November 19 is shaping up to be a very important date in Texas.

Property rights are under threat at every front, and there are two very important meetings that you need to be aware of and try to attend.

ATTENTION ELLIS COUNTY RESIDENTS

First, in Ellis County, their Sub Regional Planning Commission (dubbed 391 commission) is holding a meeting regarding the NEGATIVE impacts of the high speed rail plan from Houston the Dallas. The meeting is open to the public and you're encouraged to attend. This PRIVATE, FOREIGN company has the power of eminent domain for its PRIVATE, FOR PROFIT high speed rail through the heart of rural Texas. Both TxDOT and Texas Central Railway (TCR) company representatives will be in attendance.

The Sub Regional Planning Commission is a Texas State Agency recently established in Ellis County. It will be conducting an official public meeting where county commissioners and experts will be expressing concerns through a question and answer session.

Considering the time frame of 90 minutes, there may not be enough time for the public to question TxDOT and the TCR officials directly. Therefore, they will incorporate your questions into the Q&A.

Submit your questions to Marty Hiles by email Tx-CC@att.net.

In an incredible turn of events, House Transportation Chair Joe Pickett declared his intention to end managed toll lanes in Texas.

After years of advocacy opposing the utility and cost of toll managed lanes, the grassroots have finally gained an important ally in Pickett.

At a hearing last week, he described how 94% of cars cannot access the toll lanes and the 6% of cars who do use them only use them for 3 hours a day. So for 21 hours out of the day, the lanes go unused.

Pickett called that 'ridiculous.' Remember that it was Pickett who authored and passed the bill, HB 2612, to require TxDOT to report to the legislature how it could eliminate toll roads (that used state money) in Texas. So Pickett's remarks signal another step closer to eliminating the most popular type of toll road - managed lanes.

THIS AFFECTS ALL TEXANS!

Stop this bad precedent before it starts!

Increasingly, water is the newest battle front for property rights, taxes, corporate welfare. In San Antonio on Thursday, the city council will vote on a 50% water rate hike encompassed in the ill-conceived Vista Ridge public private partnership water heist from Burleson County (though Bastrop, Lee, and Milam counties are also impacted).

League of Independent Texans has joined with the San Antonio Tea Party to stop this water grab and rate hike.

Call 210-207-7040 right now.

Insist that Mayor Ivy Taylor (and your council member, if you live in the city of San Antonio) delay or stop Vista Ridge (the "San Antone Hose") when they vote on the 50%+ rate hikes for Vista Ridge on Thursday.

For more info on the Vista Ridge project, go here.

If you're like me, you're LIVID when officials divert our road taxes to non-road purposes. We finally ended all but the constitutionally mandated diversions of our state gasoline tax this session (the 25% that goes to public schools remains), but now with the Obama Administration's proposed rule change, more of our federal gas tax money can go to non-road uses like rail, transit, and hike and bike trails!

(Comments accepted thru December 7)

Tell the Federal Highway Administration to:
"Keep our road taxes for ROADS, not rail, transit, or other non-road uses."

Help us spread the word!