Category Archives: Local Government

News and information about local government such as city council, school district, and other special governmental districts.

Coupland City Council Agenda for May 8, 2014

Williamson County Goes After the Little Guys

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Williamson County is going to a lot of trouble to publicize its crackdown on hot check writers. You may have seen the press releases. They even went modern and posted YouTube videos. Click here to see them.

When ordinary people write checks in excess of their deposits, and don’t make good on them, it’s a crime and they should be punished. They are stealing from people and businesses who relied upon their promise to pay.

Besides, the government doesn’t like competition.

When the major banks do it, in collusion with the privately-owned banking cartel euphemistically called “The Federal Reserve,” the government says nothing. That’s because this is how government lives beyond its means. The result to you and me is inflation, which is, in effect, a hidden tax. So whenever you hear government say they are going to increase spending but that it won’t result in increased taxes, they are lying.

Wait. That’s too harsh. Let’s just say they are being less than honest. That sounds nicer, doesn’t it?

Government counts on your ignorance of how the modern, debt-based financial system works. Get educated folks. Except in certain situations, prices don’t go up because things are worth more. They go up because the currency is worth less and sooner or later it becomes worthless. Noticed any inflation lately?

To be fair to Williamson County, they are suing banks that used the Mortgage Electronic Registration System (MERS) but only because that is how mortgage lenders have avoided paying fees for recording property transfers with the counties. Oh, and lots of homeowners were subjected to improper foreclosures but if they really cared about that, it wouldn’t be a lawsuit but a Grand Jury indictment.

Stay tuned. Class will resume in future stories.

Coupland City Council Highlights for April 10, 2014

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The Coupland City Council followed up on some old business, continued working on plans for a Spring Cleanup Day, responded to a citizen complaint about trashy & overgrown properties within the city limits, discussed the mowing of city streets, talked about city records and the city’s website, and took action to secure additional tax revenue. Four citizens attended the meeting. Eldridge Tidwell was unable to attend. Here are the highlights:

