TexasTowelie
TexasTowelie's JournalBig shift looms for local governments, school boards
SANTA FE – One school board election attracted no voters, not even the candidates themselves.
Other elections have had just a few dozen ballots cast.
But a proposal awaiting Gov. Susana Martinez’s signature – or veto – would reshape the political landscape for school boards, conservancy districts, cities and other nonpartisan local governments in New Mexico.
Their elections for candidates and questions would be consolidated onto one ballot and head before voters at the same time – in November of odd-numbered years.
Read more: https://www.abqjournal.com/974447/proposal-would-boost-voter-turnout-for-school-conservancy-votes.html
Gov. says furloughs could start next month
Gov. Susana Martinez says her administration is preparing to order state employees to take unpaid days off as soon as next month to help save money as New Mexico faces a budget crisis.
And she plans to call the Legislature back into special session soon, she said, to work not only on next year’s budget but to fix this year’s.
It would be the third time lawmakers and the governor have made adjustments to this year’s budget, with the goal of sweeping unused cash into the general fund to pay state bills.
Without more budget changes, “furloughs will start next month,” Martinez, a Republican, told reporters after a speech in Albuquerque. “Parks and museums will start closing because there is no cash on hand to continue all of these systems operating through the end of June.”
Read more: https://www.abqjournal.com/976945/martinez-state-preparing-to-issue-employee-furloughs.html
Efforts coalesce to avoid cavern collapse in New Mexico
SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — A state official says New Mexico is only a few steps away from being able to backfill a giant underground cavern before it collapses underneath a community of mobile homes and critical transportation routes in southern New Mexico.
Energy, Minerals and Natural Resources Secretary Ken McQueen said Monday that his agency will be prepared as soon as July to help commission engineering plans to shore up a cavity left by the extraction of a salt formation.
The formation has been washed away to use as brine by the oil and gas industry for drilling operations.
Funding for the remediation plans still requires the governor's signature and local matching dollars.
Read more: http://www.argus-press.com/news/state_news/article_800fc3ae-1368-58d5-8088-bf2eec130ae2.html
Eminent domain for Trump's border wall is fine, says Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton
WASHINGTON — Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, long a warrior for private property rights, said Monday that he nevertheless has no problem with the Trump administration's plans to use eminent domain for a "big, beautiful" border wall.
The Republican acknowledged legitimate concerns from residents along the Texas-Mexico border, adding that "these people need to be paid fairly." But he pointed out that eminent domain is used properly "all the time" in Texas for road construction and other projects.
The key distinction, Paxton said, is that the practice must serve an actual public purpose.
"In my mind, this is a very similar purpose," he said in an interview with The Dallas Morning News. "It's a public purpose providing safety to people not only along the border, but to the entire nation."
Read more: http://www.dallasnews.com/news/texas-politics/2017/03/27/texas-attorney-general-backs-trumps-plan-use-eminent-domain-border-wall
Abby Lee Miller quits 'Dance Moms' before fraud sentencing
"Dance Moms" star Abby Lee Miller says she has quit the Lifetime reality series ahead of her scheduled May sentencing on federal bankruptcy fraud charges.
Miller posted on Instagram on Sunday that she will no longer take part in the show. She says that she has asked for creative credit for her ideas for the show for six years, but hasn't received it. She says she has been "manipulated, disrespected and used."
Representatives for A&E Networks, which includes Lifetime, didn't immediately respond to a request for comment Tuesday.
Miller pleaded guilty in June to hiding about $775,000 from a bankruptcy court after filing for Chapter 11. She's set to be sentenced in Pittsburgh on May 8.
http://www.mysanantonio.com/entertainment/television/article/Abby-Lee-Miller-quits-Dance-Moms-before-fraud-11032835.php-
Massachusetts securities regulators fine San Antonio broker-dealer
Massachusetts securities regulators fined San Antonio-based Investment Professionals Inc. $100,000 for allegedly using aggressive sales practices that led to the sale of unsuitable investment products to elderly investors.
The broker-dealer and investment advisers also was ordered by the Massachusetts Securities Division to offer restitution to four clients and to hire an independent compliance consultant to review the firm’s policies governing supervision of its financial consultants who are registered in Massachusetts.
The consultant also must review the firm’s policies addressing the sale of securities to customers over the age of 65 and its compliance with rules on noncash compensation and gifts.
