Eagle Editorial Board
Early voting begins Monday on 11 proposed amendments to the Texas Constitution which would bring the number of revisions to our state charter to almost 500.
In addition, voters in Col-lege Station will decide whether to keep cameras at several intersections de-signed to catch drivers running red lights. A yes vote on the issue would be to remove the lights, while a no vote would be to keep the lights and allow expansion of the program. The Eagle is not taking a stand on the issue.
Election Day is Nov. 3, when the polls will be open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Early voting will be from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday and Oct. 26-28. On Oct. 29 and 30, the early voting polls will be open 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.
Early voting polling places in Bryan include the Brazos County Administration Buil-ding (the former First Baptist Church) at 200 S. Texas Ave.; Arena Hall at Tabor Road and North Earl Rudder Freeway; and Galilee Baptist Church, 804 N. Logan St. In College Station, early voting polling places are Grace Bible Church's Southwood Annex, 1901 Harvey Mitchell Parkway; and Rudder Tower, second floor, on the Texas A&M University campus.
Any registered Brazos County voter may vote at any of the early voting locations.
One of the amendment propositions, No. 11, would limit the power of the state to take private property for public purposes and has drawn the most interest.
Here are The Eagle's recommendations on the 11 constitutional propositions:
Proposition 1 -- This amendment would allow a municipality or county to issue bonds to purchase buffer zones and open spaces adjacent to military installations to be used to prevent encroachment or to construct infrastructure in support of the military's mission.
The Eagle recommends a vote of yes on Proposition 1.
Proposition 2 -- Under this amendment, residence homesteads -- people's houses -- would be taxed on the value of the property as a residence, not its potential value as something else. Thus, homes in commercial districts would be taxed as homes, not as potential commercial establishments.
The Eagle recommends a vote of yes on Proposition 2.
Proposition 3 -- This amendment would allow the Legislature to create uniform standards and procedures for appraising properties throughout the state. This has been tried before and it is a fine goal, although the reality may be harder than it seems.
The Eagle recommends a vote of yes on Proposition 3.
Proposition 4 -- On the surface, this amendment sounds like a good concept, but in reality is a bad idea. It would establish a "national research university fund" to help Texas public universities become major research universities. The fund would be used to pay for such growth.
Under the amendment, the existing higher education fund would be folded into the national university research fund. The Legislature would be required to dedicate state money to the fund.
Texas has two premiere research institutions in Texas A&M and The Univer-sity of Texas. It also has many fine smaller universities that focus more on teaching than research. The state already does not fund its schools of higher education adequately and diverting money to a national research university fund would re-duce the amount available to schools such as Sam Houston State University, Sul Ross State University and Texas State University for non-research education.
There is no question that university research plays an important role in this country, but so does teaching our young people. We cannot af--ford to spend more on the former if it means spending less on the latter, and we fear that Proposition 4 would do just that.
Proposition 4 would hurt all the public universities in the state and that must not happen.
The Eagle recommends a vote of no on Proposition 4.
Proposition 5 -- This proposition would allow adjoining appraisal districts to create a single appraisal review board. The five government taxing entities in Brazos County already do that, but this proposition would allow such arrangements between taxing agencies that don't cover the same area.
The Eagle recommends a vote of yes on Proposition 5.
Proposition 6 -- The Veterans Land Board would be authorized to issue additional general obligation bonds to provide loans to veterans to purchase land or homes.
The Eagle recommends a vote of yes on Proposition 6.
Proposition 7 -- This proposition would allow members of the Texas State Guard to hold civil offices. We shouldn't be deprived of a person's service because he or she is also serving in the state Guard.
The Eagle recommends a vote of yes on Proposition 7.
Proposition 8 -- The state, under this proposition, would be able to contribute money, property or other resources for the establishment and operation of veterans' hospitals in the state. As the number of veterans needing care continues to grow, it is critical they have a place to go for quality care.
The Eagle recommends a vote of yes on Proposition 8.
Proposition 9 -- The Open Beaches Act gives all Texans unrestricted access to the beaches of the Texas coast, from the ocean to the line where natural grasses begin. As that is state law, it can be changed by the Legislature at any time. Proposition 9 would put the Open Beaches Act into the state Constitution so that any changes would require a vote of the people.
The Eagle recommends a vote of yes on Proposition 9.
Proposition 10 -- State law allows for creation of special districts to fund such emergency services as fire, ambulance and rescue. Typically, such emergency services districts are in area not covered by city or county emergency districts. Under current law, people elected to the boards of such districts serve two-year terms. Prop-osition 10 would extend such terms to four years.
The Eagle recommends a vote of yes on Proposition 10.
Proposition 11 -- The U.S. Constitution allows government entities to appropriate private land for public use, provided the land owner receives fair compensation. In 2005, the U.S. Supreme Court, in a really bad decision, ruled that governments could take private land and give it to another private entity if it provided for economic development or in-creased property taxes.
Proposition 10 would require government entities to take land only for legitimate public purposes. Land taken through eminent domain would have to be kept -- and used -- by the government for some productive purpose.
Americans cherish our private property rights. There are time, however, when some private land is needed for the benefit of everyone and the government has the authority to take it, with compensation for the owner. But that land shouldn't be turned over to those who would use the land for private purposes, as was done in College Station a few years back.
The Eagle recommends a vote of yes on Proposition 11.
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