The City has 38,355.47 in the bank as of March 31, 2104.
The final plat for the Prinz Estates Subdivision has not yet been submitted to the city for approval.
The Council discussed plans for the Spring Cleanup Day, set for Saturday, May 17. The youth group from St. Peter’s Church will assist. Other organizations have been invited. There will be a large dumpster available. Only Coupland residents may bring their refuse to the dumpster. Proof of residency will be required. Hazardous materials and large appliances will not be accepted. The event will begin at 9 AM and end at dark.
The Council engaged in an extensive discussion in response to a request from a local citizen that the City adopt an ordinance dealing with trashy & overgrown properties. Barbara Piper received the complaint and promised that it would be brought before the Council. She said that she believes that it is the proper role for the city Council to take complaints and address concerns. She reported that the citizen said the appearance of Coupland had gone downhill. During the discussion Council members pointed out that the city was taking positive action, referencing the plans for the cleanup day, which was already in progress before the complaint was received. Karen Marosko said that we should talk to people and try to find help for them if they need it. She said that there were different reasons for people’s property to become unsightly. She said, however, that only if it was a health or sanitation problem, or a danger such as a burn threat should the city take action. She said it should start with a letter to the property owner. Susan Garry said that she thinks that the appearance of various properties has improved lately and gave specific examples. Susan Schmidt said she had seen a family cleaning up a lot that did not belong to them, apparently taking matters into their own hands. Mayor Piper said that at the beginning of the incorporation process there had been discussions about communicating with people to address these types of issues. Ms. Piper said that we should find solutions short of adopting an ordinance that would help to make Copland more attractive. She said there should not be any official government action except for health or safety issues and in those cases the County should be able to assist us. Ms. Gary commented that sometime back, Ms. Piper had been able to get the County to take care of a property near the school which was the source of bee attacks upon children. Ms. Schmidt acknowledged the difficulty of approaching people whose properties are in bad shape. Ms. Piper said that she felt that the cleanup day might help inspire people and that letters are sometimes sufficient. During the discussion, citizens were allowed to freely address the Council with one resident commenting that dealing with unattractive properties treads a fine line and that we don’t want an “HOA situation.” In the end, the official consensus of the Council was that they would continue to discuss the issue but that they were not interested in pursuing the establishment of a specific ordinance at this time.
Regarding the mowing of city streets, Mayor Piper reported that there were 5 miles of roads within the city limits. However, because many residents maintain their properties up to the streets, a contractor would not have to mow all of those 5 miles, which would really be 10 miles to do both sides of the streets. The Mayor is going to solicit bids for the mowing. He hopes to be able to present those bids to the city Council at the May meeting.
Under state law, the city is required to have a specific policy for records management and retention and a specific person is to be designated to oversee the implementation of that policy. An ordinance establishing the policy must be filed with the state. The City Secretary (yours truly) summarized the current practices: Paper copies of official documents such as agendas, minutes, and ordinances are on file in the city office in the Coupland Fire Station. Digital copies are stored online in a Dropbox.com account, with multiple backups on the Mayor’s personal computer and the Secretary’s personal computers. The Secretary and the Mayor may have some items in their possession while they are being prepared but once work is complete, they are stored at the city office and in digital formats. The Secretary and the Mayor will draft the formal policy and present it at a future City Council meeting.
The Mayor presented an ordinance repealing the sales tax exemption that was in existence by default for telecommunications services sold within the City. Section 1, subsection (a) of the ordinance says this: “A tax is hereby authorized pursuant to Section 321.203(g) (Consummation of Sale) of the Texas Tax Code on all telecommunications services sold within the City. For purposes of this section, the sale of telecommunications services is consummated at the location of the telephone or other telecommunications device from which the call or other communication originates. If the point of origin cannot be determined, the sale is consummated at the address to which the call or other communication is billed.” Such services would be subject to the existing 1 ¼% city sales tax. The vote to adopt the ordinance was unanimous and it will be submitted along with the official minutes to the State Comptroller.
The previous two items (records management and telecommunications tax) came to the attention of the Council as a result of articles in the official magazine of the Texas Municipal League.
There was a discussion regarding the development of the city’s website. The Secretary showed the Council the new website. It is still under development and contains no official information at this time but it can be found at www.cityofcouplandtx.us. There was a brief discussion about whether or not to establish official email addresses for City officials. Matt Eiben recommended that instead of email addresses, which are easily spammed, the City utilize a contact form on the website. He also said that the City’s website needs “curb appeal” and that he would submit a proposal to help stimulate ideas. He also suggested that the Council look at websites of other cities. Mayor Piper said that he would review options with the Secretary.
During the citizens and events recognition portion of the meeting only the cleanup day was mentioned.
During the citizens communication portion of the meeting, Sarah Torluemke spoke on ordinances in general. She said Coupland is going to change and that when ordinances are brought forth, the intent should be clearly stated but that the primary purpose should be to protect Coupland. Ruby Wabbel spoke about the potential ordinance on junky properties. She said that any such ordinance should address only safety and health issues and that the City Council should not adopt the role of a homeowners association. She also thanked the the Council members for volunteering their time, for being concerned about the welfare of Coupland, and for helping keep Coupland at its best.

The next meeting of the Coupland City Council will be on May 8.

L-R: Susan Garry, Barbara Piper, Jack Piper, Karen Marosko, Eldridge Tidwell, Susan Schmidt
(September 12, 2013)

Emergency Services District #10 Meeting Agenda for April 9, 2014

City Council Meeting Agenda for April 10, 2014

City Council Meeting Highlights for March 13, 2014

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The March meeting of the Coupland City Council was a mixture of old and new business, including the establishment of a Planning and Zoning Committee. Susan Garry was unable to attend. Here are the highlights:

As of February 28, the City’s bank balance was $37,364.
The Subdivision Ordinance was amended to add an exemption when an owner is conveying land to family members. The amended ordinance is now styled Ordinance No. 2014-3-13-01. Here is the exact wording:

Section 7, Exemptions, in Ordinance No. 2013-9-22-01, Subdivision Ordinance of the City of Coupland, are amended as follows:

A. Paragraph (6) was added to read as follows:

A plat is not required when a person makes a conveyance of one or more tracts, each of which is two acres or more in area, to members of his or her immediate family for their personal use; provided, however that each daughter tract is either located on a public road or has access to such a road by a private easement. However, if the family member sells the land to a non-family member within two years, it will be presumed that the conveyance was not for personal use.

