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We’re Not Gonna Take It

On Friday, the Senate passed a Congressional redistricting plan that disenfranchises minority voters. On that same day, the Governor vetoed a bill that would have helped assure a woman is paid as much as her male counterpart for doing the same job.

And today, the Senate will take up some very bad bills blocking women’s right to choice and their access to health services.

So in between, over the weekend, I tried to find a break from a few pretty tough days at your Texas legislature.

I went to a couple of parades.

One was the annual Juneteenth parade through Central and East Austin. I rode in the Black Austin Democrats truck with Reps. Donna Howard and Eddie Rodriguez.

It was a ton of fun. And no matter what Rep. Howard says on her Facebook page, I never came close to hitting her with a Kirk Watson frisbee.

Juneteenth Parade

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Facts about women’s health bills before the Senate

Some basic things to know about the women’s health bills (Senate Bills 5, 13, 18, and 24) now before the Senate:

 

– They jeopardize the health of Texas women by creating obstacles to safe, legal and accessible abortion services, putting these services out of reach for women in communities across the state.

 

– According to the American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, Senate Bills 5 and 24 bills would shut down 37 of the 42 clinics in Texas where women can be assured of receiving the health services they are constitutionally entitled to.

 

– Senate Bills 5 and 13 would impose a 20-week ban on abortions that federal courts have recognized as unconstitutional.

 

– As a group, these bills ignore repeated recommendations of the American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists – medical experts who actually understand the implications of the proposals. That group opposes “legislative proposals that are not based on sound science or that attempt to prescribe how physicians should care for their individual patients.”

 

– They also ignore an appeal by the Texas Medical Association, representing more than 47,000 member physicians and medical students, that the legislature not insert itself in the relationship between patients and their physicians.

Texas Women Deserve Better

Texas Senator Kirk Watson issued the following statement Friday on the Governor’s veto of House Bill 950, the Texas Lilly Ledbetter Act, which would have protected Texas women from wage discrimination and helped ensure that they would receive equal pay for equal work under state law, as well as other legislation affecting Texas women:

Today, one Senate committee is probably going to vote out one or more bills that seek a back-door elimination of women’s ability to make decisions about their own health and their own bodies.

Next week, people in control of the Texas Senate will most likely use a loophole in the rules, one that’s unique to this special session, to shove bills through a chamber that rejected them over and over again during the regular session.

And we now know that the Governor has vetoed a bill with what should have been an utterly uncontroversial legal premise: that women deserve as much pay as men when they do the same work as men, and they have the right to pursue that pay under state law when they’ve been discriminated against.

These aren’t isolated issues. These decisions connect with each other. They create a net that is specifically designed to ensnare Texas women. They make it harder for women both to receive the pay that men get, and to make the sorts of personal decisions about their health and their bodies that men are entitled to.

And why is this net being created? For politics. To win primaries. To appeal to a tiny segment of this state’s voters, no matter the effects on millions of Texas women.

At some point, people need to be transparent. They need to be honest. People need to admit what they’re doing and whom it’s affecting.

These are political decisions that are part of a political war, and women are – at best – the collateral damage in that war.

People are building their political campaigns over the rights of Texas women. It’s shameful.

“They don’t want to say how they feel”

During the last week of the legislative session, a kindergartener named John-Henry came by the Capitol for a visit.

(Yes, this is a true story. No, it doesn’t end with John-Henry fixing school finance or convincing the Governor to expand Medicaid. Please set your expectations accordingly.)

John-Henry got a look at many of the always-beautiful, occasionally functional features of this building – the Rotunda, the Senate and House chambers, etc. Part of his visit was to my office (located in Room E1.606 in the Capitol’s underground exurbs north of the dome; be sure to swing by if you find yourself tunneling to Round Rock).

I guess he had a pretty good time, because he sent a very nice letter to my office a couple of weeks ago. It included a drawing of one of the Capitol’s less-obvious attractions: one of the voting panels on the representatives’ desks in the House Chamber.

