Resolutions that will be voted upon at the SD 26 Convention

1. Everyone will have the opportunity to read and discuss the resolutions before the convention takes place.  Our party can withstand healthy discussions on important issues, even when there isn't a consensus of opinion!  Click here to join in on the discussion of these resolutions at the Burnt Orange Report (not a Bexar County Democatic Party website).
2. Participants in the SD 26 convention will recognize the potential of the resolutions process in amplifying the voice of the grassroots of the party, as we have this opportunity to express our views collectively only once every two years. Because delegates assembled in convention represent the highest level of authority within the Texas Democratic Party, we can expect our elected Democratic representatives in state and federal government to pay attention.
3. There should be transparency in the actions of our committee. Our intent is to allow good ideas to defy gravity and float to the top, even if they began with only a single precinct.

INDEX OF RESOLUTIONS

1. For ending the conflict in Iraq
2. For non-discrimination legislation
3. For safe schools for all children
4. For single-payer health care
5. For overhaul of Medicare Part D
6. For alternatives to detention of immigrant and asylum-seeking children
7. For combatting global warming
8. For making public facilities available for senatorial district conventions
9. For public campaign financing
10. For a one-day national primary
11. For ending the caucus system (TABLED)
12. Opposing private management and ownership of public facilities
13. Opposing new toll roads
14. Requiring verifiable voting
15. For a national voter registration system
16. Opposing voter ID laws
17. For a solar rebate for Texas
18. For a national renewable energy standard
19. Opposing new coal plants
20. For alternative fuels in new vehicles
21. For expanded funding of the National Cemetery system
22. For Hazelwood Act extension
23. For more Veterans Administration hospitals in Texas
24. For improved health care for veterans
25. Opposing a border wall
26. For statewide binding initiative and referendum
27. For rules change on filling precinct chair vacancies
28. Opposing torture
29. For recycling electronics
30. For military environmental responsibility
31. For a living wage and collective bargaining
32. For protecting pensions
33. For Social Security fairness for public employees
34. For national student loan restoration
35. Opposing penalty for community college students who withdraw from courses
36. Opposing penalty for college and university students who withdraw from courses
37. For establishing relations with Cuba
38. For a fair peace process between Israel and Palestine
39. For holding Blackwater Worldwide accountable
    
40. For immigrant rights
41. For cameras in jails
42. For alternatives to prison
43. For children's health insurance
    
44. For combatting gang activity
45. Opposing refuel jet purchase from foreign companies
46. For teaching of science
47. For passenger rail
48. For reasonable prices on government contract spending
49. For marriage equality
50. Opposing the No Child Left Behind Act
51. For equalization of school funding
52. For fair trade (pending committee vote)
    
53. Resolutions tabled because they are substantively similar to other resolutions recommended by the committee
54. Resolutions not recommended by the committee

WHEREAS the American people have shown their disapproval of the handling and operation of the conflict and occupation in Iraq;

WHEREAS the majority of the people in the United States are in favor of withdrawing from the War in Iraq;

WHEREAS the current conflict in Iraq is bankrupting the United States, taking funds needed for programs benefiting our own citizens;

WHEREAS this conflict has put an unreasonable burden on our active and reserve armed forces to the detriment of our country’s long-term security; and

WHEREAS this conflict was unwarranted, ill-conceived, and inappropriate;

THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the Texas Democratic Party, in support of our men and women serving in the armed forces, advocates ending the occupation of Iraq and planning for the safe and orderly withdrawal of all United States forces.

WHEREAS we believe every Texan has the right to participate fully and equally in society and enjoy its benefits and freedoms;

WHEREAS lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) Texans suffer pervasive discrimination in employment, housing, public accommodations, and education because of homophobia and a lack of legal protections;

WHEREAS protecting vulnerable members of our state from unwarranted discrimination is fully consistent with the goals, aspirations and values of the Texas Democratic Party and Texans in general;

WHEREAS non-discrimination laws help to ensure that LGBT people have equal access to the same opportunities and protections granted to others, such as the ability to work in an environment where people are judged by their job performance, not by their sexual orientation or gender identity or expression; and

WHEREAS the State of Texas does not have a statewide non-discrimination policy covering sexual orientation and gender identity or expression;

THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the Texas Democratic Party supports the passage of comprehensive non-discrimination legislation that would make discrimination based upon sexual orientation, gender identity or expression illegal in employment, housing, insurance, education and public accommodations.

Submitted to and Adopted by 67 precincts (1001, 1005, 1006, 1010, 1070, 1079, 1080, 1087, 1088, 1093, 1098, 1101, 1104, 1108, 1112, 1113, 2004, 2021, 2026, 2034, 2035, 2039, 2058, 2060, 2076, 2078, 2084, 2087, 2090, 2093, 2094, 2097, 2106, 2118, 2125, 2132, 2139, 2144, 3003, 3010, 3016, 3031, 3032, 3037, 3038, 3095, 3107, 3113, 3116, 3127, 3129, 3136, 3138, 3139, 3140, 3141, 3147, 3168, 3172, 4006, 4013, 4014, 4015, 4017, 4018, 4075, 4157); and Amended and Adopted by Precinct 2140, in Senate District 26, Bexar County, Texas, March 4, 2008. 

WHEREAS we believe every Texan has the right to participate fully and equally in society and enjoy its benefits and freedoms;

WHEREAS all children should be safe and feel safe while at school, regardless of their ability, color, country of origin, disability status, economic status, ethnicity, gender, gender identity or expression, parental marital status, physical appearance, race, religion, or sexual orientation;

WHEREAS a survey documented that up to 40% of all Texas school children were verbally harassed, bullied, or physically abused at school during the preceding year;

WHEREAS simple school programs to discourage bullying and harassment have been shown to be inexpensive and effective; and

WHEREAS the State of Texas does not have a statewide model policy or statute setting minimum standards or policies for schools to adopt or implement;

THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the Texas Democratic Party supports the passage of legislation to protect all school children from bullying and harassment.

