North & East Texas
Anderson County Commissioners Court approved tax abatements for Eagle Railcar Services, a railcar repair center in Elkhart that serves Union Pacific Railroad and plans a $1.1 million expansion to add 30 jobs.
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Bell County Commissioners Court approved a contract of $40,000 with Advanced Ballot Solutions for a ballot-on-demand system to reduce the number of unused ballots and/or meet a larger-than-expected demand for ballots.
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Collin County Commissioners Court approved a grant of $635,000 for Cottonwood Creek Hike and Bike Trail.
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Cooke County received grants for its library of $3,000 from Friends of the Cooke County Library and $6,500 from Texas State Library and Archives Commission.
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Ellis County Commissioners Court approved the recording and streaming online of its meetings by Swagit Productions at a set-up cost of $6,435 and monthly fee of $695.
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Franklin County Commissioners Court approved restoration and preservation projects for county records dating back to 1875 for a total of $26,085 with Cogniserve and Dimension Imaging. They also selected Telemedicine, a telephone physician service, for county employees and their dependents.
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Gregg County Commissioners Court approved grants of $16,000 to Kilgore Public Library, $15,000 to Sabine VFD, $5,000 to Artsview Children’s Theatre, and $12,000 to West Harrison VFD.
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Harrison County Commissioners Court approved a contract of $154,000 with Elwood Services for solid waste disposal. The county also received a 2013 Gold Leadership Circle award for financial transparency from the Texas comptroller’s office.
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Henderson County Commissioners Court approved a grant of $5,403 to Meals on Wheels and accepted federal grants of $9,313 for bullet-proof vests for law enforcement officers, $13,452 for care and housing of illegal aliens, and $21,591 for radio communications equipment.
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Hopkins County is seeking a new County Judge after the appointment of Judge Chris Brown as executive director of the 10-county Ark-Tex Council of Governments, according to the Cooper Review.
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Jasper County has partnered with the Burke Center for a new mental health clinic in Jasper with offices for the alcohol and drug abuse council. “This new location will be of great advantage to our local law enforcement and medical service providers when helping those who are experiencing a mental health emergency,” Judge Mark Allen said.
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Jefferson County Commissioners Court renamed a park at the sub-courthouse in honor of M.J. Holmes, 81, who died Sept. 19 after a 57-year career in law enforcement.
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Johnson County Commissioners Court approved installation of a CASA weather radar unit (collaborative adaptive sensing of atmosphere) at the emergency operations center. Commissioners Court also approved $4.37 million in bonds to finance new computer software systems for several county offices and held a groundbreaking for a $2.4 million subcourthouse of 12,000 square feet in Alvarado.
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Kaufman County Commissioners Court voted to participate in the state’s Effective Absentee System for Elections (EASE) federal grant program to make voting easier for military and overseas voters. Commissioners Court also approved the donation of used cell phones from the sheriff to the Genesis Center, a non-profit organization that provides safety, shelter and care for victims of domestic violence.
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McLennan County Commissioners Court approved grants of $5,000 each for the county’s 24 volunteer fire departments.
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Milam County Commissioners Court approved an agreement of $148,000 with Water Treatment Construction of Bryan for a project of Gause Water Supply Corp.
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Navarro County Commissioners Court agreed to pay half of the cost of $14,400 to develop a master plan for two major industrial parks in Corsicana, including feasibility of a rail spur.
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Polk County Commissioners Court voted to close a wastewater treatment plant below Lake Livingston dam in preparation for construction of a hydroelectric facility by East Texas Electric Cooperative. Commissioners Court also approved $2.3 million in road and drainage improvements with federal disaster recovery grants.
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Sabine County Commissioners Court approved a request from Daughters of the Republic of Texas for $20,000 for a sprinkler system in the 198-year-old Gaines-Oliphint House.
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Shelby County Commissioners Court awarded a grant of $150,000 to ACE EMS until the new Nacogdoches Medical Center opens. The county is without a hospital since the closing of Shelby Regional Medical Center. “When we lost our hospital, it was devastating,” Commissioner Bradley Allen told the Center Light and Champion. “We can’t lose our ambulance service.”
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Walker County Commissioners Court agreed to a contract of $426,000 with Motorola to upgrade radio equipment at the county’s communications center.
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South Texas
Austin County received the 2013 Gold Leadership Circle Award from the Texas comptroller for financial transparency.
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Calhoun County Commissioners Court voted to contract with Tennessee-based Southern Health Partners for medical care for inmates for $98,220 a year.
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Chambers County Commissioner David Abernathy told the Anahuac Progress he is retiring as Commissioner of Precinct 2 at the end of his current term.
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Fort Bend County completed a multi-year mapping project with FEMA for 100-year flood elevation maps at a cost to the county of about $1.1 million. Also, the county is seeking up to 4,000 volunteers to help distribute preventive medications to residents in a 48-hour period in the event of a public health emergency.
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Gillespie County Commissioners Court approved a new dispatch system for law enforcement from Tyler Technologies – $149,344 for the software and $24,544 for a first-year maintenance agreement.
