GPTX Update & State Meeting
GPTX State Executive Committee has selected June 6th & 7th as the dates for our annual statewide meeting this year, to be held in Tarrant County, near Fort Worth. The purpose of this meeting will be to discuss bylaws, platform, state and local needs/goals, coordination, and to vote for new officers. April 22nd has been set as the documentation deadline for county parties to deliver all materials to GPTX in preparation for the state meeting. This includes drafts of all bylaw and platform amendments, county delegate lists, updated county officer contact & affiliation info, and candidate applications. This year we will be electing a co-chair, secretary, at least three at-large SEC positions.
GPTX has undertaken a regional coordination initiative, coinciding with the implementation of GPTX on the Nationbuilder platform, intended to help grow and improve the party organization. With improved ability to utilize our member database, we are attempting to revitalize county parties and do a better job of facilitating volunteers and members. Now is a great time to help get your local GP active again! Keep in mind, we need county parties to have their documentation in for the state meeting by April 22nd, so you'll need to get started soon if you haven't already. Our hope is to have GPTX primed & ready going in to 2016.
And of course, we could really use some help with fundraising to cover basic organizational & operating costs. Your support is deeply appreciated! We don't accept corporate money, so we only have the interests of people in mind!
HR 399 "Secure Our Borders First" Act
The “Secure Our Borders First” Act (HR 399), introduced by Rep. Mike McCaul of Texas, has been referred from committee to the House for vote. Both the Sierra Club Borderlands Team and the ACLU have made statements in opposition to this bill. The Green Party of Texas platform leaves no doubt about our positions on these matters, and we endorse the statements made by the Sierra Club and ACLU.
The Green Party of Texas is opposed to further militarization of the border and the disregard of Constitutional and environmental protections within 100 miles of external borders. We support humane treatment and a path to citizenship for undocumented immigrants, as well as recognition of the impact of trade policies which underlie the motivations of many immigrants.
State Meeting Deadline
Earthday April 22, 2015 is 45 days before the state convention. All county parties must submit the following to the SEC by that date:
List of delegates elected to vote at the State Meeting on June 6 & 7,
with email and/or phone contacts
Any resolutions, bylaw amendments, or platform amendments
for the state and national
This is a hard deadline per the bylaws and we must distribute all the material to be considered to all the delegates within one week of Earthday 2015.
[We have a temporary bylaw change since we were informed by the Secretary of State that bylaw changes are not allowed in an election year - this will be one of this year's amendments.]
Dr. Jill Stein's Exploratory Campaign Visits Texas
Updated February 26th: Dr. Stein has concluded her Texas tour. You can read her write up of the trip here. You can find a complete set of images & video links from the trip here.
Read moreUpdate on State House Dictrict 123 Special Election
From Paul Ingmundson, Green Party candidate for State House District 123:
Friends in our community have asked me to stand as the Green Party candidate for State Representative in District 123. I been advised that in doing so I may be in violation of a federal statute entitled "An Act to Prevent Pernicious Political Activities" (1939) also known as the Hatch Act. I have, therefore, discontinued my campaign and am no longer seeking the office.
Here are some of the concerns that previously motivated me to speak out. I leave it to you to determine whether engaging in a public discussion of these issues constitutes pernicious political activity and speech that will not be tolerated under the provisions of the law limiting the free speech rights of federal employees.
• Climate change is a crisis unfolding in real time. Here in Texas, we are seeing prolonged periods of drought punctuated by more extreme rainfall events. Climate change is causing losses, to property, productivity, and life and limb, right now.
• Student debt is a growing burden that is crushing young people's opportunities for social advancement and amplifying the effects of wealth and income inequality.
• Recent court decisions have held that the Texas system of school finance is inequitable, inefficient, and violates the State Constitution. Texas currently ranks 46th of the 50 states in funding for education. The next legislative session will need to change the funding formula to distribute tax dollars for education. We need to increase investment in education and assure equal opportunity in school funding.
• Neither Republicans nor Democrats in Texas are willing to address these issues.
• We can create change. San Antonio's CPS Energy is already developing the Alamo Solar Project. When it's finished in 2016 it will be the largest municipally owned solar utility in the United States.
We can lead in Research and Development. San Antonio is also the home of the Southwest Research Institute, one of the largest Research and Development centers for applied engineering in the United States.
• We have the resources to address climate change, right here. San Antonio can take the lead in developing the new technologies that will address the problem of climate change.
• We can increase investment in education and assure equal opportunity in school funding.
• We can create job opportunities for young people if we can improve access to higher education by addressing the growing problem of student debt.
• We need the political leadership to make it happen.