“IPI is pleased to have resolved the complaint brought forth by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts Securities in November,” the firm said in an emailed statement. “IPI continues to remain focused on serving our communities and customers.” It declined further comment.
Read more: http://www.mysanantonio.com/business/local/article/Massachusetts-securities-regulators-fine-San-11030736.php
3 people killed as fire burns troubled Oakland building
Three people were killed and a fourth was missing after an early morning fire Monday ripped through a large transitional housing building in West Oakland where fire inspectors had found 11 glaring safety violations just three days earlier.
As friends and neighbors awaited identifications of the dead, public records revealed the city had responded to numerous complaints about the building at 2551 San Pablo Ave. The records again raised questions about city property inspections in the wake of December’s catastrophic Ghost Ship fire, which killed 36 people.
Following a Feb. 25 referral for a fire safety inspection at the building by the Fire Department, the Oakland Fire Prevention Bureau said it could not get inside.
It took a second request March 18 before inspectors finally gained access on Friday. Once inside, inspectors said they found the 11 flagrant violations, including units lacking smoke detectors and fire extinguishers, a malfunctioning sprinkler system and a series of extension cords.
Read more: http://www.chron.com/bayarea/article/Fire-burning-out-of-control-at-West-Oakland-11030109.php
Senate gives initial approval to voter ID law changes
AUSTIN — The Texas Senate gave initial approval to a bill that would enact court-ordered changes to the state's voter ID law.
The 2011 law requires Texans to show one of seven approved forms of identification to vote. Its proponents say it is meant to protect against voter fraud, but a federal appeals court ruled in 2015 that it discriminated against Latinos and other minorities. Appeals judges sent the matter back to a lower court to find ways to address its discriminatory effects.
Sen. Joan Huffman, R-Houston, said Senate Bill 5 used the U.S. 5th Circuit Court of Appeals ruling as a roadmap for changing the voter ID law. She said the proposal approved Monday was fair and balanced. The vote was 21-10, along party lines, with amendments offered by Democrats struck down. The bill still needs final approval from the Senate, which will probably happen Tuesday.
"Voting is one of our most sacred rights, and we are striving to keep the integrity of the vote as strong as we can in Texas and still be as cognizant as we can of the rights of citizens," she said. "I think we've found that balance."
Read more: http://www.dallasnews.com/news/texas-legislature/2017/03/27/senate-gives-initial-approval-voter-law-changes
Robert Van Wisse to plead guilty Tuesday in 1983 killing of UT student
AUSTIN -- Robert Van Wisse, who is accused of killing a University of Texas student more than 30 years ago, is expected to plead guilty Tuesday in Travis County criminal court.
Van Wisse, 52, will appear at 9 a.m. in Judge Karen Sage’s district court. The American-Statesman reported this month that Van Wisse, who authorities say fled to Mexico 30 years ago, had reached a plea agreement.
Particulars of the agreement are being held confidential by Travis County District Attorney Margaret Moore and Van Wisse’s defense attorney, Perry Minton.
In January, Van Wisse surrendered to authorities at the Mexico border near Laredo. A month earlier he had been placed on the FBI’s most wanted list.
Read more: http://www.statesman.com/news/crime--law/robert-van-wisse-plead-guilty-tuesday-1983-killing-student/wbnMapSYCS3iTfKhIAloFL/
Lawsuit: City of Taylor discriminated against black business owner
TAYLOR — An African-American man is suing the city of Taylor in federal court, saying he wasn’t allowed to dump waste from his septic pumping business as often at a city wastewater treatment plant as the white owners of similar companies.
Jacky Jones, the owner of JJ Services, was discriminated against because he is black, said his lawyer, Roger Borgelt.
“There is no other rational explanation other than that,” Borgelt said. “I find it shocking during the 21st century in a major urban area we have this blatant racial discrimination.”
The city attorney for Taylor, Ted Hejl, said he was reviewing the allegations in the lawsuit filed Thursday and could not comment about it. Jones is asking for equal access to the facility and $241,740 in damages to pay for lost business.
Read more: http://www.mystatesman.com/news/local/lawsuit-city-taylor-discriminated-against-black-business-owner/v1OwLwNc8CwX90EIsKWXmI/
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Gender: MaleHometown: South Texas. most of my life I lived in Austin and Dallas
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