The recent vote for Speaker of
the Texas House was surrounded with emotion - both before
and after the vote. Some have requested that I provide my
reasons for voting for Speaker Straus. One person wrote
requesting I do so before he started a movement to find my
replacements; my response was that I would do so when a
constituent requested I do so without a threat. But there
were some who disagreed with my vote with both a civil
attitude and real concerns. These people deserve a
thoughtful and calm response.
First, let me address those who
attempted to intimidate and use harsh attacks. These attacks
happened not just to me, but to all the 70+ Republican House
members who voted for Rep. Straus in Caucus and the 84 who
voted for him on the House floor. I personally know these
people, and I know that a vast majority are good honest
conservative people of faith who are doing their best to
serve the interest of Texas and the District that elected
them. Anyone who attempts to demonize us as a group needs to
re-examine their own motives and actions. We can only, and
should, pray that God will give them the peace and joy in
life that I possess.
The Speaker of the Texas House,
or leader of any other political body such as a
Commissioners Court or a City Council, must first and
foremost have mutual respect between themselves and the
majority of the Members. Speaker Straus has gained that over
the last two years. And that was reinforced by the way he
conducted himself over the last few months leading up to the
Speaker selection for the 82nd Legislature.
While the Speaker was being
accused of strong arm tactics, he was actually being calm
and respectful to House members. Meanwhile, some of those
opposing him attempted to use strong arm tactics and calling
- not only The Speaker, but those who support him - thugs,
liberals, RINOs, and other names. They accused the Speaker
of buying votes simply because his PAC legally raised money
with which he supported incumbent Republicans, and gave
large amounts to the PACS of other organizations that helped
fund others. Some even accused me of being bought, even
though I have never received any donations from the
Speaker's PAC. In fact, for the first time I can recall, I
asked a group of six to leave my office after their leader
said I was "bought".
It occurs to me that one can be
bought with more than money. If one agrees to do something
they do not believe they should do in exchange for a favor
or favorable treatment, they are probably best described as
bought. So, in my opinion, if I had responded by voting for
a Speaker Candidate simply because some people threatened to
oppose me in a future election, or even to keep them from
continuing to call me names and attempt to make my life
harder, I would have been bought. But obviously my vote, or
that of a majority of my colleagues was not for sale. I
belong to no one but my God and my wife.
Two years ago I supported
Speaker Tom Craddick to the end. I told him that if he was
nominated for a new term and he got only one vote it would
be mine. The Republican Party and the House Republicans owe
Rep. Craddick a great debt. Without his leadership we would
not now have a 101 seat Republican Majority in the Texas
House Delegation. Unfortunately and regardless of his great
accomplishments, Speaker Craddick lost that needed mutual
respect in his leadership role, by a majority of House
Members. He was first elected Speaker in 2003 when
Republicans first elected a Majority to the Texas House. But
even in 2003 Republicans were not united, and there was a
group called ABC's - Anyone but Craddick. Consequently, he
was elected by a majority made up of both Republicans and
Democrats. And during his tenure as Speaker he continued to
rely on the support of some Democrat members, and he
appointed some Democrats Committee Chairs. Just as the
Democrat Speaker before him appointed some Republican
Committee Chairs. This is a practice that has gone on for
many years. In fact my predecessor, former State
Representative Kenny Marchant and now Congressman Kenny
Marchant, was a chair under a Democratic Speaker. Some of
the "unique" sins that some claimed should disqualify
Speaker Straus was that he had appointed some Democratic
Chairs. People should know that what Speaker Straus has done
is not unique at all.
Because I was a Craddick
supporter, I was not a supporter of Speaker Straus in 2009.
At our first meeting after his election and before
committees were appointed, I told him so. I, like many other
Republicans, did not like the way he was elected with a
majority of Democrats and a minority of Republicans. I told
him that as well. Because of this conversation, I expected
retribution, but I did not care. But retribution never came.
He was respectful and to my surprise gave me good committee
assignments. Over the last two years a relationship has
grown based on straight forward but courteous talk and
mutual respect.
