Ben Estlack

The Clarendon City Council approved its tax rate and budget for the coming fiscal year during its regular meeting last Thursday, September 15.

Aldermen adopted a tax rate of $0.610083, which is expected to bring in 3.56 percent more revenue to the city. The city budget was also unanimously passed by the council.

The council also considered the Clarendon Economic Development Corporation’s EDC budget and Hotel Occupancy Tax budget and the Clarendon Chamber of Commerce’s Hotel Occupancy Tax budget. Both were approved.

Publicity and Tourism Agreements with the Chamber and CEDC were considered and renewed for a two-year period. The Chamber receives 25 percent of the city’s Hotel Occupancy Tax revenue and the CEDC administers the other 75 percent.

An agreement for consultation services with David Dockery was approved. Dockery is retiring as City Administrator at the end of September but will stay on part time for a limited time as a consultant to help manage projects that are already underway.

The council considered upgrading handrails scheduled for the Downtown Revitalization Project. It’s possible that excess grant funds may be allowed to be used for the handrails. In the event that’s not approved, the city agreed to split the cost of the upgrades with the CEDC.

Paving bids were considered for work being done on the east side of town. Bryers Paving had the low big at just over $87,000. The next lowest bid was close to $113,000.

In public comments, Cindy Cockerham address the board about the health and safety hazard of an abandoned house on the southwest corner of Sims and Third street across from Bronco Stadium.

The Saints’ Roost Museum will hold its 29th annual Col. Charles Goodnight Chuckwagon Cookoff this Saturday, September 23, and its first Shindig Under The Stars on Friday, September 22.

Friday night’s Shindig will feature a dinner at 6:30 p.m. followed by DJ music and dancing at 8:30. Funds raised from this event will benefit the museum’s new Wheels of History building now under construction. The cost of the Shindig is $25. Call 806-874-2746 for information.

On Saturday a dozen chuckwagon teams will compete for top prizes and bragging rights. Tickets for the cookoff are still available at the Donley County State Bank and Every Nook & Cranny. Although admission is free, a $25 meal ticket is required to enjoy the authentic chuckwagon chicken fried steak dinner.

The tradeshow Saturday starts at 10 a.m. Local and area entertainers will also be performing. The authentic wagons will serve at 1 p.m. with the traditional chicken fried steak dinner, and other activities will include a hay auction and the Goodnight family reunion.

Ten outstanding teams were recognized during award celebrations at the Pantex Plant and the Y-12 National Security Complex for the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) Defense Programs (DP) Awards of Excellence.

The winning teams met or exceeded criteria that directly contribute to the sites’ national security mission.

More than 250 Consolidated Nuclear Security employees were involved in the projects that were recognized in the 2021 awards.

At a ceremony to recognize the 2021 winners, Pantex Site Manger Colby Yeary said, “We celebrate the hard work of the men and women who ensure America’s nuclear deterrent provides security to our nation and a warning to our adversaries. We continue to lead by example in our commitment to excellence, and the results we’re seeing in improved performance, deliverables, and innovation speak to the excitement I observe in my colleagues every day.”

At a similar ceremony in Oak Ridge, Tennessee, Y-12 Site Manager Gene Sievers said, “Representatives from Defense Programs select Award of Excellence winners from a large number of applications across the Nuclear Security Enterprise. These folks know the positive impacts of your work, and the awards you’re receiving today are a clear recognition that you are making a difference for our nation.”

Teresa Robbins, NNSA Production Office manager, noted, “Recipients of this award have made notable and significant achievements in providing increased quality, productivity, cost savings, and innovations, that enhance the agility and reliability of our nuclear deterrent.

The Defense Programs Awards of Excellence were established in 1982 to recognize significant individual and team accomplishments in support of NNSA’s nuclear weapons program. An executive review panel meets annually to select the winners.

Marvin Adams, NNSA Deputy Administrator for Defense Programs told recipients, “I am simply amazed at the accomplishments our workforce and the wider enterprise makes each year. Our government leadership, American citizens, the warfighters we support, and our allies can rest confident because of your valuable contributions.”

