Latest news with #Let'sSaveOurLakes'
Yahoo
06-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Stop Marvin Nichols Reservoir bill passes committee, but still needs another push
AUSTIN, Texas (KETK) – House Bill 2109, which aims to stop the Marvin Nichols Reservoir, has passed through committee but still needs to be heard on the Texas State House floor to be voted on. Selling East Texas Water: Reps file bill to stop Marvin Nichols Reservoir East Texas supporters of the bill are encouraging everyone to call members of the Texas State House Calendar Committee to put HB 2109 on the schedule to be heard. Organizers said it is a bipartisan issue that affects everyone. HB 2109 passed out of the Natural Resources Committee on April 23 but the Calendar Committee has decide when to allow it to be heard by May 15. 'Anytime you can keep it at the forefront of members minds it helps, because there's so many things coming at us from different directions,' State Rep. Cole Hefner said. The 57-year-old plan could flood up to 200,000 acres of land, leaving homes and schools to be moved. The possibility of the project coming to fruition has paralyzed hardworking East Texans like Casey Conway. East Texans push back against reservoir that threatens their homes 'I'm raising cattle and you always need a new hay barn or maybe you need to put in a new fence or whatever. You can't justify putting that money into the place when this is over your head everyday day. You don't know day to day, if that's the day you're going to lose it,' Conway said. The last day for House bills to be considered on the floor is May 16 at midnight, but Conway fears it will not be chosen. 'My fear is that they're playing too much politics and they'll let the clock run out,' Conway said. Hefner said there is not a lot of time left, but there is enough time for the bill to be pushed and heard on the floor. State Rep. Jay Dean hosts 'Let's Save Our Lakes' town hall 'Some days you'll have a bill that takes up a lot of time. Sometimes a bill might take up an hour, it may take 2 or 3 hours, but a lot of bills just take a few minutes,' Hefner said. Conway said this bill is a priority and affects his family and generations to come. 'Our kids can't even come back and live on the family land because we don't want them investing that kind of money into something that they could lose like that,' Conway said. If the bill passes the House, it'll have to be voted on in the Texas Senate for the final time by May 28 before the 89th session comes to an end on June 2. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
12-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
‘WE SAVED OUR LAKES!': North Texas Water District Board drops plan to buy water from Lake O' the Pines, Rep. Dean says
TYLER, Texas (KETK) – The North Texas Water District Board has negotiated a deal to get water from sources other than the Lake O' the Pines, East Texas State Rep. Jay Dean of Longview announced on Friday. State Rep. Jay Dean hosts 'Let's Save Our Lakes' town hall 'The North Texas Water District Board has negotiated a deal to get water from resources closer to them and they have abandoned their proposal to buy the water rights to Lake O' the Pines! This was a huge group effort by the most amazing folks in Texas,' Dean said. Dean's announcement comes after several local cities and counties passed resolutions opposing the sale of their rights to water from Lake O' the Pines. According to Dean, Jefferson, Daingerfield, Uncertain, Longview, Lone Star, Marion County, Morris County, Upshur County, Gregg County, Harrison County and Cass County have all now passed measures protecting their water rights. 'Thank you to these local leaders and thank you to all the community members who showed up repeatedly to speak at commissioners court and city council meetings,' Dean said. On Friday, the Longview City Council passed a resolution that affirms 'the City's interest in the reliable and equitable supply of raw water from Lake O' the Pines' and 'opposes any actions that would compromise water availability, sell water rights or lease large quantities of water, or increase costs to Longview ratepayers.' The Caddo Lake Institute and other community members spoke about the impact that a water sale from Lake O' the Pines would have at the Longview City Council meeting on Friday. The full discussion of the Lake O' the Pines resolution can be watched in the video above. Dean thanked the Caddo Lake Institute and the Lake O' the Pines Chamber of Commerce for their efforts and support in protecting the lake's water. 'The work by these individuals, organizations and entities will serve as a warning flag for any future attempts to take our water. We have put the entire state on notice that we are not for sale,' Dean said. Dean added that he successfully added an amendment during a budget hearing on Friday morning that would prohibit the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality from spending money on or approving any inter-basin water transfers from the East Texas Cypress Basin to the metroplex's Region C for two years. Water district tries to ease concerns about Dallas buying Lake O' the Pines water The proposed sale of Lake O' the Pines water was a controversial idea to many outspoken East Texans. Dean hosted a 'Let's Save Our Lakes' town hall on Feb. 8 where many concerned members of the public talked about the Lake O' the Pines and other water issues. This backlash against the proposed sale prompted the Northeast Texas Municipal Water District to go public defending the deal. The North Texas Municipal Water District was publicly recommending using Lake O' the Pines water as recently as late February. In their Feb. 27 board of directors meeting, North Texas Municipal Water District general manager and executive director Jenna Covington said the following: 'No single water source will meet all the needs for North Texas. To meet those needs, we're focused on increasing water conservation and reuse, using innovative technology to better leverage existing water supplies, and building new connections to existing reservoirs with excess supplies, like Lake O' the Pines,' Covington said on Feb. 27. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
15-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Water district tries to ease concerns about Dallas buying Lake O' the Pines water