That respect was enhanced at the
end of the 81st session when the Democrats found a way to
use the rules to virtually close the session down to keep us
from voting on Voter I.D. They proposed a deal where they
would join Republicans to reach 100 votes, suspend the rules
and skip over Voter I.D., and then consider the rest of the
calendar that followed. A majority of the Republican Caucus
said no deal and the Speaker solidly stood with us.
While some disagree, I believe
the Speaker did a good job with a closely divided House - 76
Republicans and 74 Democrats. And, regardless of what some
more partisan persons might believe, the individual
Democratic House Members are entitled to the same respect
and participation as the Republican Members. This Republic
is a Representative Democracy.
Speaker Straus is a
conservative, but according to several groups that grade
conservatism based on a very limited number of votes they
choose, he is not as conservative as another Representative
that wanted to be Speaker. Obviously, if that were the sole
consideration, we would just mathematically choose the
Speaker by compiling these grades. Some people advocated
this idea. But since the Speaker generally does not vote
except in case of a tie, shouldn't the Speaker possess other
qualities in addition to just a voting record?
Like many others, I still miss
the leadership of Ronald Reagan. And while he was a
conservative that accomplished much, he knew that to be
successful one must govern from coalitions - and he did. He
also urged us Republicans to adopt the 11th commandment; Do
not speak evil about other Republicans. Ronald Reagan would
have understood and approved of Speaker Straus' leadership
style. He would not have endorsed the scorched earth
approach adopted by a few.
There were other considerations,
but it all boiled down to three issues for me:
- Which candidate has the
most respect for other members and can expect that
respect to be returned. A Speaker must have mutual
respect.
- Which candidate will
furnish the stability and opportunity for conservative
members to be successful in advancing an agenda of
smaller less intrusive government, private property
rights, right to bear arms issues, illegal immigration
reform, border security, and rights of the unborn. While
we may not have had the votes in the 81st legislative
session to guarantee success on these issues, I believe
we do in the 82nd. The Speaker views his role as
consistent with our opportunity to be successful.
- I submit serious
decisions such as this to my God through prayer. Some of
you may not understand, but I submitted this to the
Lord. When people came to me claiming to represent a
majority, I considered their position. But it soon
became clear that the people contacting me in a
threatening manner were a very small number of people,
not a majority of the people I was sent to Austin to
represent. And of one thing I am sure - While I may
always be a minority; the Lord and me always make a
majority.
For those of you who
understand, or want to understand this last point, I suggest
a reading of Paul's letter to the Church Colossae.
Colossians is a small but powerful book in the New
Testament. At least pay attention to Colossians 2:8, "Do not
let others spoil your faith and joy with their philosophies,
their wrong and shallow answers build on men's thoughts and
ideas, instead of what Christ has said."
May God bless you and continue to bless Texas.
Representative Jim Jackson's
Statement on the Speaker of the Texas House
Many people have asked my position on the Speaker of the
Texas House. Here's my position. Joe Straus is a fiscal
conservative. He has committed to leading the House in
covering the 2012-2013 budget shortfall - whether it be $15
or 25 billion - without new taxes. He has publicly stated he
is pro-life.
Some have criticized him for appointing Democratic committee
chairmen last session. But the fact is, Democratic Speakers
appointed Republican Chairs for years. My predecessor as
State Representative, now Congressman Kenny Marchant, was a
committee chair under the last Democratic Speaker. And
Republican Speaker Tom Craddick appointed Democratic chairs
as well. Speaker Straus presided over the most closely
divided House ever - 74 Democrats vs. 76 Republicans.
Some have suggested Speaker Straus used campaign
contributions to buy votes and has attempted to intimidate
members into supporting him. Speakers have always raised
money to support incumbent house members and I'm glad Joe
financially supported members like Linda Harper Brown, Joe
Driver, and Doc Anderson. I personally have never needed or
received financial support from any Speaker. And the Speaker
has never attempted to intimidate me. But, some who don’t
support the Speaker have made such attempts. They failed.
A few have not only distorted the Speaker's record but have
been mean spirited in the process. There have been charges
that he shouldn't be Speaker because of his Jewish religion.
