 The
Accuracy of Senator Carona's
Comments to Austin Newspaper is
Clear and Unequivocal, He Does
Not Intend to Move SB1267
CorridorWatch got sandbagged
Wednesday.
We were led by Transportation and
Homeland Security Committee staff to
believe that Wednesday's hearing was
a formality. CorridorWatch was
requested not to have more than one
speaker. Shame on us. Instead of
bringing a room full of elected
local officials in support of SB1267
we sent one representative with a
brief prepared statement.
Meanwhile, local officials in
opposition filled the room
and testified against the bill, many
inspired by TxDOT pressure and scare
tactics.
Morning papers stir the pot.
Well before Thursday morning
CorridorWatch started getting calls
and emails about a stories that
would appear in today's Austin
American-Statesman and the Dallas
Morning News. In those stories
Senator Carona is credited with
putting the freeze on SB1267.
Our members expected a response and
we sent out a bulletin. We called on
our members to take action.
Information, misinformation
and spin.
Dozens, if not hundreds, of
CorridorWatch members were told this
morning by Senator Carona's office that
the Senator was misquoted in this
morning's Austin American-Statesman report.
CorridorWatch however confirmed
today that nothing in news reports
that were attributed to the Senator
will be challenged as incorrect. A
source close to the Senator was
clear and unequivocal that
nothing was wrong, inaccurate or
misleading in Ben Wear's story.
Despite the clarification Carona's
office was still telling callers
this afternoon that the story was
misleading because the reporter
didn't get all of the information.
"I'll call you!"
Sounds familiar doesn't it.
That's what Senator Carona's
office told David Stall of
CorridorWatch at 10:38 a.m. this
morning. The actual message was,
"I will call you when I get a
chance this morning." As this is
written it is after 5:00 p.m.
and the morning is long gone.
Instead of a call we received
word after lunch that the
Senator is working on a formal
statement that would be sent to
us as soon as it was available.
It arrived at 3:28 p.m. We never
did get that call.
Senator Carona statement
regarding SB 1267.
In his statement Senator Carona
says, "I have received a number
of calls about the status of
Senate Bill 1267. Many of these
callers seem to be under the
impression that SB 1267 kills
the Trans Texas Corridor, and
they cannot understand why the
bill has not yet come out of
committee. The bill does not do
that."
PPP, CDA, TTC. A
matter of perspective.
Does SB1267 kill the TTC?
No.
Would the SB1267 moratorium
stop the execution of TTC-35
facility (construction) CDAs?
Yes.
The 30 month moratorium
together with the findings
of the study committee could
easily reveal numerous flaws
with CDAs and the TTC.
Could legislation resulting
from that committee kill the
TTC? Yes, it could kill it
absolutely dead.
Senator Carona
statement regarding SB 1267.
In his statement Senator
Carona says, "Some
callers think that if
this bill passes, it
solves our
transportation problems.
But there are necessary
items this bill does not
address. It does not
address the things that
we need to change about
the Comprehensive
Development Agreement (CDA)
laws, such as noncompete
agreements, up-front
payments, and duration
of contracts. There is
no reason to wait years
to fix those problems."
Does
SB1267 solve all our
transportation problems?
Of course not. This is
just one step in the
long journey towards
correcting our present
course.
Do we need to address
all those other issues?
Of course.
Should we wait years to
fix those problems. Of
course not.
CorridorWatch is not
aware of anyone who
believes that SB1267 is
the only transportation
bill needing attention
this session.
The sad news is
that it appears
that Chairman Carona
believes compromise will
solve the issues with
TxDOT's public-private
partnership deals.
While not specifically
addressed in the
official statement, the
signals being
telegraphed from Senator
Carona's office is one
of compromise and
regional concession to
carve out a laundry list
of pending projects. The
result is no result. To
do so will not force
anyone to examine the
long-term impact before
the deals are executed.
In contrast Senator
Nichols, author of
SB1267, still stands
strongly behind his
bill. A spokesperson
for Nichols wanted
to make it crystal
clear today that he
was not holding up
the bill and is
quoted, "the effort
to halt these
dangerous contracts
is far from over."
Compromise now is the same
as surrender.
The Texas Legislature gets only one
bite at this apple. Time is running
out and anything short of a full and
uncompromised moratorium will leave
the door open and deny the citizens
the protection they deserve. Every
day that passes increases the power
of TxDOT to control the outcome.
Ric Williamson out
maneuvered Senator Carona.
Using the threat of lost funding,
regardless of its source,
Transportation Commission Chairman
Ric Williamson has successfully
brought pressure to bear on mayors,
county judges, and county
commissioners who in turn are
calling on Senators and
Representatives from DFW to the RGV.
It's the Golden Rule in action. He
who has the gold makes the rules. In
2003 the legislature gave Williamson
the money hammer and now it appears
they can't get close enough to take
it away from him.
If the legislature gives Williamson
two more years of running rough shod
over transportation they may never
see another chance to regain
control.
In his statement Senator Carona
says, "We have heard the public loud
and clear about tolls roads, public
private partnerships, and the Trans
Texas Corridor."
Is Senator Carona the bad
guy?
Absolutely not. While we don't agree
with compromising on SB1267, Senator
Carona isn't our problem. In fact he
is the best position to do our cause
the most good. Still, he needs to
know our concerns and our commitment
to see them addressed. He needs to
know that we want to see SB1267
passed in the strongest form
possible. And he needs our support
for other important bills necessary
to address Texas mobility.
Who then is the bad guy?
First and foremost it is Ric
Williamson. We would not have the
multitude of issues and problems
today if we had better leadership at
the Transportation Commission.
Giving TxDOT too many tools
would not have created today's
problems without a Commission driven
to abuse the latitude and use the
tools available with excessive zeal.
David & Linda Stall, Co-founders
CorridorWatch.org
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