With the advent of motor vehicles and mechanized agriculture, the future of rural Texas changed drastically in the last century. Previously, the agrarian economy encouraged rural population growth with small regional towns. Labor-intensive farming and ranching required a large, physically fit labor force. The lack of development of large-scale manufacturing and transportation … [Read more...] about The Future of Rural Texas
CJCAT
Resolution Spotlight: Support for County Road Grant Funds
Over a five-year period, TxDOT data shows a consistent and alarming trend: Nearly 7 percent of all traffic fatalities in Texas occur on county roads each year. “That’s a significant share of the state’s roadway deaths occurring on roads that counties struggle to maintain with limited and outdated resources,” observed Cass County Judge Travis Ransom. One of those outdated … [Read more...] about Resolution Spotlight: Support for County Road Grant Funds
Lead, Engage, Celebrate
As Parmer County Commissioner and this year’s president of the County Judges and Commissioners Association of Texas, I am especially excited to welcome April as County Government Month. This month gives us a meaningful opportunity not just to recognize the work we do, but to actively celebrate it and share it with the people we serve and lead. County government is often … [Read more...] about Lead, Engage, Celebrate
Resolution Spotlight
Opposition to Efforts to Prohibit County Legislative Communications
Throughout the last several legislative sessions, certain legislators have continued their efforts to obtain legislation to prohibit local officials and their nonprofit associations from communicating with the Texas Legislature, said CJCAT Senior General Counsel Jim Allison. “Using the term ‘taxpayer-funded lobbying,’ this legislation would bar local officials from expending … [Read more...] about Resolution Spotlight
Road Use Agreements
Section 251.153, Transportation Code permits a Commissioners Court to “establish load limits for any county road or bridge." This same power is reiterated in Section 621.301 but provides an exception for vehicles that have obtained certain state permits. In Scurlock Permian Corp. v. Brazos County, 869 S.W. 2d 478 (Tex. App. – Houston (1st Dist.) 1993, writ denied), the courts … [Read more...] about Road Use Agreements