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Current Weekly News for Leakey, Camp Wood, Sabinal, Utopia and Surrounding Areas Vol. 6 No. 35
INSIDE
www.hillcountryherald.net
Tri-Canyon’s Only Weekly Newspaper!
August 31, 2016
editor@hillcountryherald.net
REAL COUNTY CITIZENS REQUEST FUNDING FOR COUNTY CONSTABLE by Julie Becker
Will Hurd visits Southwest Texas Junior College, meets with officials ............................ Page 13
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THE SINGING SUN
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Real County Taxpayers turned out in force at Monday’s Commissioners tax hearing to support the County Constable they elected. Nathan Johnson was elected by the citizens of Real County and is to take office on January 1, 2017. But there was a problem, Real County Judge Garry Merritt and County Commissioners had a proposed budget that reduced the salary of the position from $21k to $2,400 annually. Merritt told the audience Monday the reduction was based on previous Constables performance and what the taxpayers were getting for their money. Over 90 taxpayers packed the courtroom and told the Commissioners they wanted their Constable. Support was evident, some by words, some by tears. The meeting took only two hours, but the VOICES
express your views on the 2016-17 Real County tax rate and the starting salary for the county constable. I appreciate that we were able to come together as a county to discuss important issues and find both common ground and areas on which there were different perspectives. Commissioners Court will meet at 8:30 a.m. on September 2nd to set salaries for elected officials for the upcoming year. To promote unity in the county,
I will support a starting salary of $35,000 for the county constable at that meeting. Thank you all for everyOF REAL COUNTY WERE HEARD!! I received this quote from Merritt the next morning. “Thank you to those who
attended public hearings on August 22 and 29 and those who contacted me before and after those meetings to
The Perry and Ruby Stevens Foundation donates $25,000 grant to Texas Lions Camp’s CAMPership Initiative to support children with special medical conditions. “Each summer, Texas Lions Camp provides at no cost, a residential camp experience for over 1,500 children who have special medical conditions ranging from physical disabilities, to type 1 diabetes, cancer to Down syndrome. The Perry and Ruby Stevens Foundation is making a difference by their investment in the lives of children with special medical conditions through our new CAMPership initiative for Summer Camp 2016,” stated Stephen S. Mabry, CFRE, CAE, Chief Executive Officer of TLC. “Our motto: ‘Children Can…With TLC’ is a reality every day for children attending
TLC this summer, because of donors like the Perry & Ruby Stevens Foundation and their heart to give back to the community.” “Our organization is pleased to provide this CAMPership initiative of $25,000 to support the educational programs for children in the Hill Country,” stated Laurie Milton, Executive Director of the Perry & Ruby Stevens Foundation. About 62 of the 1,520 campers that attended TLC, were from the 10 counties that benefit from financial assistance made by the Stevens Foundation. About the Perry and Ruby Stevens Foundation The Perry and Ruby Stevens Foundation was established in January 2006 to provide assistance to qualified nonprofit organizations whose purpose is
providing assistance and care to those in the community who are less fortunate, ill, victims of neglect, abuse, or disaster, have financial, physical or mental limitations, those working in research or treatment of Parkinson’s disease, or who work in volunteer firefighting programs. Perry and Ruby Stevens spent a life-time changing lives by giving to others and community organizations. Although never having children, their primary interest was to support organizations that cared for abused and neglected youth. The legacy that Perry and Ruby Stevens leave in making a difference lives on in the work of the Perry and Ruby Stevens Foundation. For more information,
IT’S ALMOST HERE!
Dark Night Skies Project Progress
Labor Day Weekend September 2, 3, 4, 2016 8:00 PM Comic Melodrama
“UNCLE THUMP’S REVENGE”
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The American Legion Hall Leakey, Texas
LoneStar Ranger Program
INDEX Legals/Jail Register .... Page 3-4 Community News ......... Page 5-7 Feature Story ............... Page 8-9 Obituaries ...................... Page 10 Classifieds ..................... Page 14
Today’s Weather
High: 88° Low: 69°
Good Work Taxpayers!!
Perry & Ruby Stevens Foundation Donates $25,000 to Texas Lions Camp’s CAMPership Initiative
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thing you do to keep Real County working together -Garry Merritt Real County Judge”
please visit the organization’s website at www.stevensfdn.org or call 830-8960630. continued page 8
The Frio Canyon Players are ‘almost’ ready for opening night. The cast invites you to come and see the mindboggling antics that goes on when Uncle Thump’s nieces come for a visit. It creates chaos at best and at times it’s just unbelievable! Tickets are available at the door at $8.00/ each and the doors will open at 7:30 PM. The Groovy Gals will also be there to entertain at intermission and ‘The Irresistible Four’ will close the show! Join in on a fun evening and remember seeing is believing or….. is it? Cast Members L to R- Back Row - A. G. Hood, Bill Jackson, Blyth Cave Middle Row - Priscilla Kirkpatrick, Norma DeWitt, Pat Power Front Row - Helen Stephens, Richard Low, Linda Power
ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT PART TWO … Role of Local Government in Public Services Public services are so common in our everyday life that we do not think about them; however, the services you receive are directly tied to the government you elect. You would think about those services if they were not there when you needed them! For instance, if your faucets were dry or you could not maneuver your city streets… Tax revenues normally fund public services by local governments. What services are provided depends largely on what the citizens expect their government to provide. Generally, a local government provides a service when it is necessary for the citizens whose votes and tax
dollars support the government and in a case where the private sector is unable to provide the service, such as constructing water mains, or the inability for the service to make a profit Any service that the government is responsible for, as opposed to a private corporation, can be considered a public service; police departments, fire departments, sanitation, water, gas, streetlights, all of these may be considered public services. Generally speaking, the more citizens use a public service, the more attention key administrators will normally give it. Public services can be made private services. This process
by Elaine Carnegie
is called “privatization”. However, not all services can be privatized and offer the same level of quality. Privatization is generally considered for services that are only used by a few citizens, rather than a service that is a public necessity such as fresh water and emergency services. With services such as EMS and Fire Departments, that serve the public in emergencies; these small organizations bear a heavy load and because of that… In cases where the local government cannot or will not provide adequate funding to these services, an Emergency Services District (ESD) may be created. An ESD is a grassroots gov-
ernment entity created by voters in an area specifically to fund fire protection, emergency medical services, or both. More than 300 districts are operating in Texas, and more are added at almost every uniform election date. Under the Texas Constitution, ESDs may levy a tax rate of no more than 10 cents per $100 of property value in their district. For a home on the tax rolls at $150,000, that is an annual tax of $150, or $12.50 a month. Next week’s article will deal specifically with Emergency Services Districts. Benefits and drawbacks… Local government funds most local services. continued page 11