HUGHES SPRINGS, Texas (KETK) – The Northeast Texas Municipal Water District (NETMWD) went public to defend their potential sale of water from Lake O' the Pines on Friday following public backlash. State Rep. Jay Dean hosts 'Let's Save Our Lakes' town hall Many local residents remain concerned about the impact a potential sale would have on the cities, towns and other bodies of water that Lake O' the Pines feeds. East Texas State Representatives Jay Dean, Cole Hefner, Gary VanDeaver spoke along with Laura-Ashley Overdyke from the Caddo Lake Institute at a town hall discussing the potential sale in Avinger on Feb. 8. They answered questions from residents who are concerned about Lake O' the Pines drying up, the proposed Marvin Nichols reservoir and the future of Caddo Lake, which is fed by Lake O' the Pines. Those living near Lake O' the Pines require the water their cities get from the lake for drinking water, bathing and growing plants. Even those with their own wells are worried that a sale would lower the lake level, affecting the surrounding water table and drying up their wells. Now, NETMWD, an East Texas water district, is addressing these concerns. The water district said their discussions with the North Texas Municipal Water District (NTMWD) to sell or lease Lake O' the Pines water are ongoing so they don't have specifics to provide regarding any potential agreements. However, they did release several 'facts' in attempt to clarify their position. 'We understand that our friends and neighbors are concerned and want answers. Sadly, too many of the answers you've been given simply aren't true.' Wayne Owen, general manager and executive director of NETMWD, said. 'It is normal to enter a non-disclosure agreement (NDA) between entities during the research and discovery phase of a deal such as this. We are sharing the information we have available at this time to set the record straight while we investigate the options of a sale or lease of excess water.' These are NETMWD's new facts: NETMWD is not negotiating with the City of Dallas to sell water. The City of Dallas won't receive any water from North Texas MWD, which only provides water to areas north and east of Dallas. NETMWD has been selling water from Lake O' the Pines for the past 60 years. Several industrial water contracts are ending which will free up water that North Texas MWD wants to buy or lease along with unused water from NETMWD's cities. NETMWD said Lake O' The Pines will produce enough water to meet current and future needs in East Texas. In a single day, the lake produced 1.1 billion gallons of water. which reportedly is enough to feed all of NETMWD's cities for a whole year. NETMWD said Lake O' the Pines will still send billions of gallons of water into Caddo Lake regardless of whether or not they sell to North Texas MWD. Lake O' the Pines provides less than a quarter of the water feeding Caddo Lake on average. Every year, Lake O' the Pines provides 445,000 acre-feet of water to Caddo Lake via Big Cypress Bayou. 'We will earnestly share information as it becomes available via public notices and public meetings while we work alongside elected officials to be as transparent as possible throughout the process,' Owens said. 'Our goal is to do the best by our NETMWD member and customer cities, Lake O' the Pines and Caddo Lake.' Selling East Texas Water: Reps file bill to stop Marvin Nichols Reservoir NETMWD's press release comes on the heels of the Marion County Commissioners Court unanimous approval of a resolution opposing NETMWD's potential sale of water rights from Lake O' The Pines. The resolution encourages the City Council of Jefferson to take a firm stance against any sale proposed by NETMWD that would hurt local interests. Jefferson, Pittsburgh, Daingerfield, Avinger, Lone Star, Ore City and Hughes Springs helped fund the lake's creation and those seven cities would all have to vote to approve the sale. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
15-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
East Texas Representative appointed to lead State House Homeland Security Committee
AUSTIN, Texas (KETK) – East Texas State Representative Cole Hefner, R-Mount Pleasant, has been appointed to serve as the Chair of the Texas House Committee on Homeland Security, Public Safety and Veterans' Affairs. East Texas representative files legislation to protect home-based businesses from overregulation Speaker of the House Dustin Burrows appointed Hefner to lead Homeland Security committee and he also appointed him to serve as a member of the Committee on Transportation and the Committee on Redistricting. 'The Texas House stands ready to address the most pressing issues facing our state, and I have full confidence Chairman Hefner's leadership of the Homeland Security, Public Safety & Veterans' Affairs Committee will greatly contribute to the success of the 89th legislative session,' Burrows said. 'Every Texas House committee serves an important role guiding the policies that shape our state and ensuring proper oversight of the legislative process. Chair Hefner is a proven champion of conservative policies that leave a positive impact on the lives of all Texans, and I look forward to our collaboration to deliver another monumental conservative session for Texans.' As a committee chairman, Hefner will be able to help shape the Texas House of Representatives' agenda by determining which bills will be brought before the committee, leading hearings and collaborating with his committee members. Hefner thanked Burrows for the appointments and said he's eager to start working with his committee colleagues. State Rep. Jay Dean hosts 'Let's Save Our Lakes' town hall 'I am grateful to Speaker Burrows for the honor of leading this important committee,' Hefner said. 'I look forward to working with Vice Chair Lopez and my fellow committee members to support our brave veterans and law enforcement, increase public safety, and enhance national security.' This is Hefner's fifth term serving Camp, Rains, Titus, Upshur and Wood counties along with parts of Smith County as the State Representative for Texas House District 5. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
09-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Moran hiring veteran, Gold Star family member or military spouse as congressional aide
TYLER, Texas (KETK) – Congressman Nathaniel Moran of Tyler is currently looking to hire a veteran, a Gold Star family member or an active-duty spouse to serve as an aide in one of his offices. State Rep. Jay Dean hosts 'Let's Save Our Lakes' town hall The opportunity to work for Moran is thanks to the Green and Gold Congressional Aide Program which was created to provide opportunities in Congress to veterans, Gold Star family members and spouses of those on active-duty in the military. 'I am proud to announce that my district office will participate in the Green and Gold Congressional Aide Program,' said Moran. 'This program provides employment opportunities for veterans, Gold Star families, and active-duty spouses within the House of Representatives. These individuals have sacrificed in service to our country, and it is a privilege to provide employment opportunities to those who have answered the call to serve.' The following potential duties for the position were listed by Moran's office: Working as a constituent service representative Helping local constituents resolve issues with federal agencies Serving as liaison to local Veterans Service Organizations (VSOs) Attending local events and meetings on behalf of Congressman Moran Performing legislative work Anyone interested in the position is asked to visit USAJOBS online. Any questions can be directed to Moran's office at 202-225-3035. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