Submitted to and Adopted by 66 precincts (1001, 1005, 1006, 1010, 1070, 1079, 1080, 1087, 1088, 1093, 1098, 1101, 1104, 1108, 1112, 1113, 2004, 2021, 2026, 2034, 2035, 2055, 2058, 2060, 2076, 2078, 2084, 2087, 2090, 2093, 2094, 2097, 2106, 2118, 2125, 2132, 2139, 2144, 3003, 3010, 3016, 3031, 3032, 3037, 3038, 3095, 3107, 3113, 3116, 3127, 3129, 3136, 3138, 3139, 3140, 3141, 3147, 3168, 3172, 4006, 4013, 4014, 4017, 4018, 4075, 4157); and Amended and Adopted by Precinct 2140, in Senate District 26, Bexar County, Texas, March 4, 2008.  Amended by the Senate District 26 Resolutions Committee, March 16, 2008.

WHEREAS health care costs have grown enormously in the past five years to more than two trillion dollars annually;

WHEREAS 47 million Americans have no health insurance at all, approximately 50 million are under-insured, and Texas ranks first in the nation with the percentage of uninsured persons, including the highest rate of uninsured children;

WHEREAS administrative expenses amount to 31% of the total cost of health care in the current, for-profit insurance-based system, as opposed to only 3% of the total cost of health care administered by Medicare;

WHEREAS expansion of the Medicare system to cover all Americans would save more than $100 billion annually while at the same time protecting Americans from the catastrophic financial consequences that millions of Americans face every day as a result of the current system;

WHEREAS universal, single-payer health care based on an expansion of the current Medicare system is provided for in The United States National Health Insurance Act (H.R. 676), which was introduced in Congress in 2003;

WHEREAS presidential candidates have drafted plans that claim to provide “universal health care” while retaining the for-profit nature of the health insurance industry, thereby failing to address the larger problems with the current system, instead merely mandating that everyone buy health insurance; and

WHEREAS the mere provision of universal health insurance does not guarantee that all Americans will be provided the health care that they need, but leaves them subject to the whims of insurance companies who profit from denial of needed treatment,

BE IT THEREFORE RESOLVED that we call upon our Democratic Congressional delegation to advocate and support legislation to establish a universal, single-payer health insurance program of publicly financed and privately delivered health care as an improved and expanded Medicare for all Americans, covering all medically necessary services by the physician of their choice, without any co-pays or deductibles.

Submitted to and Adopted by 65 precincts (1001, 1005, 1006, 1010, 1070, 1079, 1080, 1087, 1088, 1093, 1098, 1101, 1104, 1108, 1112, 1113, 2004, 2008, 2021, 2034, 2035, 2055, 2056, 2058, 2060, 2076, 2078, 2084, 2087, 2090, 2093, 2094, 2097, 2106, 2118, 2125, 2132, 2140, 3003, 3004, 3010, 3016, 3031, 3032, 3037, 3038, 3095, 3113, 3127, 3129, 3136, 3138, 3139, 3140, 3141, 3154, 3168, 3172, 4006, 4013, 4014, 4017, 4018, 4075, 4157) in Senate District 26, Bexar County, Texas, March 4, 2008.  Amended by the Senate District 26 Resolutions Committee, March 16, 2008.

WHEREAS the 109^th Congress enacted the Medicare Part D Bill (Prescription Drug Coverage for Elderly Americans) in 2005;

WHEREAS the bill was clearly crafted by the pharmaceutical industry to raise profits;

WHEREAS the law prohibited the federal agency administering the Medicare program from negotiating lower drug prices;

WHEREAS prices for prescription drugs increased just before the law came into effect; and

WHEREAS the law created a large gap in coverage;

THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that immediately upon being sworn in on January 5, 2009, Congress shall overhaul the Medicare Part D law to (1) eliminate the drug price immunity for the pharmaceutical industry, (2) reduce the out-of-pocket liability for the cost of prescription drugs for the elderly, and (3) allow Canadian and other high-quality prescription drugs to be legally imported to the U.S.

Submitted to and Adopted by 65 precincts (1001, 1005, 1006, 1010, 1070, 1079, 1080, 1087, 1088, 1093, 1098, 1101, 1104, 1108, 1112, 1113, 2004, 2008, 2021, 2026, 2034, 2039, 2056, 2058, 2060, 2076, 2078, 2084, 2087, 2090, 2093, 2094, 2097, 2106, 2118, 2125, 2132, 2139, 3003, 3010, 3016, 3031, 3032, 3037, 3038, 3095, 3107, 3113, 3127, 3129, 3136, 3138, 3139, 3140, 3141, 3147, 3168, 3172, 4006, 4013, 4014, 4017, 4018, 4075, 4157); and Amended and Adopted by Precinct 2055, in Senate District 26, Bexar County, Texas, March 4, 2008.  Amended by the Senate District 26 Resolutions Committee, March 16, 2008.

WHEREAS border protection is important to the security of the nation as a whole;

WHEREAS immigration affects the economic and social well-being of both the United States and Mexico;

WHEREAS a private firm re-opened the T. Don Hutto Residential Facility in Taylor, Texas, for the purpose of detaining immigrant and asylum-seeking families who are awaiting immigration proceedings,

WHEREAS it is not appropriate to convert a medium-security prison and rename it as a family detention center where children are detained with their families and some children are separated from their families;

NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the Texas Democratic Party add to its platform that the U.S. Department of Homeland Security should consider all alternatives to the detention of immigrant and asylum-seeking families with children, and must reunite children with their families; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a child who is brought into this country by a family member shall not be subject to criminal sanctions, and the child’s presence in the U.S. shall not be defined as unlawful.

WHEREAS world climate scientists now agree that global warming is occurring, chiefly by the combustion of oil, coal, and gas;

WHEREAS the level of carbon dioxide in our atmosphere is fast approaching the point of no return;

WHEREAS increased efficiency and conservation would go far in reducing our need for energy without compromising our standard of living; and

WHEREAS safe, clean, renewable forms of energy like solar, wind, geothermal and biomass could greatly reduce energy sources that contribute to global warming;

BE IT RESOLVED that the Texas Democratic Party calls for legislation that would

(1) Set a target of 20% renewable energy sources for the U.S. energy supply by 2020;

(2) Through a cap-and-trade system, or failing that, mandatory restriction, reduce U.S. greenhouse gas (carbon dioxide, nitrous oxide, methane, etc.) emissions by 20% by 2020;

(3) Remove subsidies from fossil fuels and apply them to efficiency increases in buildings and transportation, and to the development of renewable energy; and

(4) Cooperate with the global community to formulate a new and better international climate protection agreement.

