Whose Bright Idea Was This Anyway?

[pineda]

story in West U examiner

From the article:

"Under state law, county toll road authorities are not required to provide public notice of new proposals or hold public meetings in affected communities."

Does anyone know which state law and/or which politician(s) dreamed up this one?

[editor]

I don't know if there is a specific law. It's probably related to their status as an "authority" and not as a government agency.

As an authority, they are legally a private entity. It's the reason organizations like the Metropolitan Transit Authority can kick homeless people out of the subway for loitering or whatever. Because the subway is owned by an "authority" it's private property, not public space. It's the same way the Houston Airport System (which is also an authority, or part of one) is able to (and occasionally does) kick reporters out of the airport if the system's PR guy is in a cranky mood and thinks the reporters are doing a story that doesn't portray them in the best light.

[kjb434]

Authority status also allows Aiports to have restricted rights of passengers walking through it. Since it is not public land, free speach doesn't exist.

The Authority status helps more than hurts.

The best way to keep tract of HCTRA would be to get a hold of County Commisioner meeting minutes and agenda.

HCTRA has to go through them for every final approval.

If you get the agenda, you find out when to challenge or debate the issues that concern you.

[pineda]

Good luck getting hold of any minutes from Harris County Commissioners Court meeting...

[kjb434]

They are not of public record?

I see agendas for county commisioner meeting flying around here at work all the time. We are usually trying to add an item or to detemine if we need to attend the meeting.

Harris County Agenda

Hey,

It's all here.

[pineda]

Kjb-

Agendas I can find, no prob, minutes is what I can't find.

If you have a way to access them, let us know...

[kjb434]

We usually get them by contacting one of the precinct's offices. They usually just fax them over. You won't be able to get the meeting minutes until the close of the next meeting since the have to approve the minutes taken at the prior meeting.

[pineda]

Kjb-

Can John Q. Public get these minutes or do I have to lie and say I work for some engineering firm?

[kjb434]

The public suppose to have access to them. It's a matter of public record.

I would call your precints local office and see if they can arange it for you.

[pineda]

Should be, you're right. But, if you go down there, they will tell you that you have to go somewhere else to copy the records and pay for that, too, but that the records aren't readily available on the 'net. Also, if you do go to the time and expense of going down there to copy the minutes, you will notice that everywhere that anyone from the audience spoke is not recorded on the minutes, only that someone spoke and any responses from the court. At least, that's how the record was on the days that the Save Our Spring group and the CTC went down there to speak on record. Not even our names were recorded on the record. So, if no one spoke or answered our questions, which they didn't, it looked, according to the "official record" as if nothing happened in the court that day, which of course, would be very erroneous...

Edited October 25, 2005 by pineda

[kjb434]

That's how the minutes from most government meetings work in Harris and other Counties. Many MUD boards and drainage district meetings aren't much different either.

It think you may be thinking of transcripts and I don't know if they keep those.