As an American born-again Christian, I find such claims
un-Christian and un-American.
I don’t agree with everything the Speaker has done -
especially how he got elected 2 years ago. But I love my
wife Sue like no one else in the world and we don’t agree
100% of the time either. I doubt there's any two people who
think independently and always agree.
Most of the people who oppose the re-election of Speaker
Straus have never seen him and don’t know him. Some have
used gross distortions. I know Joe Straus and I know he's a
good and honorable man.
As a person my first responsibility is to God followed by my
family. As a State Representative my first responsibility is
to do what I believe is best for Texas followed by what I
believe is best for the district I represent. My support of
the re-election of Speaker Straus is consistent with those
responsibilities. And it’s the honorable thing to keep the
pledge I freely made.
May God continue to bless Texas; And I wish you a Merry
Christmas, Happy Holidays and Great New Year.
Respectfully,
Jim Jackson
News from Jim Jackson:
Speaker Strauss has asked the Judiciary and Civil
Jurisprudence Committee to assume joint responsibilities
with the Redistricting Committee in holding
redistricting hearings across the State. The official
hearing panels will include three members from each of
the two committees. Other members may also attend and
participate. While not a member of the Dallas panel, I
intend to participate.
I am pleased to be appointed as the Judiciary & Civil
Jurisprudence Subcommittee Chair for the Tarrant County
Subcommittee Panel hearing in Arlington and also as a
member of subcommittees holding hearings in Richardson,
Lubbock and South Texas. The State Redistricting process
will be a major focus for the legislature when it meets
next year during its 82nd Session and I am honored to
have the opportunity to participate in this important
task.
The population of Texas exceeds 24 million and is second
in population only to California, which has more that 36
million people. According to the Census Bureau, 10 of
the 25 fastest-growing U.S. counties are in Texas:
Harris, Tarrant, Bexar, Collin, Dallas, Travis, Fort
Bend, Denton, Williamson and Hidalgo. The biggest
contributing factor to Texas' growth is net migration,
both domestic and foreign, into Texas. Texas also has a
high birth rate versus deaths.
While we will not have official census numbers until
April 2011 preliminary estimates indicate the ideal
Texas House district population will rise from 139,012
in 2001 to between 160,000 and 165,000 in 2011.
Likewise, Texas' Senate district population in 2001 was
672,639. For 2011, it is projected to be between 780,000
and 784,000. A U.S. House district now contains 646,946
people, but after the 2010 census, that number is
expected to rise by 9.7% to about 710,000 people. When
the federal government re-apportions the 435 members of
the U.S. House, Texas population growth will entitle
Texas to 3 or 4 new Congressional Districts.
Below is a list of the hearing locations with the dates,
times with the subcommittee chairs and membership for
this area
|
Dallas -
September 20, 12pm
George Allen Courthouse, Central Jury Room
600 Commerce Street, Dallas, Texas, 75202
|
|
Judiciary
Rep. Branch, Chair
Rep. Hartnett
Rep. Alonzo |
Redistricting
Rep. Todd Smith, Chair
Rep. Keffer
Rep. Merritt |
Arlington -
September 21, 10am
Arlington City Hall, Council Chambers
101 West Abram, Arlington, Texas, 76004
|
Judiciary
Rep. Jackson, Chair
Rep. Madden
Rep. Alonzo |
Redistricting
Rep. Keffer, Chair
Rep. Merritt
Rep. Veasey |
Richardson - September 22, 10am
University of Texas at Dallas Campus (UTD),
Room CN 1.112 of the Conference Center
800 West Campbell Road, Richardson, Texas,
75080
|
Judiciary
Rep. Madden, Chair
Rep. Jackson
Rep. Alonzo |
Redistricting
Rep. Todd Smith, Chair
Rep. Merritt
Rep. Veasey |
All
hearings are open to anyone who wants to testify or to
simply observe.
Read the latest Newsletter here
(Posted August
2010)
Who does a
Representative Represent?