WHEREAS the Texas Election Code require political parties’ County and Senatorial District conventions to be held under detailed rules, and so holding them is a matter of public policy and not just a partisan matter;

WHEREAS recently some cities and school districts have changed their practices to make these facilities unavailable for political meetings, either by general prohibitions or through unreasonably high fees and million-dollar insurance requirements;

WHEREAS section 174.0631 requires that “No charge may be made for the use of a public building for a precinct, county, or senatorial district convention except for reimbursement for the actual expenses resulting from use of the building for the convention,” but that section is silent on the obligation to make facilities available;

WHEREAS section 43.031 of the Texas Election Code requires that public buildings shall be made available for primary election polling places; and

WHEREAS local government bodies which prevent or discourage taxpayers from holding County and Senatorial District party conventions in public facilities are acting against public policy;

THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that this convention and the Texas Democratic Party ask our legislators to amend Chapter 174 of the Texas Election Code to require that all local government bodies must make all of their meeting facilities available for County and Senatorial District party conventions.

WHEREAS campaign funding at all levels of government has soared in recent decades;

WHEREAS potential candidates are usually not considered viable without wealthy and economically powerful supporters;

WHEREAS under the current system of campaign financing, the average citizen cannot match the political influence of the economically powerful;

WHEREAS candidates and elected officials are required to spend a huge proportion of their time, energy, and staff raising funds rather than meeting with constituents;

WHEREAS the public interest has taken a back seat to the private and special interests which are influencing decisions made by our elected representatives; and

WHEREAS public financing of campaigns has been successfully implemented in seven states and two cities;

NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the Texas Democratic Party finds and declares that the unique factual circumstances in the State of Texas require that provisions for publicly financed elections be enacted to promote the compelling interests of democracy in Texas;

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that to this end the Texas Democratic Party meeting in convention insists that the Texas legislature during its next session, commencing in January 2009, propose a constitutional amendment election necessary for the establishment of a publicly financed elections system in Texas; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that this system would provide public financing for all state legislative and statewide elective office candidates who refuse to take any private interest or special interest campaign contributions and agree to certain spending limits; this public financing would be used by candidates to campaign for elective office adhering to all election and campaign reporting laws.

WHEREAS participating effectively in nominating campaigns has become an enormously expensive process;

WHEREAS the practice of holding nominating caucuses in Iowa and a primary in New Hampshire loads an excessive amount of those expenses in the first two weeks of the nominating process;

WHEREAS additional primaries and caucuses in Nevada, South Carolina, Florida, and Michigan adds significantly to the “front-loading” of campaign expenses;

WHEREAS this front-loading of campaign expenses has caused several viable candidates for the Party’s nomination to withdraw from the competition prematurely;

WHEREAS these withdrawals have deprived Democrats in the other 44 states of an opportunity to cast a ballot for the candidate of their choice, thus disenfranchising a very large majority of the Democrats in the United States; and

WHEREAS the disproportionate influence over the selection of a nominee destroys any semblance of democracy in the Democratic Party since so many of us do not have an opportunity to cast a ballot for the candidate of our choice;

THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the Democratic National Committee should negotiate a NATIONAL PRIMARY in which Democrats in all 50 states express their presidential preferences on the same day, preferably on the first Tuesday in March of the year in which a president will be elected.

Submitted to and Adopted by 42 precincts (1009, 1010, 1029, 1080, 1084, 1087, 1088, 1093, 1113, 2007, 2013, 2014, 2017, 2021, 2030, 2034, 2056, 2060, 2072, 2076, 2078, 2087, 2094, 2106, 2107, 2118, 2120, 2125, 2132, 3010, 3031, 3058, 3113, 3129, 3136, 3138, 3139, 3169, 3172, 4013, 4014, 4075) in Senate District 26, Bexar County, Texas, March 4, 2008.  Amended by the Senate District 26 Resolutions Committee, March 16, 2008 (changing only the title).

WHEREAS the caucus system has become part of the voting process;

WHEREAS the caucus has become cumbersome and time-consuming;

WHEREAS the caucus has disenfranchised massive numbers of registered voters, such as the elderly, the disabled, parents with children, those who have to work during the evening hours, those without transportation, those who are caretakers of the unwell, those who leave their sick beds to cast a vote hoping to be heard and unable to return for the caucus or unable to stay for hours due to their infirmities, etc.;

WHEREAS the caucus is inadequate, inappropriate, and unfair;

WHEREAS because of the caucus system, elections have not reflected the will of the people;

WHEREAS the caucus system has no place in a democratic process nor in a democratic society;

WHEREAS the caucus has diminished the votes and the voice of the American people, and therefore is undemocratic;

WHEREAS the caucus does not support that every person has the right to one equal vote, not a partial vote and not a greater vote than others, but rather one complete and equal vote so that one vote equals one vote;

BE IT THEREFORE RESOLVED that we who have come forward and assembled together, representing the highest ideals of democracy and advocating the highest standards of a democratic people in support of preservation of every person’s rights and in support of equality for all, call upon our Democratic Party to uphold the sanctity of democracy and advocate for all persons by bringing an end to the caucus system.

WHEREAS the public facilities owned by the agencies and units of government of the State of Texas are owned, in fact, by the citizens of Texas;

WHEREAS proposals have been made to turn over the ownership, leasing, operation and/or management of existing and future public facilities in Texas to agencies, companies and/or private consortiums led and primarily owned by private entities;

WHEREAS we believe that sufficient collective public and private resources exist to own, operate and manage the public facilities owned by the citizens of the State of Texas safely, securely and efficiently; and

WHEREAS we see no need for private firms and government entities to profit from the public facilities owned by the citizens of Texas;

NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the laws of the State of Texas should be amended to prohibit agencies and units of government of the State of Texas, without exception, from entering into any contract with any private company or government or any private consortium including foreign firms for the purposes of transferring the ownership, leasing, operation and/or management of any Texas public facility; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that this measure be applied immediately to prevent any such contracts under consideration from being executed and to cancel any such existing contracts.

