ustxtxb_obs_1977_01_14_50_00019-00000_000.pdf

8 STORES IN DALLAS: 4685 MeKINNEY AVE. RICHARDSON: 508 LOCKWOOD FARMERS BRANCH SHOPPING CTR. SW CORNER, VALLEY VIEW IN WACO: 25th & COLUMBUS IN AUSTIN: 1514 LAVACA 8103 BURNET RD. HALF PRJCE RECORDS Nk.AG AZ I N ES Oil and gas politics in 1976 A little accounting work done by Bob Dudney of The Dallas Times Herald’s Washington bureau shows that over the last 18 months oil and gas interests kicked in more money to the campaigns of Texas’ congressional candidates than did any other sector of the business community. The oil and gas industry pumped better than $750,000 into 24 House contests and the Bentsen-Steelman Senate race. The oil and gas types proved good bethedgers, contributing $500,000 to successful candidates and only $250,000 to losers. As for seats won and lost, three of the five candidates most favored by oil and gas survived their races. Incumbents races, and Lloyd Bentsen kept his Senate seat by swamping his opponent. But the big one got away.Five-term Houston Democratic Rep. Bob Eckhardt was clearly oil and gas’s prime 1976 target. Eckhardt’s opponent, Republican Nick Gearhart, received $116,000 from oil and gas in his effort to unseat Eckhardt, long an advocate of legislative controls for the energy industry. Eck hardt won re-election with 70 percent of his district’s vote. Lloyd Bentsen led all takers with at least $190,000 in oil and gas money. foremost Senate sweetheart, was instrumental in gaining passage of the depletion allowance for small independent producers. And last session, he led a successful Senate floor fight for a gas price decontrol measure. Nearly everyone in November’s federal races got some oil help, even ponent, former Dallas Republican Rep. Alan Steelman, got about $100,000. Krueger represents a district with large petroleum interests and strongly supports natural gas decontrol. He got $100,000. Most of the oil and gas money finding its way into Texas politics last year came from dozens of independent producers in Dallas and Houston. An approximate to-and-from ,boxscore of leading givers and takers reads like this: Quintana Petroleum $ 40,000 Clint Murchison and John Murchison $ 18,000 Perry Bass $ 10,000 SEDCO Inc. $ 10,000 J. N. Warren $ 9,000 Roland Bond $ 7,000 M. E. Chiles $ 6,000 O Sen. Lloyd Bentsen $190,000 Nick Gearhart $116,000 Rep. Bob Krueger $100,000 Rep. Alan Steelman $100,000 Rep. Ron Paul $ 40,000 Rep. Jim Collins $ 40,000 Rep. Olin Teague $ 25,000 January 14, 1977 19 Bob and Sara Roebuck Anchor National Financial Services 1524 E. Anderson Lane, Austin bonds stocks insurance mutual funds optional retirement program Printers Stationers Mailers Typesetters High Speed Web Offset Publication Press Complete Computer Data Processing Services Counseling Designing Copy Writing Editing Journals Magazines Newspapers Books The Only 100% Union Shop in Texas! FILITIUIRS11 512 / 442-7836 Box 3485 1714 S. Congress Austin, Tx 78764 Eight cents on the dollar Texas farmers oppose Cotton Inc. Even though Texas cotton farmers voted down an increase in their assessment for funding the national promotional outfit, Cotton Incorporated, they will have to pay it anyway; farmers elsewhere in the nation voted for the increase, though the 67.1 percent for it was barely more than the two-thirds vote required. Cotton Inc. are the folks who bring you newspaper, magazine, television, and radio ads touting products made entirely of the soft, downy fiber. Unvar nished, the firm amounts to an ad agency, created by the Cotton Research & Promotion Act of 1966 and funded primarily by cotton growers who are taxed at the rate of a dollar a bale. The bright idea behind Cotton Inc. is that Madison Avenue techniques can be the salvation of hard-pressed farmers by selling cotton dresses, shirts, towels, and whatnot, cotton farmers naturally will reap the benefits. To that, one Texas farm leader says, “It’s my opinion that weather conditions, crop failures, import