Often it is impossible to represent the individual
interest and views of constituents. Last week as I was
reviewing e-mails I noticed two from people that live
within blocks of each other in Coppell. One is opposed
to a particular proposed piece of legislation; The other
is for it. On another issue two individuals from
Carrollton urged me to take opposing action on another
issue. These are only two of many opposing messages
constituents send me.
While it is impossible to represent the separate wishes
of all constituents; I do review, consider and respect
all views. Hopefully constituents will understand and
respect that I must take positions and make choices.
Rep. Jackson's Passed Bills 81st Session
HB 449 - Establishes a regulatory
structure for laser hair removal which both protects
consumers and ensures that business can operate
unfettered. The procedure will be regulated by the
Department of State Health Services (DSHS) certifying
each person and facility that is authorized to perform
laser hair removal and requiring that a consulting
medical physician must be retained to oversee operations
and attend to any complications.
HB 1366 - Ensures that voters are aware of ballot propositions for
hospital districts and are fully transparent by changing
the ballot language for tax and bond elections for
hospital districts with a population over 190,000 so
that the ballot language includes, at a minimum, the
information that is included in the election order. The
election order includes a general description of the
uses of the proposed funds for improvements to the
hospital district, estimates of the costs and revenues
raised through bond and tax increases, the amount that
is being requested for each, and any other information
that the board deems appropriate.
SB 333 - Allows counties who employ
their own forensic technician to once again keep $22.50
of DWI related court fees. The ability to keep the fee
was inadvertently taken away from them in the 78th
Session.
SB 397 - Speeds the reimbursement
of jurors for their service by allowing a county
treasurer to reimburse jurors through an Electronic
Funds Transfer (EFT) with a cash dispensing machine,
debit card, or any other way that the county treasurer
and the commissioners court determine is secure,
accurate and cost-effective.
SB
407 (HB 659) - Allows a county judge in a county with a
population of 2 million or more to appoint one or more
part-time or full-time magistrates to oversee truancy
cases, based on the needs of the county.
SB 702 (HB 1746) - Is a cleanup
bill from a major reform in the 80th Session which moved
the regulation of tow trucks from the Texas Department
of Transportation (TxDOT) to the Texas Department of
Licensing and Regulation (TDLR). The bill consists of
common sense reforms of the tow truck industry,
simplifying the regulatory process while offering
consumers strong protections from unscrupulous tow truck
operators.
SB 707 (HB 1034) - Helps to protect
children from sexual predators, by requiring sexually
oriented businesses to keep photo ID records verifying
the age of their employees and independent contractors.
The bill requires that the records be maintained for 2
years after an employee's last day, and makes the
records available for inspection by law enforcement, the
Office of Attorney General, and the Workforce
Commission.
SB 798 (HB 1247) - Speeds and
simplifies the process for receiving a refund for an
overpayment of property taxes, by allowing a tax
collector in large cities more flexibility in processing
overpayments of property taxes.
SB 858 (HB 2399) - Allows a
commercial vehicle education course offered by the Texas
Education Association (TEA) to be offered online as
other similar courses are.
SB 865 (HB 4228) - An omnibus bill
regarding child support and makes many changes to how
child support is calculated and collected. SB 865
amends multiple sections of the Family Code to clarify,
conform, and remove outdated language, and is fairer and
more equitable to both parents and children. SB 517,
which makes a technical correction for the Attorney
General reporting to the Federal Government, was also
added to this bill as an amendment.
SB 2323 - Extends emergency
planning that has been in place for public schools for
some time to community colleges and universities.
School safety is of more concern now due to recent
events across the nation, and SB 2323 helps institutions
of higher education protect Texas students. This bill
was inserted as an amendment to HB 1831.
SB 2466 - Creates a Municipal Management District (MMD)
to be known as the Cypress Waters Management District
over approximately 935 acres of land in North Dallas,
next to North Lake. The purpose of the district is to
facilitate the development of the property within the
district into a mixed use development project of
commercial and residential property, including multi and
single family development components. This new
development will be an economic benefit locally, to the
area, and to the region.