During the discussion, it was clarified that if a family member were to sell the land to a non-family member within two years, all applicable provisions of the subdivision ordinance would apply retroactively to the original conveyance. Also, Mayor Piper noted that the City Council considers amendments to existing ordinances four times per year. (See the story on the October 10, 2013 meeting of the City Council for details.)

The legal firm with which the City had an agreement for the provision of legal services split up into two firms. Mayor Piper recommended that the City sign a new agreement with Barney Knight’s firm (Knight & Partners) because of the lower cost and Coupland’s previous experience with Mr. Knight. The new agreement was approved.
The Mayor reminded the Aldermen that the new City sales tax of 1.25% will go into effect on April 1.
The City Council set a tentative date for Saturday, May 17, for a city-wide clean up day. Details are pending but it may include a large dumpster for city residents to use. The Council hopes to be able to make an announcement in the next issue of the Coupland Herald.
The Council also discussed the possibility of arranging for mowing along certain roads, including County Road 458 but not including the state roads that go through Coupland. Mayor Piper and Eldridge Tidwell will gather information for possible future action.
There was a discussion about the ongoing re-platting process for the Prinz Estates. The final plat has not yet been approved. More importantly, Karen Marosko (who is also the Secretary of the Coupland Water Supply Corporation, which actually deals with waste water or sewage) read a letter from Martin Samuelson, the President of the CWSC, to Howard Prinz. The letter addressed the question of whether or not a future buyer of the Prinz Estates would be required to connect to the existing sewer system or would be allowed to install their own septic system. Mr. Samuelson said that according to the Texas Water Code, since the land is within 300 feet of the CWSC system the new owner can hook up to the existing system but that if the land is more than two acres, they may request a variance from the board of the CWSC to establish their own septic system. Either way, the land owner pays all the expenses that might be incurred. [Editor’s Note: The details of this letter are important enough that it will be posted in a separate Coupland Times story.]
A potentially major development for the future of Coupland was the adoption of Resolution No. 2014-2-13-02: “A Planning and Zoning Committee is to be formed for the purpose of examining zoning possibilities in Coupland. The committee will consist of Cole Barton, Sarah Torluemke, Loretta Patschke, Tim Worthy, Carolyn Haverland, Peter Wabbel, and Tanya Suchomel. The Mayor will convene the initial meeting.” Mayor Piper said he had previously contacted these citizens and that they had agreed to serve on the committee. He said that they will elect officers, look at what other cities are doing, get input from the public, and make recommendations to the City Council. Concerns were raised by various Council members, and one of the meeting attendees, about things like pig farms, waste management facilities, adult book stores, hazardous waste dumps, sludge farms, or a feral hog slaughterhouse being established within the city limits in the absence of zoning regulations. One Council member pointed out that there were state and county regulations that would apply in some cases. Possible zoning categories such as residential, commercial, mixed, and agricultural were mentioned at various times. One of the potential members of the committee, Sarah Torluemke, offered this explanation of how zoning would work in Coupland: “From my perception, it’s not so much to dictate to people what they can do. It is to offer a mechanism for guiding the growth in Coupland.” In commenting about the opposition to zoning previously expressed by Jim Huntington, Torluemke said, “From his perspective, he’s afraid that it will change Coupland and in my head the purpose for having some kind of zoning is to keep Coupland from changing in ways that we don’t want.” Alderman Schmidt said that in the past, Coupland was a more cohesive community and that community standards were different. She said, “Unfortunately, that’s not the case here any more . . . ’cause we’ve got so many rental properties and we’ve got other people moving in . . . The way people are now, today, you can’t rely on them to want to do the right thing . . . They want to do what’s right for them but not what’s right for the community.” How zoning might be enforced was also a subject of discussion as were the granting of variances. The resolution passed on a vote of three in favor of the resolution (Barbara Piper, Susan Schmidt, and Eldridge Tidwell ) and one opposed (Karen Marosko). Mayor Piper noted that the meetings of this committee will be subject to the provisions of the Open Meetings Act and will be publicized.
During the citizens and events recognition portion of the meeting, Susan Schmidt praised the speaker at the general meeting of the Coupland Civic Organization, Dr. Dana Boehm, who talked about her travels to Africa and her efforts to promote sustainable living concepts.
No citizens signed up to address the Council.

The next meeting is scheduled for April 10.