Roger Estlack

The Donley County Health Fair will be held Thursday, October 28, from 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. at the Clarendon College Bairfield Activity Center.

Eighteen booths will be featured at this year’s health fair with retina screenings and oral health care, along with many more services available to the area communities. The health fair features free COVID vaccinations, flu shots, and blood screenings (fasting) for PSA, A1C, Lipids, Glucose, and more.

Additionally, Coffee Memorial will be on hand Thursday to host a community blood drive at the Bairfield Activity Center from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.

The health fair is sponsored by the Donley County AgriLife Extension, Donley County Hospital District, Clarendon College, Clarendon Family Medical Center, and Mike’s Pharmacy.
For more information, call the Extension Office at 806-874-2141.

Texas voters will head to the polls Tuesday, November 2, to decide the fate of eight proposed amendments to the state constitution.

Early voting continues this week through Friday. Early votes can be cast at the Courthouse Annex.

Polls will be open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. next Tuesday for the General Election. Voters must bring their voter’s registration card and their driver’s license or similar ID with them. Check your registration card for your voting precinct.

Polling locations are Precinct Box 101 – Bairfield Activity Center, Clarendon College; Precinct Box 102 – Howardwick City Hall; Precinct Box 201 – Donley County Courthouse, Clarendon; Precinct Box 301 – Fellowship Hall, Assembly of God Church, Clarendon; Precinct Box 303 – First Baptist Church, Hedley; and Precinct Box 401 – Family Life Center, Church of Christ Church, Clarendon.

By Andrew Zhang, The Texas Tribune

Texas voters can soon weigh in on potential changes to the state’s Constitution regarding religious services, eligibility requirements for judges, county infrastructure and more.
Election day is November 2, and early voting lasts until October 29.

The proposed additions to the Texas Constitution were passed as bills during this year’s legislative session, and a majority of voters in the state must approve each amendment before it can be officially added to the Constitution. In 2017, Texas voters approved all seven amendments on the ballot; in 2019, voters greenlighted nine out of 10 proposed changes.
There are no state elected seats on the ballot this November.

Under each proposition, we have included the recommendations from Progress Texas, the Texas Freedom Caucus and the editorial boards of some major Texas newspapers: Austin American-Statesman, The Dallas Morning News, Fort Worth-Star Telegram, San Antonio Express-News (Propositions 1-4, 5-8) and Houston Chronicle (only endorsed for Propositions 2 and 3). Progress Texas is a progressive media organization, and the Freedom Caucus is a conservative advocacy group in the Texas House of Representatives.

Here’s the breakdown of each proposed amendment.

Proposition 1: rodeo raffles

Proposition 1 would allow charitable raffles at rodeo events. Unauthorized raffles can be considered illegal gambling under Texas law.

In 2015, voters approved a rule to allow charitable raffles at professional sports games. The resulting change created fundraising opportunities for education, cancer research and youth programs, according to an amendment analysis.

The constitutional amendment on the ballot this November would extend that permission to rodeo events by the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association or the Women’s Professional Rodeo Association.

For: Austin American-Statesman Editorial Board, The Dallas Morning News Editorial Board, Fort Worth Star-Telegram Editorial Board, Progress Texas, San Antonio Express-News Editorial Board

Against: Texas Freedom Caucus

Proposition 2: tax financing for county infrastructure

This amendment would authorize counties to issue bonds or notes to raise funds for transportation infrastructure in underdeveloped areas. Already, cities and towns have the authority to fund projects with this financing method.

Counties would repay these bonds by pledging increased property tax revenues, but these funds cannot be used for construction, maintenance or acquisition of toll roads.

For: Austin American-Statesman Editorial Board, The Dallas Morning News Editorial Board, Fort Worth Star-Telegram Editorial Board, Houston Chronicle Editorial Board, Progress Texas, San Antonio Express-News Editorial Board

Against: Texas Freedom Caucus

Proposition 3: restrictions on religious services

If approved, Proposition 3 would ban the state from prohibiting or limiting religious services, including those in churches and other places of worship.
The move stems from conflicts over churches that closed during the early months of the pandemic in 2020. Some local officials extended stay-at-home orders to include places of worship, requiring them to limit attendance or make services virtual — a trend Gov. Greg Abbott and other Republicans pushed back on.

But critics of the proposal worry the change could prevent the government from acting to protect people in future emergencies, such as evacuations and public health emergencies.

For: The Dallas Morning News Editorial Board, Texas Freedom Caucus

Against: Austin American-Statesman Editorial Board, Fort Worth Star-Telegram Editorial Board, Houston Chronicle Editorial Board, Progress Texas, San Antonio Express-News Editorial Board

Proposition 4: state judge eligibility

Proposition 4 would require candidates to have 10 years of experience practicing law in Texas to be eligible for election to the Texas Supreme Court, the Court of Criminal Appeals or a Texas court of appeals. Currently, the law requires 10 years of experience but allows for out-of-state experience.

Additionally, candidates running to be a district judge would need eight years of law practice or judicial experience in a Texas court, up from the current requirement of four years.