Submitted to and Adopted by Precincts 2035, 2139, 2140 and 3127 in Bexar County, Texas, Senatorial District 26, on March 4, 2008.  Amended by the Senate District 26 Resolutions Committee, March 16, 2008.

WHEREAS private land in Texas can be confiscated through eminent domain for roadways;

WHEREAS the Texas Department of Transportation and regional mobility authorities have created public-private partnerships that would allow confiscated land, as well as existing roads and right-of-way, to be leased for profit by private companies, including foreign consortiums;

WHEREAS the Texas Department of Transportation has proposed tolling of existing roads and right-of-way, which Texas law allows without a vote of the citizens of the affected county;

WHEREAS we have already paid for our public roads and right-of-way through local, state and federal taxes spent on road construction and maintenance;

WHEREAS the tolling of an existing public road or right-of-way constitutes corporate welfare and double taxation of the citizens of Texas; and

WHEREAS the Texas Transportation Commission has proposed market-based tolls based not on the actual cost of construction, maintenance, and debt retirement, but rather on how much profit can be made by setting the highest possible toll that “the market can bear,” so that money is siphoned from motorists on one road to pay for other roads;

NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that we, the delegates of the Texas Democratic Party assembled in convention, call upon the Texas Legislature to prohibit confiscation of private land for toll roads to be operated or leased by private companies;

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that we call on the Texas Legislature to prohibit market-based tolling, and to prohibit tolling of public roads or right-of-way for private profit; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that we call on the Texas Legislature to prohibit the tolling of any existing public road or right-of-way, including roads not yet open to traffic, except as approved by vote of the citizens of the affected county.

Submitted to and Adopted by Precincts 2139, 2140, 3015, 3029, and 3127 in Bexar County, Texas, Senatorial District 26, on March 4, 2008.  Amended by the Senate District 26 Resolutions Committee, condensing three separate resolutions into one, March 17, 2008.

WHEREAS computerized voting equipment is inherently subject to programming error, equipment malfunction, and deliberate tampering, causing votes to be lost or counted incorrectly;

WHEREAS it is essential to have a voter-verifiable paper ballot or audit trail to allow true recounts, to verify vote counting, and to determine when voting machines were tampered with;

BE IT THEREFORE RESOLVED that the Texas Democratic Party urges that the Democratic Congressional delegation advocate adequate federal funding for voter-verifiable systems to be used in all elections;

BE IT RESOLVED that voting machines should not be used unless they provide an individual paper ballot;

BE IT RESOLVED that where non-verifiable voting machines are already in use, they should be replaced or modified to print an individual paper ballot;

BE IT RESOLVED that after the voter verifies the paper ballot, the ballot shall be retained by the Elections Office, and in the case of a recount, only the paper ballot shall be acceptable for the recount.

BE IT RESOLVED that certification of electronic voting machines must be open to public review and comment;

BE IT RESOLVED that any electronic vote counting equipment should use only open-source, verifiable software, and that proprietary secret software code should be banned for all vote-counting, and that maintenance records shall be kept for all vote-counting machines; and

BE IT RESOLVED that the privacy and voting rights of the disabled shall be protected.

WHEREAS some people have residences in more than one state, making it possible to vote more than once in the same election

BE IT THEREFORE RESOLVED that the Democratic Party urges a national voter registration system for use in federal elections to ensure the principle of “one person, one vote.”

Submitted to and Adopted by Precinct 4006 in Senate District 26, Bexar County, Texas, March 4, 2008.  Amended by the Senate District 26 Resolutions Committee, March 17, 2008.

WHEREAS “Voter ID” laws add a barrier to the right to vote;

WHEREAS the fact that almost all Republicans in the Texas Legislature supported the “Voter ID” law while no Democrat did makes the proposal one of the most strictly partisan in the recent annals of the Legislature; and

WHEREAS “Voter ID” laws are purely an attempt to reduce the Democratic Party’s voting base;

THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the Texas Democratic Party shall continue its strong opposition to the “Voter ID” law and any other proposal that will serve to deny people the right to vote.

WHEREAS Texas has the greatest solar resource potential in the nation;

WHEREAS the Legislature helped create a boom for wind power in Texas;

WHEREAS the price of solar panels has declined dramatically over the last two decades, but it is still not cost-effective for most homeowners and businesses;

WHEREAS solar power is pollution-free and, unlike coal or nuclear power, has no water requirements;

WHEREAS air pollution hurts Texas communities because it makes people sick, increases local property taxes to pay for uncompensated health care, and increases health insurance costs for everyone;

WHEREAS Austin’s municipally-owned utility has a very successful solar rebate program that has helped hundreds of homeowners, schools and businesses install solar panels, but this rebate isn’t available in the rest of Texas; and

WHEREAS a small investment now could bring billions in investment to the state over the next decade;

THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the Democratic Party calls upon the Governor and Texas Legislature to pass legislation establishing a statewide solar rebate program.

WHEREAS Texas’ renewable power standard has been highly effective in increasing the supply of renewable power available to Texas consumers;

WHEREAS Texas leads the nation in potential for renewable power production;

WHEREAS the renewable power industry has already provided more than 2,500 new job in Texas and $12 million in revenue for schools; and

WHEREAS increasing the share of electricity in the US that comes from renewable sources would help protect the environment and reduce the pollution that causes smog and global warming;

THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the Texas Democratic Party calls upon the Texas Congressional delegation to pass legislation establishing a national renewable energy standard requiring at least 20% of electricity generated in the United States to come from safe, clean, renewable resources.

