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Convention News Release - 3 July 1998

Texas Constitutional Convention
Wesley W. Burnett, Publicity and Advertising Chairman
(806) 495-4135 or FAX (806) 495-2059

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE - July 3, 1998

Delegates to the Texas Constitutional Convention are expecting to complete work on a new Texas constitution in Junction on July 11 and 12. The 12th session of the convention opens Saturday morning at 9 a.m. at the Texas Tech University Center Library in Junction. Delegates will fine-tune the new constitution in preparation for publishing and distributing in the next few months. A transition plan will also be debated. All sessions of the convention are open to the public.

The Texas Constitutional Convention was convened on July 4, 1997 at the historic Old Irion County Courthouse in Sherwood, and delegates have been meeting monthly and semi-monthly since then. When completed, the constitution will be presented to Texans for a decision through county conventions, coordinated by the Texas Constitution Ratification Committee (TCRC).

Among the highlights of the proposed new Texas constitution are the elimination of all taxation, the securing of ownership of property, the implementation of randomly selected juries and placement of most political power at the county level.

"The most important ingredient of this new constitution," chairman Don Henson emphasizes, "is our Declaration of Rights in Article 1, where we have clearly defined individual rights, leaving no doubts or questions about our meaning. Everything else in the constitution is written to support the Declaration of Rights."

The new Texas constitution establishes a republic form of government, with a unicameral administrative body, composed of 254 representatives appointed by elected officers of each Texas county to serve in the National Assembly. Implementing the functions of government authorized by the constitution, the National Assembly will be balanced by the nation-wide election of a president, vice president and treasurer, who will serve on the National Executive Council.

Demonstrating their intent to place most political power at the county level, the constitution authorizes a County Administrative Council (CAC) to implement the limited functions of county government. The council will consist of all elected officers in the county: sheriff, treasurer, county recorder, commissioner for each precinct; at least one justice and one clerk of court for each county or one justice and one clerk of court for each precinct. CACs will appoint one citizen to serve in the National Assembly, and will have authority to recall the appointee at any time.

Following adoption of the constitution, delegates will be recruiting 12 Texas citizens to serve on the ratification committee. Those Texans will be responsible for fund-raising efforts to support and coordinate the ratification as defined in Article 8. The transition plan, which is expected to be approved Sunday, will specify details for the ratification toward a lawful, peaceful and orderly transition of government.

The full document and related information is available on the following Internet web site: http://colossus.net/wepinsto/txconv/update.html

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