The Honorable Betty Brown
State Representative
Texas House of Representatives
District Office
108 S. Pinkerton, Ste. 105
Athens, TX 75751

Dear Representative Brown:

As one of your constituents, I read yesterday's Monitor with interest as it detailed your review of the Legislature's accomplishments during the last session. I was particularly interested in the increase in funding for CHIP and its extended enrollment period, the moratorium on the Trans-Texas Corridor, and the one-third reduction in property taxes. I would like to know how you voted on each issue.

For CHIP funding and enrollment, I would like to know how you voted during the 80th Legislative Session and during the prior session, in which CHIP funding was reduced and enrollment periods were shortened. For the moratorium, I would like to know how you voted when the Trans-Texas Corridor plan first passed in the Legislature and how you voted on its postponement. And regarding the property tax reduction, I would like to know if I can expect the actual amount due on next year's bill to decrease by one-third. Your account in the newspaper leads one to conclude that a $1,200 bill I paid earlier this year, for example, will drop to approximately $800 next year, provided no substantial changes to the appraisal value of the property occur. I would like to know if this is true.

On one last front, I must respectfully and vehemently disagree with your statement that the questioning of Speaker Craddick's authority was "totally inappropriate." I believe that not only was it appropriate, it was vital to the process of maintaining balance of power within government. The idea that the voice of the Legislature can and should be stifled by one person is dangerous. The success of our representative form of government is heavily dependent upon multiple sets of checks and balances, and when a leader of a legislative body fails or refuses to allow open debate, then the people who elect that body have a right to be informed of such. That "it took away from the reporting on the good things we accomplished" is irrelevant to a voter who wants to remain educated about the legislative process. I am glad Republicans and Democrats alike stood up to a Speaker whose tactics they questioned, and I am glad the media reported on it extensively. I look forward to seeing what the Attorney General decides on the matter. Regarding the "good things" you lament having been pushed into the background, I have no doubt politicians looking to get re-elected next cycle will remind us of them in due time.

You or your staff may send your voting record on the aforementioned to the address listed below. As you can see, I have copied this letter to local newspapers so they too can be informed of your stance on the issues. I will forward them your response after I receive it.

Sincerely,

Elicia Sanders

Dear Representative Brown:

In my letter of August 17th, I asked some basic questions about your record on the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP), the Trans-Texas Corridor, and the one-third property tax decrease you discussed in your speech to a local chamber. Since I have not received a response from your office, I looked up the answers on my own.

You mentioned increased funding for CHIP as an accomplishment, saying: "Reducing the number of uninsured individuals will help alleviate the increasing costs of healthcare for all Texans." I agree. However, I found that you voted to decrease funding for that same program in 2003 and also voted for legislation which resulted in a significant drop in CHIP enrollment.

Your stance on the Trans Texas Corridor is similar. In 2003 you voted to authorize the plan. The Trans-Texas Corridor will take hundreds of thousands of privately owned acreage out of the hands of citizens and put it in the hands of state government. In 2007, you eventually agreed to postpone it. Meanwhile, private property remains in jeopardy, because the Corridor has not been eliminated, it has simply been put on hold.

Finally, on the subject of taxes, it is clear that we never could have expected a one-third property tax reduction. The savings are eaten up in a variety of ways, as you partially explained in your August 24th legislative update. If you didn't know this to be true when you gave your speech, then I question your understanding of the legislation you voted for. If you did know, then it looks like you misled your audience and everyone else who read the news article that reported the speech in which you discussed these issues.

I am a life-long Republican and have often supported candidates when I did not agree with their entire voting records, because I believed they had their constituents' best interests at heart. Nearly a month ago, I asked some simple questions; even if I didn't agree with the answers, I would have appreciated the common courtesy of a timely response. I think the questions warrant a reply, not just for me, but for all the people you represent.

However, I am mostly disappointed with your public attempts to justify yourself at our expense. You were elected to fight for us in Austin and deal with us honestly at home. An incomplete account of your actions may help your image in the short term, but treating your constituents as if we can be fooled by selectively written speeches or letters conveniently ignored is a poor way to represent us. As result, I will not vote for your re-election in March. You have had plenty of time to prove yourself as a strong and forthright voice who speaks on our behalf all the time. On our behalf-not yours.

When March arrives, perhaps we will have a better candidate on the ballot. We certainly deserve better.

Sincerely,

Elicia Sanders