WHEREAS the air in the Dallas/Fort Worth, El Paso, Houston and Beaumont/Port Arthur areas fails to meet health-based standards, and air quality in Austin, San Antonio and Tyler/Longview is close to violating health-based standards;

WHEREAS five additional coal plants are under construction and three more are proposed for Texas despite the fact that studies show strong links between air pollution and asthma, respiratory illness, strokes, and death from lung cancer and heart disease, and 1160 Texans die prematurely every year from power plant particle pollution;

WHEREAS coal-burning power plants are the state’s largest industrial sources of smog-forming nitrogen oxides and toxic mercury emissions, which contaminate fish and damage the developing brains of babies and children, and coal-burning power plants emit sulfur pollution that causes deaths from lung cancer and heart disease, and Texas coal plants rank first in the nation for carbon dioxide emissions; and

WHEREAS Texas can and should meet future energy needs and lead the nation by developing wind and solar power technologies, green building standards and improved building codes, capturing waste energy through combined heat and power, and by increasing energy efficiency, which benefits consumers, businesses and industries while reducing power demand;

THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the Texas Democratic Party urge that a moratorium on new coal plants should be enacted immediately.

WHEREAS we as constituents are subjected to rising costs of oil and fuel;

WHEREAS we are purchasing oil from the OPEC consortium instead of using the oil that is produced in the U.S. and alternative fuel resources; and

WHEREAS we are also subjected to ecological harm because of the continued use of oil as a primary fuel in automobiles;

BE IT THEREFORE RESOLVED that the Texas Democratic Party urge the Congressional delegation of the United States to provide government-funded rebates for new vehicles that use alternative fuel.

WHEREAS the National Cemetery system provides a meaningful place for honorable burial for all service members; and

WHEREAS the National Cemetery system is in need of expansion, better facility and maintenance care, and the ability to reach out to veterans without connection or income;

BE IT THEREFORE RESOLVED that the national Democratic Party should bring before Congress a proposal to expand funding for the National Cemetery system so that the cemeteries may be expanded and full military honorable burials may be given for all veterans regardless of income.

WHEREAS the Texas Senate Committee on Veteran Affairs and Military Installations during the 78th Interim had as its main charge to study the possibility of extending unused Hazelwood hours to the children and grandchildren of a veteran and, in order to keep the program as simple and limited as possible, this bill only allowed one child, and no grandchildren, to use the benefit;

WHEREAS S.B.1227 (which included the Uresti Amendment allowing Texas Veterans entitled to exemptions of tuition at state-funded Universities to assign these exemptions to their children) did not pass out of the Texas House and Senate Conference committee;

WHEREAS the original intent of the Hazelwood benefit being to reward wartime veterans because the Texas Legislature has never declared the Cold War over, peacetime vets since June 27, 1950 have been able to use the Hazelwood Act; and

WHEREAS the Joint Senate/House Committee failed to include the Uresti Amendment allowing Texas Veterans to pass their Hazelwood Act benefits to their children;

BE IT RESOLVED that the Texas Democratic Party calls upon the Legislature of Texas to once and for all pass a bill allowing Texas Veterans who have unused education benefits, namely exemptions of tuition at state-funded universities, to assign these exemptions to their children and grandchildren instead.

WHEREAS 5% of the veterans in Texas live in South Texas and are currently not served by a Veterans Administration Hospital;

WHEREAS in many cases these veterans must now travel hundreds of miles to the VA hospital in San Antonio, where numerous veterans live; and

WHEREAS the Veterans Administration has closed the Kerrville VA facility, and veterans living in the Hill Country are now forced to seek treatment in San Antonio;

BE IT RESOLVED that the Texas Democratic Party demand that a Veterans Administration Hospital be constructed in South Texas, and that the Kerrville Veterans Administration Hospital be restored to its previous status of general medical facility to care for veterans in the Hill Country; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Texas Democratic Party binds all of their candidates for the November election to work with the State of Texas, the Texas Legislature, and the Texas Congressional Delegation in the creation of a Veterans Medical Hospital in South Texas and the restoration of the Kerrville facility.

WHEREAS John Rowan, president of the Vietnam Veterans of America, testified before the House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs that the FY 2007 VA budget, which would open the VA healthcare system to all eligible veterans, was short by at least $4.2 billion;

WHEREAS Mr. Rowan further testified that even if the VA continued its exclusionary policy that has denied health care to hundreds of thousands of veterans, the budget for health care was still short by some $2.3 billion;

WHEREAS Mr. Rowan noted that the continuing and increasing burden on the health-care system is caused not only by the influx of veterans fighting in Afghanistan and Iraq, but “because Vietnam veterans are getting sicker at an earlier age with diseases and maladies that can be traced back to our service in Southeast Asia”;

WHEREAS even with recent funding increases, cost-cutting moves have locked more than a quarter million veterans out of the system, those excluded having no illnesses or injuries attributable to their military service and earning more than the average wage in their community;

WHEREAS more than 11,000 veterans who served in the Persian Gulf have died from various injuries and illnesses, and more than 256,000 have filed claims against the government for veterans compensation or medical care;

WHEREAS nearly 120,000 veterans who served in Iraq and Afghanistan have sought treatment at Veterans’ Health Administration hospitals for a wide range of illnesses;

WHEREAS the U.S. Senators from Texas did not vote in favor of an amendment that was defeated, which would have proposed additional funding to shore up the failing infrastructures at Veterans’ hospitals all over the country;

WHEREAS families, including spouses, partners and children, also suffer from the mental after-effects of having a veteran of war within their family; and

WHEREAS current practices fail to meet needs while simultaneously creating a stigma among service members and their family by making mental health care part of their permanent record;

BE IT RESOLVED that the Texas Democratic Party does hereby instruct the Democratic Congressional Delegation to work within Congress to ensure full and adequate funding for physical and mental health care benefits to all service members and veterans and their families, without discrimination or stigmatization.

WHEREAS the Department of Homeland Security’s border wall project will not stop immigration or smuggling and will do nothing to protect the U.S. from terrorism;

WHEREAS the border wall project could have devastating consequences for the environment, the economy, and the communities of the border region, including walling off the Rio Grande from the town and cities that have grown up on its banks;

WHEREAS in the hurricane-prone Lower Rio Grande Valley of South Texas, as well as in Presidio in the Big Bend area, the border wall is planned to be constructed on or near the flood control levees that parallel the Rio Grande with no studies published that describe what impact the proposed wall would have on flooding or on the integrity of the levee system;

WHEREAS Section 102 of the Real ID Act of 2005 give the Secretary of Homeland Security the power to waive the Endangered Species Act, the Migratory Bird Act, the Clean Water Act, the Clean Air Act, and the National Historic Preservation Act;

WHEREAS this waiver provision of the Real ID Act also denies individuals and organizations the right to sue the Department of Homeland Security for the damages the border wall will cause, limiting lawsuits only to those based on constitutional grounds; and

WHEREAS the wall would be placed in the middle of the property of the University of Texas at Brownsville’s campus, thereby limiting free access to significant portions of the campus;

THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the Texas Democratic Party calls on Congress to halt immediately the construction of a wall between Texas and Mexico, and to repeal Section 102 of the Real ID Act of 2005.