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Harris County Commissioners Court reportedly has no immediate plans for the fate of the Astrodome after voters rejected a $217 million plan to convert the stadium into an events center. Commissioner Steve Radack told the Houston Chronicle, “I do not intend to put that (demolition) on the agenda anytime soon. We’ll see what other ideas emerge.”
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San Patricio County Commissioners Court established a reinvestment zone at the site of a future ethylene plant to employ 145 people in Ingleside by Occidental Chemical.
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Starr County received a donation of 29.5 acres of land from Chevron Corp. for new county and veterans’ cemeteries after an 18-month project directed by Commissioner Roy Pena.
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Travis County Commissioners Court approved a $3 million contract with URS Corp. to direct the planning of a proposed $340 million courthouse project. Commissioners Court also voted to contribute $49,000 to a $245,000 TxDOT project to move a 100-year-old oak tree near a road-widening project.
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Val Verde County Commissioners Court approved a contract with Quad Counties Council on Alcohol and Drug Abuse to operate a domestic violence shelter.
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Victoria County received a grant of $218,000 from the Texas Forest Service for a tanker truck that cost $292,302 for the county fire department.
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Williamson County received a federal grant of $36,000 for a program in which absentee voters can receive by email an online, password-protected ballot for federal elections. The Austin American Statesman said about 50 counties are participating. Commissioners Court also approved the county’s membership in the Lone Star Regional Water Authority.
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West Texas
Andrews County has a new auditor. Patty Driver, a county employee for 18 years, replaces Rodney Noble, who retired after 20 years. Also, Commissioners Court voted to spend $160,000 from the county’s Waste Control Specialists fund for two school buses for Andrews ISD.
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Brewster County Judge Val Beard will retire in January after 20 years in office. Former Commissioner Kathy Killingsworth was appointed interim Judge. Beard earlier appointed Tom Williams, former Terlingua school board member and CAD board member, as Commissioner for Precinct 2 after the resignation of Killingsworth, who resigned to seek the office of County Judge.
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Brown County Commissioners Court approved the purchase for $7,350 of a monitoring system for 16 cameras from Granbury-based Installation Specialists of Texas in the juvenile detention center.
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Callahan County received a state grant of $20,000 for flood control maintenance on dams on private property.
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Carson County Commissioners Court approved the purchase of communications equipment from Icom America for $87,932.
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Cottle County Commissioners Court appointed Deputy Mark Box as sheriff after the resignation of Ricky Lawrence. Also, Commissioners Court agreed to purchase a chairlift for $29,650 for a stairway to the second floor of the courthouse.
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Donley County Commissioners Court approved tax abatements for Cielo Land & Cattle Co., which is developing the $200 million Salt Fork wind farm, the county’s first wind energy project.
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Eastland County has a new Commissioner. Ronnie D. Wilson of Rising Star takes over in Precinct 3 to replace Larry Campbell.
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Erath County Commissioners Court approved installation of CodeRED, a mass notification system for rural areas in emergencies. Startup cost is $12,000 with an additional annual fee.
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Gray County Commissioners Court approved a reinvestment zone after a meeting with Austin-based Cielo Wind Services.
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Hemphill County Commissioner Lynard Schafer and Treasurer Angie Huff told the Canadian Record they will retire at the end of their current terms of office.
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Jeff Davis County Judge George Grubb is retiring after two terms, according to the Mountain Dispatch, for health reasons.
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Kimble County Judge Andrew Murr, in office since 2008, resigned to campaign for the District 53 seat in the Texas House of Representatives.
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Lampasas County Commissioners Court approved a grant of $900 for VetRides, a program that provides rides for veterans in a three-county area to medical appointments.
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Lynn County has a new Judge. Mike Braddock, former Commissioner, was appointed to replace Judge H.G. Franklin, who resigned in November after 11 years in office. John Hawthorne was appointed Commissioner of Precinct 2 after Braddock’s resignation.
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Montague County Commissioner James Gamblin resigned in November after serving in office since 2010, according to the Bowie News, to accept a job in the oil industry. His wife, Stacy, was appointed to fill his unexpired term – becoming the county’s first female Commissioner.
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Palo Pinto County Commissioners Court approved a grant of $5,500 for Meals on Wheels and participation in the state’s Effective Absentee Systems for Elections (EASE) grant program to allow absentee voters to download online ballots for return by mail.
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Scurry County Commissioners Court accepted donation of 9.3 acres of land for a future county road “that could result in economic growth and ease traffic congestion,” according to the Snyder Daily News.
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Stephens County Commissioners Court approved funding for CodeRED, a mass notification system for rural areas in emergencies.
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Taylor County Commissioners Court approved a pretrial diversion veterans docket intended to help veterans who have been arrested on suspicion of nonviolent crimes to address issues such as post-traumatic stress disorder or substance abuse.
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Tom Green County Commissioners Court approved an additional $80,000 for expansion of a roof deck at the penthouse level of Stephens Central Library. The deck is being remodeled as a public venue for up to $496,647 – funded primarily by private donations. Also, Commissioner Steve Floyd of Precinct 3 resigned in November and was replaced by Rick Bacon. Floyd was named interim County Judge to replace Mike Brown.
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Ward County Commissioners Court approved plans for a new Pyote community center.H
– Compiled by Garner Roberts