ustxtxb_obs_1976_01_30_50_00012-00000_000.pdf

Put Presidential Candidate FRED HARRIS ON THE BALLOT! * Chairman, Democratic National Committee, 1969-70 * U.S. Senator for 8 years, 1964-72 Call or write for petitions to get Fred Harris on the ballot in your Senatorial District. FRED HARRIS for PRESIDENT Texas Campaign Committee P.O. Box 3765 Austin, Texas 7K704 512/4434994 Poll J Id uy, pad t, 1341 Mc Alegi. Treumr 12 The Texas Observer Bob and Sara Roebuck Anchor National Financial Services 1524 E. Anderson Lane, Austin bonds stocks insurance mutual funds optional retirement program MARTIN ELFANT SUN LIFE OF CANADA LIFE HEALTH DENTAL 600 JEFFERSON SUITE 430 HOUSTON, TEXAS 224-0686 Now You Can Read THE SUNDAY “NEW YORK TIMES” ON SUNDAY Air freight copies, flown in every Sunday are available for pick up by subscribers on the U.T. campus and in the Northwest, Tarrytown and Westlake Hills area. Price: $7 MONTH 10-day notice required to start or cancel subscriptions. MRS. JOAN FILVAROFF 7706 LONG POINT DRIVE AUSTIN, TEXAS 78731 345-3417 unprecedented amount of documentation of its claim. San Antonio is having an extremely complicated squabble with the SA school districts, the hospital district, and Bexar County over who should pay some of LoVaca’s fuel adjustment charges. Lo-Vaca, of course, is the single most unpopular gas supplier in the state. Lo-Vaca’s officers should be careful not to set foot in any Central or South Texas town after sundown. They’re liable to be tarred and feathered . \(The litany of complaints against Lo-Vaca and its parent company, Coastal States, and its regulatory agency, the Texas Railroad Commission, is too long to recite here. We recommend Paul Burka’s concise and informative piece on the whole mess in the January Unless there’s some drastic change in policy, the Railroad Commission doesn’t offer much hope of relief, except to the gas industry. As of September, the new Public Utility Commission of Texas \(PUCT is the unfortuWashington, D.C. During the past year, Rep. Charles Wilson, D-Lufkin, spent little time working in committee, generally regarded as a congressman’s chief legislative assignment. Records show that Wilson failed to attend all 28 sessions of the Veterans’ Affairs Committee and his two subcommittees last year. He also missed nearly 80 per cent of the votes taken by the House International Relations Committee and his two subcommittees, the congressman’s other committee assignment. While committee attendance figures for congressmen are not kept by all panels, observers say that Wilson’s attendance mark would rank among the lowest in the House. “We regard a member’s committee assignment as central to most of the work in Congress,” said Mike Cole, director of legislative activities for Common Cause, a citizens’ lobby which monitors Congress. “Certainly a member who serves far less than one-half time deserves to be called to explain why he phone and electric rates. The as yet untested commission will be laboring under the confines of a skimpy budget and hastily-written, sometimes contradictory legislation. The three new commissioners are trying to prepare for the deluge, but, come September, they may well be swamped by appeals. There are no doubt many small towns like Canadian where the city fathers and mothers are planning to punt their utility problems directly to the commission. Chairman Garrett Morris told a reporter recently that he fears some city councils will use the commission as a shield to avoid politically unpopular decisions. It would be easy enough for council members to turn down all rate hikes and leave the hard decisions to the state commissioners. The commissioners, after all, are appointed rather than elected. It will be interesting to see what effect the commission has on the state’s various utilities traumas. Right now the commissioners look like they’re facing a long fight with a short stick. K.N. has missed this important legislative work.” Wilson’s office says the congressman has focused his attention on certain energy matters instead of committee work this past year. Further, the fact that he spends little time working in committee but targets key issues reflects his style as a lawmaker, say some congressional aides familiar with his work. “I probably have a higher opinion of Wilson than many,” observes an aide to one Texas congressman. “He does his work in a matter that superficially does not appear as a way to get things done. My feeling is never sell this guy short. He always seems to get things done.” Other Congressional aides, however, are not complimentary of Wilson. Three staffers on the House International Relations Committee, wary of criticizing one of their “bosses,” simply evaded questions on Wilson’s effectiveness as a committee member. “You’re putting me in an awkward position,” one staff member said. House International Relations Committee records show that Wilson missed 38 or 48 votes taken in 1975 by either the full committee or his two subcommittees. Since July 9, the congressman has failed to attend 18 consecutive meetings in which votes were ‘taken. During that time, he has missed briefings by Secretary of State Henry Kissinger on the Mideast, and a Sept. 4 subcommittee discussion on U.S. participation in Angolan political activities. Wilson was due to return from a Mideast tour with other members of the House International Relations Committee Jan. 15. In his committee work, he has specialized in Mideast affairs and is a strong supporter of Israel. Capitol Hill News Service Charlie Wilson’s record