At Pantex, the winning projects for 2021 were: Completion of the B61-12 LEP First Production Unit ahead of schedule; Implementation of Lightning Detection and Warning System Upgrades that will improve the ability to ensure the safety of production operations; Utilization of Interim Quality Release that saved 64 days of potential production delays; and culmination of a 10-year effort that produced the W88 ALT 370 First Production Unit ahead of schedule.

A multi-site project for which both Y-12 and Pantex received 2021 awards was Gas Mass Spectrometry Coordination that certified the machine to serve as a backup for Y-12 while a commonly used gas mass spectrometer was repaired.

Five Donley County cases were among 29 pleas heard by the district court August 24 when it met in Childress.

District Attorney Luke Inman, along with Assistant District Attorney Harley Caudle, prosecuted the cases for the State of Texas, with the Honorable Judge Ron Enns presiding by assignment.

Jason David Herbert, 47, from Clarendon, was placed on four years probation for the first degree felony offense of possession of a controlled substance in a drug free zone.

Herbert was arrested by Donley County Sheriff’s Deputy Vincent Marasco on May 29 and he pleaded to an information filed by the State on July 12.

Herbert was also ordered to pay a $4,000 fine to Donley County, $340 in court costs, $180 lab fee, and complete 400 hours of community service. If his probation is revoked, Herbert faces up to 99 years or life in the Institutional Division of TDCJ.

Mehgan Matthews, 39, from Iowa Park, was placed on ten years probation for the third degree felony offense of theft of service.

Matthews was arrested by Sheriff Butch Blackburn on March 25, 2021. Matthews was indicted by a Donley County Grand Jury on January 19, 2022.

Matthews was also ordered to pay $290 in court costs, $109,000 in restitution, and complete 200 hours of community service. If her probation is revoked, Matthews faces up to 10 years in the Institutional Division of TDCJ.

Paul Glynn Stewart, 61, from Arlington, was placed on three years probation for the state jail felony offense of possession of a controlled substance in penalty group two, Tetrahydrocannabinol.
Stewart was arrested by DPS Trooper Kelly Hill on September 9, 2022. Stewart was indicted by a Donley County Grand Jury on January 30, 2023.

Stewart was also ordered to pay a $2,500 fine to Donley County, $290 in court costs, $180 restitution, and complete 100 hours of community service. If his probation is revoked, he faces up to two years in the State Jail Division of TDCJ.

Brandon Le Houghton, 29, from Hollister, Calif., was placed on three years probation for the offense of possession of a controlled substance, Tetrahydrocannabinol.

Houghton was arrested by Donley County Sheriff’s Deputy Brian Stevens on June 12. Houghton pleaded to an information filed by the State on June 26.

Houghton was also ordered to pay a $2,500 fine to Donley County, $290 in court costs, $180 restitution, and complete 100 hours of community service. If his probation is revoked, Houghton faces up to two years in the State Jail.

Donna Marie Hendon, 30, from Fort Worth, was placed on three years probation for the state jail felony offense of possession of a controlled substance in penalty group two, Tetrahydrocannabinol.

Hendon was arrested by Stevens on June 4 in Donley County. Hendon pleaded to an information filed by the State on June 16.

Hendon was also ordered to pay a $2,500 fine, $290 in court costs, $180 restitution, and complete 100 hours of community service. If her probation is revoked, Hendon faces up to two years in the State Jail Division of TDCJ.

The Donley County Commissioners Court enacted a burn ban during their regular meeting Monday, September 11.

Even with the rain earlier this week, warm weather and high winds will quickly make conditions ripe for wildfires thanks to growth of brush and grass earlier this summer.

Under the commissioners’ order no outdoor burning is allowed on a day of a forecasted Fire Weather Watch or a Red Flag Warning issued from the National Weather Service in Amarillo.