Proponents of the change argue it could create a higher-quality judiciary, but opponents say the proposed requirements could reduce voter choice and diversity within the candidate pool. In Texas, judges are elected by popular vote.

For: Austin American-Statesman Editorial Board, The Dallas Morning News Editorial Board, Fort Worth Star-Telegram Editorial Board, San Antonio Express-News Editorial Board

Against: Progress Texas

Neutral: Texas Freedom Caucus

Proposition 5: judicial misconduct process

Proposition 5 would allow the State Commission on Judicial Conduct to have oversight of candidates running for judicial seats by accepting complaints or reports, conducting investigations and reprimanding them. The commission, an independent agency created by the state Constitution, already has these powers over current judicial officeholders.

For: Austin American-Statesman Editorial Board, The Dallas Morning News Editorial Board, Fort Worth Star-Telegram Editorial Board, San Antonio Express-News Editorial Board, Texas Freedom Caucus

Against: Progress Texas

Proposition 6: essential caregiver designation

This amendment would allow residents of nursing homes and assisted living facilities to designate one essential caregiver who cannot be denied in-person visitation rights. If the proposition passes, the Legislature would create further guidelines for these caregivers.

Like Proposition 3, Proposition 6 also comes as a response to pandemic-era restrictions. Nursing homes, which were hit particularly hard by COVID-19, saw extended visitation restrictions that prevented residents from seeing family and friends for months.

For: Austin American-Statesman Editorial Board, The Dallas Morning News Editorial Board, Fort Worth Star-Telegram Editorial Board, Progress Texas, San Antonio Express-News Editorial Board, Texas Freedom Caucus

Proposition 7: property tax exemptions for bereaved families

Proposition 7 would put a limit on school district property taxes incurred by the surviving spouse of a person with disabilities older than 65 who has died. The surviving spouse must be at least 55 years old at the partner’s time of death and still live in the home.

The amendment is necessary to update the Constitution in accordance with the tax code, which was modified in the 2019 legislative session to include this change. If approved, individuals eligible for these tax breaks could receive refunds on collections in 2020 and 2021.

The resolution could reduce school district property tax revenue and increase state funding in accordance with Texas public school funding formulas, according to analysis of the amendment. However, the exact cost of the change cannot be estimated because the number of surviving spouses is unknown.

For: Austin American-Statesman Editorial Board, The Dallas Morning News Editorial Board, Fort Worth Star-Telegram Editorial Board, Progress Texas, San Antonio Express-News Editorial Board, Texas Freedom Caucus

Proposition 8: property tax exemptions for military families

Proposition 8 would expand eligibility for residential homestead tax exemptions to include spouses of military members killed or fatally injured in the line of duty.

Currently, the exemption is extended to spouses of military members killed in action. The new eligibility would include people killed in accidental vehicle crashes or non-hostile events.
This exemption would apply to fewer than 10 people per year, according to analysis of the amendment.

For: Austin American-Statesman Editorial Board, The Dallas Morning News Editorial Board, Fort Worth Star-Telegram Editorial Board, Progress Texas, San Antonio Express-News Editorial Board, Texas Freedom Caucus

The Texas Tribune is a nonpartisan, nonprofit media organization that informs Texans — and engages with them – about public policy, politics, government and statewide issues.

https://www.texastribune.org/2021/10/15/texas-constitution-amendment-election/

A slow but steady decline continues to be the trend among COVID-19 cases in Donley County.

The Clarendon Family Medical Center reported Tuesday that it is monitoring 10 active cases this week, down from 13 last Tuesday.

Six new cases of the disease were confirmed by the clinic in the last week. There have now been 513 confirmed cases at the clinic since the pandemic began.

Local health officials continue to encourage people to get the COVID-19 vaccine.

Vaccination rates continue to improve slowly among Donley County residents.

The Texas Tribune reports this week that 33.5 percent of Donley County residents are fully vaccinated. That represents a total of 1,092 people, up from 1,065 two weeks ago. The Tribune says 1,293 local residents, or 39.7 percent, have received the first of two vaccination shots.

The Moderna vaccine is available at no charge at the local clinic for everyone ages 18 and up. The Pfizer vaccine is available in Amarillo for kids ages 12 and over.

State Rep. Ken King (R-Canadian) will be touring a segment of House District 88 on Tuesday, October 26, to discuss the 87th Regular Legislative Session as well as the Special Sessions that followed.

King will be in Clarendon at the Clarendon College Bairfield Activity Center from 3:30 to 4:30 p.m.

The representative will also be at the following locations earlier in the day: Exhibition Building in Canadian, 10965 Exhibition Center Rd, at 9 a.m.; the Miami High School Auditorium at 100 Warrior Lane at 10:45 a.m.; and the Pampa EDC/Pampa Chamber of Commerce-MK Brown Room at 200 N. Ballard at 1:30 p.m.

Rep. King will give a quick overview of the session and then solicit feedback from constituents on issues of vital importance to them and their communities.