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Letters Home from Austin
May 4, 2007
Dear Friends and fellow Texans,
Several developments in the 80th legislative
session may have an impact on voters in District 101, particularly
those who have a personal or professional interest in public
education and public safety. (For more information about
public education, please read this
letter to constituents.)
One of my first bills to pass the House was H.B. 1346, which
requires truancy magistrates to complete at least eight hours
of continuing education every two years. Continuing education
courses must be conducted by the Texas Association of Counties,
the State Bar of Texas, or the Texas Justice Court Training
Center. If passed, the law will be effective September 1,
2007.
Another bill was sent to the Calendars Committee on April
23rd. H.B. 2667 will help volunteer police and firefighters
with medical costs for injuries sustained in the line of
duty. Currently, many of the volunteer firefighters and volunteer
police force members who are injured in the course of protecting
the public must pay for their health care costs out of pocket
or rely on pre-existing medical insurance to cover these
expenses. H.B. 2667 attempts to alleviate this financial
difficulty for members of volunteer fire departments and
volunteer police forces.
I co-authored a bill that would further aid volunteer fire
departments by adding them to the list of entities that can
purchase gasoline and diesel without paying the state motor
fuels tax. License holders may sell gasoline and diesel to
volunteer fire departments and file for a refund or credit
for the state tax paid on such sales. H.B. 685 passed the
house on April 17 and is now awaiting review by the Senate
Finance Committee.
I joined Rep. Truitt as an author of H.B. 1887, which addresses
the rampant crime of burglary of a motor vehicle with stronger
penalties and prevention initiatives. This bill has passed
through the house and is now awaiting review by the Senate
Criminal Justice Committee. Obviously, this is a bill that’s
long overdue, and I’m pleased to have added my name
as an author of H.B. 1887. The cost of this crime has spiraled
out of control. In 1994, total dollar losses due to car burglaries
in Texas was a little over $65 million. By 2003, that number
had reached more than $204 million, a 214 percent increase
in less than 10 years!
HB 3613 fills an important need for Texas peace officers
by providing standardized Texas peace officer identification
cards. Currently there is no state standard for commissioned
peace officer identification cards. Law enforcement agencies
create their own peace officer identification cards, and
the type of the information on the ID and the quality of
the ID can vary greatly. Efforts to increase homeland security
and a recent increase in the number of cases of impersonating
a peace officer have exacerbated the problem of inconsistency
in peace officer ID cards and the ease with which they are
forged or altered. Peace officers, others charged with public
safety, and citizens should be able to quickly and effectively
determine if someone is an actual Texas peace officer. This
bill would create a statewide standard for peace officer
ID cards.
I’ve also signed on as a co-author for an important
piece of legislation, H.B. 8. This bill addresses what’s
commonly known as “Jessica’s Law” in Texas.
(In 2005, 9-year-old Jessica Lunsford was abducted from her
Florida home, sexually assaulted, and murdered by a convicted
sex offender. Since then, states have been rallying to enact
stricter penalties for sex crimes committed against children.)
H.B. 8 is aimed directly at those who commit sexually violent
offenses against children. I am proud to sign my name to
this legislation, which provides tougher penalties on sexual
predators who target children. H.B. 8 passed both the House
and the Senate, and once the conferees can iron out the differences
between the bills from each house, a final draft will go
to the Governor.
Finally, a word about HB 1200, which addresses peace officer
organizations that apply for state grant money. As a retired
career police officer, I am opposed to any bill that specifically
targets police officer support organizations with the intent
to limit, negatively impact, or restrict the ability to serve
its members. I cannot in good faith support measures that
force the state legislature to resolve disagreements between
private entities. The legislature has a few months every
other year to accomplish a tremendous amount of state business.
Our chief concern and first priority is addressing state
issues, not dispute resolution. But HB 1200 does just that:
It pulls the state legislature into a private dispute between
CLEAT and TMPA. In CLEAT’s own words from its website:
“This is the month that CLEAT thundered through the
Capitol and smashed TMPA for being on government handouts
88-45 on the floor of the Texas House of representatives.”
Let me be clear: Texas peace officers deserve the best that
any support organization has to offer. I support and applaud
all organizations like TMPA and CLEAT when their work is
on behalf, and in the best interests, of Texas police officers.
I represent all of the peace officers in my district, regardless
of their choice in unions, organizations, or professional
associations. And I believe the Texas State Legislature is
worthy of higher callings than petty disputes between two
private organizations. One disagreement can tarnish the shields
of far more than those directly involved. And in this case,
the will of a few people has succeeded in monopolizing precious
time on the calendar of an entire legislative body. And that
diminishes the honor of a profession for which I have a tremendous
amount of pride.
Having said that – Once HB 1200 reached the House
Urban Affairs committee, I gave my word that I would not
stand in the way of it getting a fair hearing on the House
floor. The bill was unanimously voted out of that committee,
with all members present. I did not interfere, and I left
the rest of the process to the will of the Legislature. HB
1200 is now in the hands of the Texas Senate.
I came to Austin to serve as the voice of the constituents
of District 101. Your well-being and best interests remain
at the top of my list of priorities. I encourage you to call
or write my staff about any of these bills or other issues
that are important to you.
Thomas
Latham |
