Monday, April 29, 2013

Complaint Filed With The Texas Ethics Commission Over TRWD's Misuse Of Public Funds

On Friday I blogged about what I thought to be an ethically corrupt use of taxpayer funds by the Tarrant Regional Water District Board in a post titled Taking A Corrupt Shot From Tarrant Regional Water District Board Incumbents.

The following day the corrupt use of taxpayer funds showed up in my mailbox and in a blog post titled I Found 10 Pages Of Tarrant Regional Water District Propaganda In My Mailbox This Morning.

A lot of voters in the Tarrant Regional Water District zone are in extreme umbrage mode over the TRWD Board's unethical antics.

Including Fort Worth's Adrian Murray.

Today Adrian Murray announced, on Facebook that he....

Filed complaint with the Texas Ethics Commission this morning over TRWD's misuse of public funds in printing and mailing a 10 page 4 color glossy brochure promoting the Board of Directors just days before early voting begins in the board election.  Three fifths of the board is up for reelection and this was clearly a campaign mailer and should be paid for by the incumbents, not the taxpayer.

Addendum: The complaint filed with the Texas Ethics Commission is against each TRWD Board Member, individually, as in a separate complaint against each of the 5 Board Members, Victor W. Henderson, Hal S. Sparks, Jack Stevens, Marty Leonard and Jim Lane.

Texas Ethics Commission? Is this some sort of oxymoron? Or is this a rare legit Texas commission that has not been co-opted by the foxes that the commission is supposed to keep out of the henhouse?

Wikipedia has a short article about the Texas Ethics Commission, consisting of the following 4 paragraphs...

The Texas Ethics Commission was established in 1991 to "provide guidance on various public ethics laws" within the state of Texas. The agency is headquartered on the 10th Floor of the Sam Houston State Office Building at 201 East 14th Street in Downtown Austin.

It was created by a state constitutional amendment voted on by the voters on November 5, 1991, Article III, Section 24a.

It consists of 8 members and legislators are excluded from serving. By the constitution, the ethics commission recommends the salaries of members of the Texas Legislature, the Lieutenant Governor and the Speaker of the Texas House of Representatives.

The legislature has also given the commission various other duties, including the filing of financial disclosure statements for government officials.

I can not help but wonder if the Fort Worth Star-Telegram is going to share with its dwindling number of readers the information that a complaint has been filed with the Texas Ethics Commission regarding alleged misuse of public funds by the TRWD Board.

Such an allegation seems totally newsworthy to me...

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