And the caption, apparently dictated by the artist, is, well, classic:

“This is a picture of the desks where the Congresspeople sit. They have these buttons for voting ‘yes,’ ‘no,’ and ‘they don’t want to say how they feel.’ ”

For the uninitiated, the third button actually registers a legislator as “present-not-voting.” If that seems technical and legalistic, it’s only because “I don’t want to say how I feel” is a little too accurate.
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Legal Basis for New Congressional PlanC245


I. Backdrop for offering new congressional plan

The extreme limitations that the Governor placed on his call for this special session demonstrate the intention—shared by him and others piloting this redistricting process—to do nothing more than ratify the interim congressional plan that the federal court in San Antonio adopted for use in the 2012 elections. Indeed, the call technically prevents the legislature from considering anything but the maps that were used in the 2012 elections. Fortunately, the Senate Parliamentarian has ruled that this attempted limitation will not stand. Permanently enshrining this interim plan into state law gives it a much loftier status than the San Antonio court itself gave it.

The San Antonio court’s interim plan was adopted in February 2012. By then, primary elections in the state had been repeatedly postponed, and the preclearance case in Washington, D.C. district court was well underway.

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Wrapping Up

It’s almost over.

Not the session, of course – after all, who wants to stop cramming legislation down Texas’ throat while we’re all having so much fun?

No, what’s almost over is Cooper Watson’s 13-year time in Austin’s public schools. In August, he’ll head to Waco to study the math and science he loves at Baylor.

So this week is graduation week. Sunday was Austin High’s Baccalaureate Service for Cooper and his classmates. Wednesday is the ceremony for Cooper and the graduates of the Academy for Global Studies, a great program that Theresa McCorquodale’s been running at Austin High for the past few years.

And on Thursday, he walks across the stage at the Erwin Center and rides off into the sunset. Luckily, that sunset’s only about an hour and a half up I-35.

Sen. Watson and Cooper Watson

 

Coop and the old (looking very old) man at the Austin High Baccalaureate.

Planned Parenthood supports Community Care Collaborative

Last November, Planned Parenthood of Greater Texas actively supported Proposition 1 and our efforts to remake health care in Travis County. This week, the board of Central Health (Travis County’s healthcare district) will take a huge step toward fulfilling the promise of Proposition 1 by approving the Community Care Collaborative master agreement. This agreement will be a key part of the foundation our community will need to achieve the vision of 10 Goals in 10 Years, with uniquely Austin clinics, better mental health services and more. Planned Parenthood emailed their supporters yesterday urging support of the master agreement, noting it will protect and enhance women’s health, while also filling in holes that were created by the Governor and others who put politics ahead of Texas women. Here’s what Planned Parenthood had to say:

This Wed.–Austin Supports Women’s Health

Last November, Travis County voters approved Prop. 1 to enable Central Health to expand health care services for uninsured Travis County residents through a new collaborative partnership between Central Health and Seton. This new partnership, the Community Care Collaborative, creates a source of local and federal funding for health care, drawing down $1.46 in federal funding for every dollar funded locally. Prop. 1 also approved creation of the UT Medical School for which planning is underway.

Central HealthPlanned Parenthood of Greater Texas endorsed Prop. 1 because of the opportunities it created to expand and improve health care in Travis County, and because of Central Health’s historical commitment to women’s family planning and health care services for local residents. Because of Planned Parenthood’s endorsement of Prop. 1, we will continue to track these initiatives, and advocate that women’s health services are protected and supported.

Today, we are pleased to note that Central Health’s on-going commitment to women’s health is in place. The newly posted Community Care Collaborative master agreement specifically addresses women’s health, and ensures that services such as birth control will continue to be available to uninsured and low-income Travis County residents through this partnership. The majority of Community Care Collaborative’s new Board will be comprised of Central Health Board members, and the master agreement ensures that Central Health has the unilateral right to approve, fund and deliver any women’s health care services allowable by law. This master agreement will be discussed and reviewed by the Central Health Board this Wednesday, June 5 at 5:30 p.m. If you would like to attend, the public hearing will be held at Central Health’s offices at 1111 E. Cesar Chavez in Austin.

Why this is important: The Texas Legislature and Governor Rick Perry made national and international news when they came after women’s health in 2011, slashing  2/3 of funding for birth control; basic  well woman exams, including cervical and breast cancer screenings; HIV tests; and tests and treatment for sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) statewide. As a result, more than 50 family planning centers in Texas have closed, including 14 Planned Parenthood health centers; and an estimated 130,000 Texas women lost access to health care services as a result. Here in Austin, El Buen Samaritano, People’s Community Clinic, and Planned Parenthood lost all funding for women’s health and family planning services in 2011—funds that had provided vital health screenings and exams to more than 7,000 uninsured and low-income Texans locally.

