ustxtxb_obs_1993_07_16_50_00015-00000_000.pdf

$ 04Available for private parties iii. di. Unique European Charm 0 If & Atmosphere I, Special Low Spring & Summer Rates % Pets Welcome Pi’ le 1423 11th ti” Port Aransas, TX 78373 1 S \(fa” for Reservations j .I. %IL% A 04% fet ir %%d o iv No , Inn ,, Kitchenettes-Cable Tv 0 e Pool beside the Gulf of Mexico a t , on Mustang Island tur on an 11-12 vote on May 25. 2.H.B. 1776, which would establish the right to carry concealed weapons, was approved by the Senate May 18 on a 23-8 vote. A vote in favor of this bill was bad and financially irresponsible; it would increase the number of shootings without appropriating money to treat the additional gunshot victims. 3.During the debate on S.J.R. 49 to require that voters approve any income tax, the Senate on a 6-24 vote rejected an amendment to further restrict the possibility of imposing an income tax. “Aye” votes would have made an ill-advised constitutional amendment worse. House Consumer Issues 1.Amendment by Rep. Pete Gallego, DAlpine, to S.B. 2, the bill that would limit the ability of foreigners to sue U.S. corporations in Texas courts; the amendment, which was tabled on a 93-46 vote, would have retained the ability to sue in Texas courts when the case involved a pesticide manufactured in the United States. A vote not to table the amendment was a vote for responsible manufacturing. 2.H.B. 415 would exempt securities dealers from the Deceptive Trade Practices Act. It was passed 80-51 on March 15. A vote against the bill was pro-consumer. 3.Amendment by Bailey and Denton to S.B. 498, the Public Utility Commission Sunset bill, would have required utility companies to refund money they collect from ratepayers for taxes they do not end up paying. The amendment was tabled on a 110 34 vote on May 19. A vote against the motion to table was a pro-consumer vote. 4.An amendment to H.B. 1461, the insurance sunset bill, would allow insurance industry groups to control data used to set insurance rates. The House approved the amendment by 65-58 on May 7. A vote against the amendment was pro-consumer. Civil Rights & Civil Liberties 1.H.B. 2494 by Rep. Bob Turner, D-Voss, would have limited the rights of consumer and environmental groups to criticize agribusinesses, as it would have allowed lawsuits against those who disparaged agricultural or aquacultural food products. The House voted 103-35 to pass the bill. A vote against the bill was a pro-consumer and pro-freespeech vote. 2.Amendment by Warren Chisum, DPampa, to S.B. 1067, the penal code revisions. The House by 75-50 on May 6 defeated a motion to table the amendment to keeping misdemeanor criminal penalties for sodomy. A vote to table the amendment is a vote for privacy rights. 3.Amendment by Paul ‘Hilbert, R-Spring, to S.B. 1067, the penal code revisions, would make intentional transmission Of AIDS a crime. The House voted 79-45 not to table the amendment, which was then adopted. Opponents said the amendment unnecessarily singled out AIDS carriers, who could be prosecuted under other provisions for intentional transmission of the deadly disease. 4.Amendment by Chisum to S.B. 1062, the State Board of Medical Examiners Sunset Bill. On a 71-68 vote on May 17 the House defeated the amendment, which would have restricted abortions. A vote against the amendment is a vote for privacy rights. 5.House 82-52 vote on May 4 approved a resolution supporting a settlement of a voting rights lawsuit that proposes election of district judges in urban counties from subdistricts. A vote for this resolution is a vote for minority voting rights. Environmental 1.Amendment to S.B. 30, the bill to authorize a boll weevil eradication program. The amendment, which would have required that the program minimize the use of pesticides and emphasize the use of non-toxic alternatives, was tabled on a 98-42 vote. A vote against the motion to table was an environmental vote. 2.S.B. 609, sponsored in the House by David Swinford, R-Dumas, would preempt local governments from being ableto regulate pesticides, except in limited circumstances. The bill passed by a 98-42 vote. A vote against the bill was a pro-environment vote. 3.S.B. 1029, sponsored in the House by Ben Campbell, R-Carrollton, aimed at undercutting an Austin water-quality ordinance by “grandfathering” real estate developments from having to meet new water quality requirements. The bill passed on a 101-35 vote. A vote against the bill was a vote for local control over environmental regulation. 4.S.B. 684, sponsored in the House by Tom Uher, D-Bay City, would exempt all agricultural operations from state air pollution requirements. The bill, which was promoted by large dairy operations, was approved by 67-52 on May 22. A vote against the bill was a vote for clean air. 5.Renato Cuellar, D-Weslaco, tried to amend S.B. 963, a solid waste management bill, to.prohibit municipal solid waste landfills within three-quarters of a mile of a public drinking water supply. The day after the House approved the amendment, it voted 75-58 to reconsider the amendment, which was stripped from the bill. The vote to reconsider was a vote against clean water. Ethics 1. Amendment by Robert Eckels, RHouston, to S.B. 1005, revisions to the ethics act, would have banned lawyer legislators from practicing before state agencies. The House by 101-18 on May 25 voted not to table the amendment. A vote not to table the amendment is a vote to reduce conflicts of interest. 2. Amendment by Kevin Brady, R-The Woodlands, would have set voluntary lim its on financial contributions. It survived a motion to table on a 14-124 vote. A vote against the motion to table was a vote for good government. Health & Human Services 1.Amendment by Paul Moreno, D-El Paso, to S.J.R. 7, the constitutional amendment proposition for school finance reform. Moreno’s amendment, which was tabled on a 106-38 vote on February 9, would have allowed a redistribution of 10 percent, rather than the 2.75 percent maximum. A vote to table the amendment was a vote for a lesser commitment to school equity. 2.Amendment by John Culberson, RHouston, to S.J.R. 7 would have removed school finance from state court jurisdiction. The amendment was tabled, 79-65. A vote not to table the amendment was a vote against school equity. 3.Amendment by Hugo Berlanga, DCorpus Christi, and Kent Grusendorf, RArlington, to S.J.R. 7 would have authorized school districts to pay for . students to attend private schools. This amendment was tabled, 84-61. A vote not to table was a vote to weaken the public school system. 4.The bill by Bill Carter, R-Fort Worth, and Wilson to establish the right to carry concealed weapons was approved by the House on a 95-47 vote April 27. A vote in favor of this bill is clearly irresponsible. E1 4 4.1V N4.4 Sea Horse 4’11 i r e a THE TEXAS OBSERVER 1,, 15