Download as .pdf file
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: June 1, 2009
Contact: State Rep. Jim Jackson
512-463-0468
State Rep. Jim Jackson Reports on the 81st Session
Austin--The 81st Session of the Texas Legislature has
adjourned "Sine Die." There were 7,609 House/Senate bills
and constitutional amendments filed during the session -
1,462 were passed. The Governor has until June 21st to sign
or veto bills sent to him or allow them to become law
without his signature.
Because some Democrats chose to delay the House's
business by chubbing, hundreds of bills died when we reached
the deadline for consideration of legislation. Chubbing
resembles a series of mini filibusters. While many of the
bills that died had various degrees of importance, a few
such as sunset continuation of the Texas Department of
Insurance and the Texas Department of Transportation were
very important. Of course, each member, including me, who
had bills left on the calendar at the end, regrets that we
did not have an opportunity to take them up.
In spite of the partisan squabbling and delaying of the
state's business, the legislature managed to pass some
important laws that include:
- Adoption of the 2010-2011 biennial state budget
and reducing general revenue spending by 1.9
percent.
- Passage of new education reforms that focus on
student growth and achievement when rating schools.
- Making a $1.9 billion dollar increase in public
education dollars.
- Making $1.2 billion dollar increase in higher
education funding.
- Providing seed money to lay the groundwork for
additional Tier One Texas universities.
- Giving $250 million in financial aid to make
college affordable for 35,000 more students.
- Reforming of the Top Ten Percent rule to give
the University of Texas more flexibility.
- Providing a tax cut which will benefit
approximately 40,000 Texas small businesses.
- Protecting the $9.1 billion dollars in the
state's Rainy Day Fund.
My legislative accomplishments include 11 bills I
authored or sponsored. To review those bills, please go to
www.repjimjackson.com.
Although it was a long and difficult session, I am honored
to be State Representative for District 115.
To contact State Representative Jim Jackson in Austin:
Phone: 512-463-0468, Address: P.O. Box 2910, Austin, Texas
78768-2910. In the district: Phone: 972-416-7698, Address:
1120 Metrocrest Drive #107, Carrollton, Texas 75006.
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Download as .pdf file
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: May
26, 2009
Contact: State Rep. Jim Jackson
512-463-0468
REP. JIM JACKSON REPORTS ON MEMORIAL DAY WEEKEND BILL
KILLING TACTICS
Austin--Many people have
heard or read from news sources about the 4 days of
delay over Memorial Day weekend that some Democratic
members of the Texas House have used to slow the
legislative calendar in order to kill the Voter ID Law
for voter integrity. The voter integrity law requires
voters to have proof of identification in order to vote.
Some have even told me they watched some of the action
or inaction on the streaming video.
Democrats have stalled all
business on the House floor. While some will join me in
disapproving the Democrat's action, others will support
it. Regardless, their actions are within the House
rules.
These parliamentary delay
tactics includes one called "chubbing" which might be
compared to a continued series of mini-filibusters.
Using this tactic, they made a Local and Consent
Calendar that would normally take 2 hours, last over 30
hours. Then in the new twist, they introduced multiple
amendments to the top 10% rule reform bill (SB 175) on
which they would speak 10 minutes and then withdraw the
amendment.
The result of these actions
is that many bills failed to get considered for final
passage before the deadline for consideration. In fact,
two bills I sponsored that would have made employment of
children in sex clubs a public nuisance and increase the
criminal penalty for repeat offense of such employment,
died on the calendar.
Other bills killed due to
parliamentary delay would have given us cleaner air,
insurance reform, property rights, better domestic
violence prevention, many children's services, including
services for children with autism spectrum disorder and
children's health programs as well as many other issues.
"Bills set on the calendar
are there for a reason; they are important bills and are
usually addressing issues in members' districts. Those
who participated in the disruption of the House business
may have been within the rules, or within their rights,
but that doesn't make it right," Rep. Jackson said.
To contact State
Representative Jim Jackson in Austin: Phone:
512-463-0468, Address: P.O. Box 2910, Austin, Texas
78768-2910. In the district: Phone: 972-416-7698,
Address: 1120 Metrocrest Drive #107, Carrollton, Texas
75006.
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Download as .pdf file