WHEREAS Article I of the Texas Constitution confirms that “All political power is inherent in the people”;

WHEREAS initiative is the right of citizens to propose laws or Constitutional Amendments for approval or rejection by the voters;

WHEREAS use of the initiative in various states has brought such reforms as term limits, campaign finance reform, the eight-hour work day, voter approval of taxes, and the right for women to vote;

WHEREAS voters should have the right through the referendum process to repeal legislation passed by the Texas Legislature; and

WHEREAS initiative and referendum make government more responsive to its citizens, neutralizing the power of special interests, and stimulating public involvement in legislative issues,

THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the Texas Democratic Party calls on the Texas Legislature in its 2009 session to propose a Constitutional Amendment establishing binding statewide initiative and referendum both for Constitutional Amendments and for Texas state statutes.

WHEREAS a functional County Executive Committee (CEC), consisting of precinct chairs who are elected in the Democratic primary in even-numbered years, is essential to the effective operation of the Texas Democratic Party;

WHEREAS the Texas Election Code (§ 171.024) provides a procedure for filling vacancies on the CEC that occur between primaries, stipulating that the CEC “shall fill by appointment any vacancy on the committee,” that “a majority of the committee’s membership must participate in filling a vacancy,” and that “to be elected, a person must receive a favorable vote of a majority of the members voting”;

WHEREAS the only exception to this requirement that a majority of the CEC must participate in filling the vacancy is provided by “Subsection (c)” of the Texas Election Code, § 171.024, which applies only when a former precinct chair, after being elected in the most recent primary, has moved out of that precinct and into a new precinct that has no current precinct chair, providing that said precinct chair may be reinstated in that new precinct if there is no other candidate for precinct chair in the new precinct;

WHEREAS the Rules of the Texas Democratic Party, Article III, Section E.5(b), in an attempt to interpret the Texas Election Code, § 171.024. by specifying that “any vacancy on the Committee shall be filled by majority of the County Executive Committee at a meeting at which a majority of the membership shall constitute a quorum” have inadvertently added the additional requirement that such an appointment can only take place at a meeting of the CEC;

WHEREAS in Bexar County and other large counties, this statutory quorum of a majority of the members has proven difficult to achieve at a single meeting (the quorum for all other purposes being only a quarter of the membership), to the effect that as of March 4, 2008, more than twenty consecutive meetings of the Bexar County CEC have failed to reach the statutory quorum so that no precinct chairs have been appointed since the 2006 primary unless they met the circumstances described in “Subsection (c)”; and

WHEREAS the inability to appoint new precinct chairs has hindered the Democratic Party,

BE IT THEREFORE RESOLVED that Article III, Section E.5(b) of the Rules of the Texas Democratic Party be amended to read that “any vacancy on the Committee shall be filled by majority of the County Executive Committee at a meeting at which a majority of the membership shall constitute a quorum, or the County Executive Committee may at its discretion conduct a vote outside of a meeting, listing the precinct chairs to be appointed on a published ballot sent to all of its membership, to be signed and returned by a stated deadline, in keeping with the requirement that the vote cannot be taken in secret, providing that the vote cannot be closed until a majority of the membership have returned their signed ballots.”

WHEREAS all forms of torture (regardless of severity) violate the spirit of the U.S. Constitution and International Law, more specifically, the Geneva Convention; 

WHEREAS the current administration has violated provisions of the U.S. Constitution and Geneva Convention by the use of torture in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, and by the rendition of prisoners to countries who use torture;

WHEREAS by condemning all forms of torture, we are sending a clear message to all terrorists, that although they refuse to adhere to International Law, the United States will always rise above their brutal acts; and

THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the Texas Democratic Party urges the Democratic Congressional delegation from Texas to draft and support legislation calling for the abolishment of torture in all its forms, including waterboarding, and for ending the rendition program of the Central Intelligence Agency.

WHEREAS the Texas State Legislature unanimously passed House Bill 2714, requiring the producers of computers and some other electronic products to set up free and convenient recycling programs for their products by September 1, 2008;

WHEREAS producer takeback recycling of electronic waste should relieve the burden of diverting and recycling toxic electronic waste off of the shoulders of local governments and tax-payers;

WHEREAS on February 17, 2009 the over-the-airwaves signal to televisions in the U.S. will switch from an analog to the digital signal, and House Bill 2714 does not cover televisions; and

WHEREAS old-style cathode ray tube televisions contain an average of four to eight pounds of lead and other toxic material that should not be put in our landfills to potentially leak into water supplies in Texas, nor should hazardous electronic waste be exported to developing countries where crude scrap operations are poisoning people and the air, land and water of other countries;

THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the Texas Democratic Party urges the Texas State Legislature to pass legislation in 2009 that expands the scope of the producer takeback recycling law to cover obsolete televisions, computer equipment, and other electronic waste; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Texas Democratic Party urges that the U.S. Congress and President should act to stop the export of toxic materials to developing countries in accordance with international laws designed to prevent trade in toxic waste.

WHEREAS the Department of Defense through its use of dangerous chemicals has devastated the health of communities and the environment in the United States and at military installations around the world;

WHEREAS in San Antonio, chlorinated solvents, heavy metals, and other toxic substances were poured into open pits on Kelly Air Force Base as part of military operations, and these substances led to a shallow groundwater contamination that persists to this day, underlying tens of thousands of low-income homes;

WHEREAS studies have found elevated rates of liver cancer, low birth weights, heart abnormalities in babies, and other health ailments in the communities surrounding the former Kelly Air Force Base;

WHEREAS over 140 former workers of Kelly Air Force Base contracted Lou Gehrig’s disease, a very rare, painful, and deadly degenerative disease;

WHEREAS toxic chemicals continue to seep into Leon Creek from Kelly Air Force Base; and

WHEREAS currently the Department of Defense is exempt from federal and state laws protecting the environment and public health and safety, by which other government agencies, private corporations and citizens must abide;

THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the Texas Democratic Party calls on Congress to enact legislation compelling the Department of Defense and defense-related agencies to comply with all federal and state laws protecting the health and safety of communities, workers, and the environment, including but not limited to the National Environmental Policy Act, the Occupational Safety and Health Act, the Clean Air Act, the Endangered Species Act, the Federal Water Pollution Control Act, and the Nuclear Waste Policy Act.