Anyone engaging in outdoor burning must contact the Donley County Sheriff’s office prior to ignition and give the dispatcher a burn location, a contact phone number, and approximate burn time.

The persons engaging in outdoor burning needs to be present on the site of the burn until the burn is completed.

Anyone engaging in any form of outdoor burning is asked to burn with extreme caution at all times.

The burn ban will stay in effect for the next 90 days.

Also at Monday’s county meeting, commissioners approved their regular meeting schedule and the holiday schedule for fiscal year 2024. Trainings were approved for County Clerk Vicki Tunnell and County Attorney Landon Lambert.

Commissioners considered and approved donating the county’s unclaimed capital property to the Saints’ Roost Museum. The unclaimed funds are dispersed to the county from the state and this year amounted to $3,800.

The county nominated Lon Adams, Jacob Fangman, and Johnny Floyd to serve another term on the Donley County Appraisal District Board. Elections by the local taxing entities will be held later.

County Judge John Howard reported the window repair project at the courthouse should be finished this month, weather permitting, and said work on the county barn at Hedley is continuing.

The Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board (THECB) approved emergency rules at a special-called board meeting last week that will govern Texas’ new funding system for Clarendon College and other community colleges, effective September. 1.

House Bill 8 (HB 8), passed by the Texas Legislature during its 88th session and signed into law by Governor Greg Abbott in June, codified the new, dynamic model that will fund community colleges in Texas. The model moves to an outcomes-based approach and rewards colleges for awarding degrees, certificates, and other “credentials of value.”

Clarendon College President Tex Buckhaults said the state’s community colleges cooperated on building the new funding model.

“All 50 college districts came together for the good of everyone,” Buckhaults said. “We’re not competing against each other; we’re working together, and student success is paramount. We want to get them finished and get them in good paying jobs.”

Buckhaults said CC is receiving $3.01 million under the new formula thanks to its long history of high student success rates.

“This isn’t new; it’s what we’ve been doing,” he said.

Gov. Abbott said the new formula will be good for the future of Texas.

“The Texas of tomorrow depends on ensuring our students have the workforce training and preparation needed to succeed in dynamic, high-demand industries,” said Gov. Abbott. “House Bill 8 is a transformational step forward in funding Texas community colleges based on measurable outcomes and supporting work-based learning opportunities for hardworking Texans. I thank the Texas Legislature and the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board for working to improve the community college system in the state of Texas and help meet the needs of our growing state.”

This action by the Coordinating Board finalizes the fiscal year 2024 formula and the new funding model for community colleges. Formula funding will be distributed in three installments with 50 percent being released on Oct. 15, 25 percent on Feb. 15 and the final 25 percent on June 15.

“The Board’s unanimous approval of these new emergency rules to implement House Bill 8 will transform how we fund community colleges, putting a primary focus on student outcomes,” said Commissioner of Higher Education Harrison Keller. “This was the culmination of many months of research, planning, data analysis, outreach, communications, and collaboration following the signing of House Bill 8 by Governor Greg Abbott.”

The legislation, sponsored and championed by Rep. Gary VanDeaver and Sen. Brandon Creighton, expands upon the report and year-long efforts of the Texas Commission on Community College Finance.

“The Board is grateful to the committee members, community college leaders, and agency staff who helped get the new funding model to full implementation within just a few short months,” said Chairman of the Coordinating Board Dr. Fred Farias. “Now our community colleges can work toward improving student outcomes and increasing the number of credentials of value so more Texans benefit from our rich economy.”

The passage of HB 8, and the allocation of $684 million in the state budget, positions Texas as a national leader in tying funding for community colleges to measurable student-focused outcomes. These include: The number of credentials of value awarded, including badges, certificates, and degrees, that position graduates for well-paying jobs. Credentials of value awarded in high-demand fields where employers are looking for skilled employees. Successful student transfers from community colleges to four-year universities. Completion of a sequence of dual credit courses, which are offered to high school students and can set them on early pathways to success.