11/03/2007

HOUSTON CHRON: Lawmakers take aim at TxDOT advertising (click to read)

A clip from the Houston Chron article:

"My concern is that Texas agencies, including TxDOT (the Texas Department of Transportation), have exceeded the proper role of state government and, potentially, their legal authority provided by state law," Sen. Dan Patrick, R-Houston, said in a letter this week asking Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst to assign a Senate committee to study the matter. His request followed one by Rep. Ken Paxton, R-McKinney, to House Speaker Tom Craddick.

"We (lawmakers) are potentially curtailing their (TxDOT's) ability to do tollways and maybe push forward the Trans-Texas Corridor," Paxton said. "It appears that now they are trying to lobby the public to be favorable towards these particular issues, and I'm not sure that's a really good use of taxpayer money."

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

I started to write a letter to Senator Patrick and Representative Paxton but decided not to. A committee to study the matter? Too little, too late.

TxDOT and the Texas Transportation Commission has been completely off the charts unaccountable and secretive in their actions for many years, starting even before Perry became governor. The soonest anything good could possible come of this action by these two state lawmakers would be June of 2009.

That is not good enough. That is not going to help us and stop these crooked Phase II toll roads from getting started being built.

The whole funds accounting and management practices of TxDOT need to be subjected to a truly independent and exhausive financial audit. The governor and TxDOT stole our road dollars and secretly moved them somewhere else. I want exposure and justice!

David Rogers said...

This looks like progress to me. Congrats to Paxton and Patrick for having what it takes to follow up on TURF's lead. They can't stop TxDOT in between sessions, but this is an important shot across TxDOT's bow.