WHEREAS a living wage will end poverty for all working class families;

WHEREAS all workers should be earning above the National Poverty Level;

WHEREAS a living wage is essential for decent living standards, including housing, health care, and access to higher education, thereby boosting the local economy;

WHEREAS we believe every worker should be earning a living wage to reestablish dignity and justice in the workplace;

WHEREAS a federally-mandated higher wage could impose an undue burden on small businesses; and

WHEREAS the Taft-Hartley Act (the Right to Work Law) has severely restricted collective bargaining rights, thereby artificially limiting the growth of wages;

THEREFORE LET IT BE RESOLVED that the Texas Democratic Party calls on the U.S. Congress to enact legislation requiring that businesses with 30 or more employees must provide a living wage as defined by the U.S. Department of Labor Standards; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Texas Democratic Party calls on Congress to abolish the Taft-Hartley Act (the Right to Work Law) in order to reestablish collective bargaining rights for all workers.

WHEREAS many corporations have failed to live up to their pension obligations;

WHEREAS many corporations have used United States bankruptcy laws to reduce or void their pension obligations;

WHEREAS many corporations use reorganization to reduce or void their pension obligations;

WHEREAS those corporations continue to provide bonuses or incentive pay to corporate officers;

WHEREAS those corporations continue to pay creditors, suppliers, and in some cases, their shareholders; and

WHEREAS the employees are always last in line;

THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the Texas Democratic Party calls upon Congress to draft and support legislation establishing that, in cases of bankruptcy, reorganization, merger, or relocation, the first obligation of the corporation that must be met is the employees’ pension.

WHEREAS the vast majority of teachers and other employees in Texas public schools and community colleges work in districts that do not participate in the Social Security system, and many police officers, firefighters, and other public servants in Texas also work for local governments that do not participate in Social Security;

WHEREAS a great many of these public employees earn Social Security benefits based on their jobs with other employers covered by Social Security, or qualify for Social Security spousal benefits based on their spouse’s work at jobs covered by Social Security;

WHEREAS a surprise awaits such teachers and other public servants when they retire, as they reasonably believe that they will receive their full, earned Social Security benefits, but, in fact, find those benefits cut, in some cases even eliminated, because federal law deems their state or local pension a “windfall”;

WHEREAS a widowed teacher who is eligible to receive a Social Security survivor’s benefit of $600 a month, based on her husband’s years of work, and who, from her own teaching career, has earned a TRS pension of $900 a month, would find her Social Security survivor’s benefit entirely eliminated by federal law imposing a so-called “Government Pension Offset”;

WHEREAS a teacher who earns Social Security benefits from a prior career or second job could find her Social Security benefits cut by up to $355 a month under another federal pension offset law called the “Windfall Elimination Provision”;

WHEREAS these provisions penalize middle-income and low-income individuals who move from private-sector employment to teaching and other public service, and penalize individuals who earned Social Security benefits through other employment, thereby harming the ability of Texas schools, colleges, and local governments to recruit and retain teachers and other needed public servants; and

WHEREAS the Social Security Fairness Act (H.R. 82 and S. 206) would repeal both the Government Pension Offset and the Windfall Elimination Provision;

THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the Texas Democratic Party supports prompt passage of the Social Security Fairness Act (H.R. 82 and S. 206) by the U.S. House and Senate.

Submitted to and Adopted by Precinct 1009 in Senate District 26, Bexar County, Texas, March 4, 2008.  Amended by the Senate District 26 Resolutions Committee, March 19, 2008.

WHEREAS historically the National Student Loan Program, created in 1972, known as “Sallie Mae,” has made it possible for tens of millions of middle- and low-income students to borrow low-interest loans in order to earn college degrees;

WHEREAS in 1997 the U.S. Congress passed legislation turning this program over to a private entity called the SLM Corporation, which has charged exorbitant interest rates (making as much as a 51% profit, more than banks make), leaving young professionals, even those with good jobs, so much in debt that they cannot afford to buy a home;

WHEREAS these high interest rates have caused students to reach the maximum in the amount of loans they can borrow before completion of their studies (i.e., before completing a doctoral degree to become a professor);

WHEREAS the “Welfare to Work” law enacted in 1996 forced mothers on welfare to borrow from Sallie Mae to pay for inadequate training programs to prepare them for jobs that often did not exist, thereby compelling these welfare recipients to sign up for additional training programs and go further in debt to Sallie Mar;

THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the Democratic Party calls upon the U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate to take action, when the U.S. Congress convenes in January 2009, to retake control of the student loan program, making it a government entity, with low interest rates pegged to the federal rate, and to provide a measure of compensation to those students, including welfare mothers, who have paid exorbitant interest rates; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Democratic Party calls for increased funding for federal higher-education grants.

WHEREAS in the Spring of 2004 the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board issued a new rule denying community colleges the state share of funding for students who enrolled in a course for the third time (excluding remedial or developmental courses, and courses taken prior to the Fall semester of 2002), and

WHEREAS in June 2005 the Texas Legislature passed a law allowing community colleges to charge students a higher tuition rate to make up for this loss of state funding, to the effect that most community colleges now charge out-of-state tuition for courses that fall under this “three-repeat” rule, and

WHEREAS students who withdraw from a course after census date subject themselves to the possibility that in the future they may be penalized for enrolling in the same course two more times, and

WHEREAS the “three-repeat” rule does not provide any exception for students who drop a course due to serious illness, death in the family, financial hardship, change in work schedule that causes a conflict with the course meeting time, or any other reason, and

WHEREAS for the students who have already attempted a required course twice without completing it, the “three-repeat” rule adds a financial burden that may influence them to drop out of college altogether instead of completing their studies, and

WHEREAS the “three-repeat” rule when it was implemented did not make exception for courses taken in the preceding two years, so that students who had withdrawn from courses in those two years had no knowledge that they might later be penalized by a rule that at the time had not yet been written,

BE IT THEREFORE RESOLVED that the Texas Democratic Party demands that the Texas Legislature and the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board to revoke the “three-repeat” rule (Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board Rules § 13.25a and Texas Education Code § 130.0034),

AND BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Texas Democratic Party urges the Texas Legislature to establish a process by which students and former students who have been penalized under the three-repeat rule may petition their community college for a refund of the excess tuition that they have paid, whereupon the community college shall be reimbursed accordingly through state appropriations.

