Here’s something that should concern every El Pasoan.
On Monday, El Paso’s City Council is having a Special Meeting. After they’re done discussing the funding of a variety of projects, from a variety of sources, including Certificates of Obligation (the taxpayers’ obligation), City Council will retire to discuss several topics in Executive Session.
The first three topics to be discussed in Executive Session are all justified with the blanket, one-size-fits-all, excuse, Consultation with Attorney.
The topics to be discussed are:
EX1.
Texas Gas Service, a division of ONE Gas, Inc.’s application to approve rate schedule EDIT Rider, refund of excess deferred income taxes. (551.071)
City Attorney’s Office, Karla M. Nieman, (915) 212-0033EX2.
Public Utility Commission Docket No. 48332, SOAH Docket No. 473-18-3455; Application of El Paso Electric Company to adjust its Energy Efficiency Cost Recovery Factor and Establish Revised Cost Cap; Matter No. 18-1008-110. (551.071)
City Attorney’s Office, Karla M. Nieman, (915) 212-0033EX3.
Public Utility Commission Docket No. 49148, SOAH Docket number 473-19-2303; Application of El Paso Electric Company for Approval of a Transmission Cost Recovery Factor. (551.071)
City Attorney’s Office, Karla M. Nieman, (915) 212-0033
Can you imagine any reason that those items would require the kind of special legal advice that City Council would need to get in secret discussions with the City’s attorney?
All of those deserve some open discussion before City Council pulls the curtain and retires to Executive Session. All of those are going to cost you, the tax- and ratepayer, some money.
Like that first one, EX1, the gas company’s application to refund some extra money they charged you. Your City Council is going to vote to keep that money for the City, like they did with a quarter of the money that we were supposed to get back from the Electric Company. The City is going to siphon off a slice of the refund the ratepayers would get from the Gas Company.
None of those need to be discussed in Executive Session. None of them require Consultation with Attorney.
That’s just the Mayor and City Council trying to hoodwink the taxpayers.
City government, with one or two exceptions, is a rat’s nest of liars and cheaters.
God bless them.
OK, not to be repetitive, but how do we stop them? They won’t let folks truly speak at meetings, they ignore citizens calling their reps, calling the State AG is like punching the wall, and trying to litigate means you have to have the resources of George Soros or Bill Gates to outmaneuver them before they spend you into bankruptcy with frivolous motions. Is it time to breakout the feathers, tar, torches and pitchforks?
I think we need a Voters Union. We need to create a movement, that, if it doesn’t stop our current crop of elected officials, may replace them in 2020.
They are, apparently, incapable of shame and impervious to reason.
The City Manager bullies the Council Members, by slow-playing projects in their district.
The Mayor is either incompetent or corrupt, or both.
And the voters are apathetic.
We’ll talk later.
Dude, i have copied and pasted info from this page and brutus and helen marshall and others and emailed it to ken paxton office at least ten times. They replied and asked how this info was obtained. I replied foia and research from aforementioned persons. They dont give a shit. Compared to Austin and san Antonio’s problems this shit farce appears mild. Try. Email this paxton hero guy. Grrrrrrrrr
IT is NO secret there are Secrets…
My only guess as to their justification was if they were discussing negotiation tactics with the lawyer.
It would inspire more confidence if they agreed to publish the meetings after 1 year or something.
I’m sure you can come up with a rationale for why Executive Session may be justifiable. But City Council runs to Executive Session every time they want to discuss something.
Remember this article I posted on 25 September 2018?
https://elchuqueno.com/city-councils-abuse-of-executive-session/
There are almost never any open discussions in public.
Voter apathy is the biggest cause. Mainly because everyone believes you cannot change administrations at the ballot box. And no candidates have truly inspired the voter base.
As to secrecy, I have no way to prove it, however my belief is they meet here and there, agree upon courses of action, hammer out the details in Executive Session and then present it as new council business. With the clique that is in there now, it would be impossible to confirm one way or the other as none of them will give up that treasured money maker seat.
Dude, i have copied and pasted info from this page and brutus and helen marshall and others and emailed it to ken paxton office at least ten times. They replied and asked how this info was obtained. I replied foia and research from aforementioned persons. They dont give a shit. Compared to Austin and san Antonio’s problems this shit farce appears mild. Try. Email this paxton hero guy. Grrrrrrrrr