From: dewey@vpdbox.austin.ibm.com (Dewey Coffman)
Newsgroups: tx.politics
Subject: Texas Politics: Economics, Power & Policy
Date: 20 Nov 92 22:08:19 GMT
Reply-To: dewey@vpdbox.austin.ibm.com
Distribution: tx
Organization: IBM, Austin, TX. US of A.


	Found this book at the Austin Library. Some interesting reading.

	-dewey.

	ps. Did ya'll know that RIGHT NOW, the Texas ABC board is under
	Sunset Review and that a new provision to be voted on in the next
	Regular Session, will allow BREWPUBS in Texas. We'll be the 49th
	state to make that happen. Thank god were not last. I can post 
	more details if anyone is interested.
	---------------------------------------------------dewey-
From Texas Politics
 	Economics, Power & Policy, 4th edition
	James W. Lamre
	West Publishing, 1991

Chapter 6, The Texas Legislature, 
Page 122, Composition of the Texas Legislature
	[ previous paragraphs describes requirements for being a state Senator
or Representative]
	In reality, however, only a select few can afford a seat in the 
legislature. As noted by John Hildreth(former director of Texas's Common
Cause organization), "we might as well point out in the Constitution that
to run for the Legislature you must first be wealthy, be in business or a law
firm where your partners will cover for you while you're gone because they
fell it's in the best interest or the firm, or be owned lock, stock and
barrel by the [business] lobby."[1] The principal reasons for this lie in the
high cost of waging an effective campaign for office and in the low salary
paid to the legislators.

[1] Quoted in Jim Warren, "PACs Throwing their Weight Around in Austin,",
	Laredo Morning News, March 23, 1986

			###
Page, 132 Economic Elites and the Legislative Leadership
	Priot to his entry into politics, [Ben] Barnes had no steady source
of income. When he held office[1965-1970], his monthly salary was $400. Yet by
1971, "Barnes had business interest in radio stations at Grand Prarie and 
Abilene, several Holiday Inns, a multi-million-dollar shopping center and an
apartment comples in Brownwood, numerous stock investments and 863 acres in 
valuable farm land."[8] Obviously, once in office he had made friends with
people of capital.

[8] Kinch & Proctor, "Texas Under a Cloud", p 84

Page 135, Conclusion
	The Texas legislature is largely a weak political institution. 
Legislators are poorly paid, understaffed, and forced to resolve a mammoth
amount of business in a very short time. These limitations not only restrict
the activites of the legislature, they also make it open to outside influence.
In effect, well-organized economic interests are able to exert a great deal
of pressure on the legislative process. These factors may partially account
for the fact that the legislature is not very well thought of by the public;
a mjority of Texans rate its performance no better than fair.[28] Every recent
attempt to raise legislators' pay has been defeated by the voters, although
a majority of the public would not object to higher pay if legilators met more
often.[29]
	The bridge between economic elites and the legislature is easily
crossed. Most of this traffic flows through the legislative leadership and
the chairs of committees. The leaders orchestrate much of the business 
accomplished by the legislature. Through Finaancial connections and ideological
similarities, the leadership is usually closely allied with members of the
states economic elite.

[28] Texas Poll, July 1985
[29] Texas Poll, Spring 1989
----
Dewey Coffman		ibmpa!vpdbox.austin.ibm.com!dewey%ibminet.awdpa.ibm.com
Consulting @ IBM			dewey@ctci.com
11400 Burnet Rd				All opinions are mine.
Austin, TX 78758-3493, USA		(512) 823-6463
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