WHEREAS this law does not apply to all students, but only those who entered college or university in the Fall of 2007 or thereafter, and it does not apply to courses dropped before the “census date”;

WHEREAS this law provides certain exceptions that do not count toward the “six-drop” limit if they are properly documented, such exceptions including (1) severe illness or debilitating condition; (2) care for a sick, injured or needy person; (3) death of a family member or person in close relationship with the student; and (4) active duty of the student or a family member in the armed forces or National Guard;

WHEREAS this law does not apply when students withdraw from all of their courses in order to drop out of the college or university;

WHEREAS many students will reach this “six-drop” limit long before completing their undergraduate degree, to the effect that if they feel they must again withdraw from a course for any legitimate reason not listed above, they will have no mechanism to do so short of withdrawing from the college or university altogether;

WHEREAS it is short-sighted for the Texas Legislature to give students additional incentive to abort their undergraduate education without completing a degree;

WHEREAS the problem of students withdrawing from courses too often could be handled more appropriately by providing that the college or university, under certain conditions to be determined by the college or university but not by the Texas Legislature, may require students to consult with an academic counselor or academic advisor who may approve or deny the request to withdraw from a course; and

WHEREAS the Texas Legislature has no business interfering in the social contract between the student, instructor, and the college or university;

BE IT THEREFORE RESOLVED that the Texas Democratic Party urges the Democrats in the Texas Legislature to draft and support legislation that would rescind the “six-drop” law and instead allow colleges and universities to provide student counseling or academic advising before the college or university will determine whether to permit an unpenalized withdrawal from the course.

Submitted to and Adopted by Precinct 2140 in Senate District 26, Bexar County, Texas, March 4, 2008.  Amended by the Senate District 26 Resolutions Committee, March 19, 2008.

WHEREAS We, the People of the United States of America, have no ill will toward the people of Cuba; and

WHEREAS Cuba is internationally recognized as having a successful universal health care program;

BE IT RESOLVED that the United States of America should establish normal trade, diplomatic, and travel relations with Cuba so that both countries can live as peaceful neighbors; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that Congress should send a delegation to Cuba to observe and study the Cuban health care system.

WHEREAS Palestinians and Israelis suffer psychological and physical damage as long as Israelis have no hope for a secure homeland and Palestinians have no prospect of a future state; 

WHEREAS damages are further exacerbated by the refusal of some in the International community to act as just and balanced peace brokers;  and

WHEREAS  a peaceful resolution of the conflict between Israel and Palestine is necessary for peace throughout the Middle East; 

BE IT THEREFORE RESOLVED that the United States should act as a just and honest broker in the peace process;  and

BE IT RESOLVED that the peace accord should be brokered through diplomatic means rather than through the use of force, threats, military action or sanctions.

WHEREAS companies like Blackwater Worldwide, contractors and mercenaries have been operating above the law due to “protective” policies of the current administration; 

WHEREAS contractors like Blackwater Worldwide and others will continue to operate above the law as long as there is no fear of accountability, civil or criminal prosecution;  and

WHEREAS contractors like Blackwater Worldwide and others serve as paramilitary organizations and operate without regard for the Geneva Convention;

BE IT THEREFORE RESOLVED that the Texas Democratic Party urges the Democratic Congressional delegation from Texas to draft and support legislation removing all protective statuses for firms like Blackwater Worldwide from any civil or criminal prosecution.   

WHEREAS our country is a nation of immigrants, and welcoming immigrants to our shores is one of our country’s vital traditions;

WHEREAS immigrants have enriched our national heritage and enlivened our culture;

WHEREAS millions of newcomers work hard, pay taxes, raise families, and serve in our armed forces;

WHEREAS undocumented workers have become convenient scapegoats, live in fear, and are subject to economic exploitation;

WHEREAS the economic exploitation of any worker is an attack on all workers and on the dignity of labor; and

WHEREAS it is time to restore respect for the rights and contributions of immigrants through a just immigration reform;

THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the Texas Democratic Party shall instruct the members of the Texas Congressional delegation to support and enact legislation that will:

1. Offer immigrants a clear road map to legal status in the United States so that they can become fully participating members of our communities;
2. Offer conditional legal status and work authorization to all law-abiding immigrants living in the United States, providing that in their home country they have no criminal record, excluding cases of political asylum;
3. Revoke the current law that places immigrants at risk of deportation for having committed minor, nonviolent offenses; and
4. Prevent the deportation of law-abiding parents of native-born United States citizens under the age of 18.

WHEREAS in a 2004 report to the Texas Legislature, 39% of jails voiced no concern about mandatory video surveillance systems;

WHEREAS the jail turnover in a county jail is about 12 to 15 times that of a prison;

WHEREAS 8,000 individuals go through a county jail annually;

WHEREAS the Texas Commission on Jail Standards keeps no records or figures on in-custody deaths;

WHEREAS a Houston Chronicle review of state and county records reveals that from 2001 through 2006, at least 101 inmates, an average of 17 a year, have died while in the custody of the Harris County Jail; and

WHEREAS it is hypocritical to warn other countries about inmate abuse when it also happens in our own country;

BE IT THEREFORE RESOLVED that the Texas Democratic Party calls upon Congress to make cameras with sound recording mandatory in all jail booking areas;

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that in medical exam areas, cameras shall be mandatory, and inmates shall be informed that they have the right to request that the camera be turned off; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that recordings of cameras in jails must be archived in case they are needed as evidence.