Central Health—and many of you—stepped in to provide funding and donations so that these services would still be accessible in Travis County, and at Planned Parenthood. As a result of local support, not one of the health clinics that closed statewide was in Travis County.

The Austin and Travis County community has always stood up for women’s health—especially when it is under political attack. With the master agreement approved by Central Health, Travis County will continue to support, and fund, these vital family planning services.

We will continue to keep you posted on any updates.

Thank you for your continued support,

Ken S. Lambrecht, President and CEO, and Sarah J. Wheat, VP for Community Affairs, on behalf of the Board and Staff at Planned Parenthood of Greater Texas

Senators Fraser & Watson Applaud TCEQ’s Call for Review of LCRA Plan

The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality’s (TCEQ) Executive Director notified the Lower Colorado River Authority (LCRA) today that the LCRA’s water management plan cannot be approved without further evaluation.

 

For two years, Senators Troy Fraser and Kirk Watson have been urging the LCRA to propose a water management plan requiring the LCRA to ensure that water will be available to firm users, even in times of drought. Having sent numerous letters to the LCRA, filed legislation and taken testimony to the TCEQ, the senators have continued to ask for updated water modeling and an improved plan that protects firm customers through times of drought.

 

“We could not be more pleased that the TCEQ has considered our request for review of the proposed plan and new modeling today,” said Senator Troy Fraser. “For the past two years, the LCRA has had emergency orders that would still be needed if the proposed plan was in place. Clearly this plan is flawed as it does not accomplish the purpose for which it is intended – protecting firm water customers during a repeat of the drought of record.”

 

“TCEQ’s call to further review this critical regional water plan just underscores the concerns that Central Texans have been airing for two years,” Senator Watson said. “In terms of its intensity, this is a historic drought. A water management plan that truly protects the citizens and economy of Central Texas must take these incredibly dry conditions into account. I appreciate that TCEQ will now do their own modeling and collect the data that will drive a sound and protective plan.”

 

Over the next 10 months, TCEQ plans to conduct data collection, analysis and modeling about conditions in the Lower Colorado River Basin and Central Texas. There also will be at least one stakeholder meeting. In the end, the agency hopes to have a plan that balances diverse interests across the basin and the region, and that reflects the impact of the recent severe drought conditions.

83rd Legislative Session Wrap Up

Thanks to the thousands of folks who joined me on tonight’s tele-townhall. It’s very important to me to hear from my friends and neighbors, and I welcome your questions. Let’s keep talking.

Session’s Over … Let’s Talk Tonight

Two years ago, I joked that “Sine Die,” the official phrase for the last day of the session, is really Latin for “see youtomorrow.”

That’s starting to not be funny.

Yes, for the second session in a row, we’re still going. It seems that some of those in control of the Capitol didn’t get quite enough partisan red meat, so they’re heading back to the buffet. The Special Session – and it is special – started last night, less than an hour after the regular session ended.

So far, the only item on the agenda is a needless round of redistricting (which sets state and congressional district lines), though other items have been requested and more are expected. One way or another, it’s likely to be very partisan and divisive. And there will be plenty of time to weep and gnash teeth over it.

But today, the day after the REAL end of the session, let’s at least take a second to think about what we’ve accomplished.

Actually, I’ve got a better idea: Let’s talk about it.

Get on the phone – TONIGHT!

Tonight, at 7 p.m., I’m holding a tele-town hall where we can talk about the what’s been going on at the Capitol for the last four-and-a-half months.

RSVP for the call right here.

There’s plenty of good to go over – we accomplished a lot this session (see below). There was some bad, too, especially when you think about the missed opportunities on health care coverage, transportation funding and, yes, even schools. And, naturally, there was some ugly – it is politics, after all.

Sure, Texas can still do better. The good news is that, over the past 140 days, Texas has done better; we close out this regular session leaving Texas in better shape than we found it.

Get on the phone tonight and we’ll talk about it.

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