollege #voterturnout #constitutionalgovernments #disenfranchisedvoters #MarkMiller

What do you do when a critical resource for our present and future generations is endangered? Do you ignore it, sit on your hands, or even help the perpetrators? This is the essence of what far too many officials have done, so far, about Vista Ridge…aka the San Antone Hose.  Vista Ridge, scheduled for pumping in April 2020, is the most imminent threat to the water supply of Texas yet. It is hosing SAWS ratepayers with unnecessary 52% rate hikes, and taking the rights of the landowners who are supposed to own the groundwater underlying them in Burleson, Milam, Lee and Bastrop counties. The 50,000 acre-feet Vista Ridge mega-permit is a threat to the aquifers in Burleson, Milam, Lee and Bastrop counties. (See our copiously detailed 10-page document released to media and local and state officials last week . ) Believe it or not, these guys are coming back to the overly permissive Post Oak Savannah Groundwater Conservation District on October 3 for even more water for Vista Ridge! Just as they are relentless, so must we be.  Please join us to prepare for the October 3rd hearing and for other opportunities to fight Vista Ridge, at a local residents’ and landowner’ meeting. Join us this Saturday, September 21, from 3 to 5 pm Caldwell Civic Center, 103 West Hwy. 21, Caldwell, 77836 Can’t make it, this Saturday? Please make plans to come to the October 3rd hearing before the POSGCD Board on this permit amendment.  If you have a registered well in Burleson or Milam, you may be able to be recognized as an “affected person” and seek a contested case hearing. NOTE:  If you want to contest this permit demand, you must file papers to contest this permit by no later than SEPTEMBER 26TH. CALL US FOR DETAILS AT 512-213-4511 or send a message to Simsboro Aquifer Water Defense Fund at: info@simsborowaterdefensefund.org October 3 Hearing:  THURSDAY, October 3, 2019, 5:30PM. Post Oak-Savannah Groundwater Conservation District Offices, 310 East Avenue C, Milano, Texas 76556 We also recommend you read the cover letter about this issue we sent to area officials. We know some are very sympathetic and want to help. Urge them to reach other state officials, including the Governor. And you do the same. Find your state officials here and call the Governor’s hotline at 512.463.2000. Urge them to call for a full audit of the Vista Ridge Project and to rein in SAWS! Thank you for our future generations! Hoping to see you on this coming Saturday, September 21 and on October 3. Got questions? Reply to this message or give us a regular lil’ ol’ phone call at 512.213.4511. P.S. Have you taken our Independent Voter Survey yet? Go to our home page and take it, already, por favor! #PostOakSavannahGroundwaterConservationDistrict #VistaRidge

LIV has some breaking news for your today on a big water coalition move on Vista Ridge — starting in San Antonio today! Can a bunch of officials along this 142 mile, $3.4 billion water pipeline, keep their heads in the sand? Not if we all move together to demand a full independent review of Vista Ridge and for a rein on SAWS — San Antonio’s wayward public water utility. If you live in or near San Antonio, join us today at 10 am at the City Council if you can make it. Read and share our news release, ask your local organizations to endorse this effort and reach your local and state officials, including the Governor!: For Immediate Release! Why Pass the Vista Ridge Resolution and Why Now? Live in Burleson, Milam, Lee or Bastrop counties or nearby? Join us at this event, Impacts and Risks of Vista Ridge , a week from this Saturday, September 21, 3 to 5 pm in Caldwell. Reply to this message to reserve a free seat or call us. Details here . Next week, we’ll have a juicy report for you about the first Redistricting Hearing held in Austin on Tuesday. Voters came together, but will the legislature put down their redistricting weapons? If you live in or near San Antonio, join us at today’s (Thursday, Sept. 12) San Antonio Redistricting hearing. Details here . Do you think the sticker below is funny becuse it’s so true? Then, you might just be an independent Texan. Click on the sticker to do our Independent Voter Survey. And become a member of LIV today, already, won’t you?! #GovernorAbbott #SAWS #VistaRidge

LIV a little. Come see us at these water and redistricting events in Bastrop, Caldwell, Austin, San Antonio, Ft. Worth, Dallas and more real soon! Visit our EVENTS PAGE HERE — with more info below. Join us at one of these urgently important events! Bastrop, THIS COMING Thurs., Sept. 5, 7 pm TOPIC:  The Siege on the Simsboro Update Bluebonnet Electric Coop Community Room, 155 Electric Avenue, Bastrop, TX 78602 If you care about protection of our most precious resource, show up! Sponsored by Simsboro Aquifer Water Defense Fund (SAWDF). More here  •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• Caldwell (Burleson County), Sat., Sept. 21, 3 to 5 pm TOPIC:  The Impacts and Risks of Vista Ridge. Caldwell Civic Center, 103 West Hwy. 21, Caldwell, 77836 If you live in Milam, Burleson, Lee and Bastrop Counties, this meeting is for you. More here . Sponsored by LIV and SAWDF More here Note!   Seating is limited — reserve a seat — it’s free!  info@independentleaguetx.org •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• Join LIV at upcoming Redistricting Hearings held by the Texas House Redistricting Committee. We support independent citizens redistricting commissions whose members are chosen by lottery. Visit our Political Reform section for more and watch for our testimony coming soon. Austin Hearing, Tues., Sept. 10, 1:30 pm more here San Antonio Hearing, Thurs., Sept. 12, 4:00 pm more here Worth Hearing, Wed., Oct. 9, 4:00 pm more here Dallas Hearing, Thurs., Oct. 11, 4 pm more here If you received a bad link last week for the Independent Voter Survey, try again. And, please accept our apologies. <==Click on the sticker to do the independent Voter Survey! LIV a little or a lot. Dues range from just $10 to $1000 for the year. Visit our Membership page here . Just want to donate some dough for small “d” democracy? Donate here . Wanna volunteer? Fill this out or call us at 512.213.4511. Did you miss LIV’s last News Items? They’re always listed in chronological order in our News Section here . Itching to help? Call us, reply, text, smoke signal, donate…whatever you got, we’ll take it! #gerrymandering #independentcitizensredistricting #independentvotersurvey #Redistricting

Independent Texan, it’s redundant! That’s right especially with 40% of Americans calling themselves independents Did you notice the 2020 election is already underway? Do you agree that the war between the two parties has small “d” democracy in the crosshairs, and is this unacceptable to you? Do you believe the education, development and mobilization of non-aligned independent voters (a 40% plurality of America) could be key to carving solutions that most people can support? TAKE THE INDEPENDENT VOTER SURVEY! Just like Pedro and Regina did before they offered their lovely video clips on our home page here . ►►► We also offer to you this News! SAWS CEO, Robert Puente is WAY Overpaid . Anyone want to guess why Puente, who leads San Antonio’s public water utility, is pulling down $600K per year (includes regular $100K yearly bonsuses) while Austin’s water CEO makes $205K, Houston’s makes $180K and Dallas’ $185K and receive no bonuses? Check out what top Texas water attorney, James Murphy, had to say about it . Are you ready yet to join the only membership association that is educating, developing and mobilizing non-aligned independent voters right here in the great state of Texas? That’s us right here at LIV . Join us ! Dues start at as little as $10 per year. You can also donate to us any old time here . Don’t forget! Do the survey and send your friends to our home page to do the survey, por favor! And, don’t forget that LIV gave you that so true slogan — Independent Texans, it’s redundant! #RobertPuente #SAWS #JamesMurphy #independentvotersurvey #SanAntonioMayorRonNIrenberg