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The Election, Redistricting, and What To Do to Keep Texas from Turning Blue

Early voting for November 3rd elections begins on October 13th, less than 40 days away!

In addition to the presidential and US Senate election (Cornyn), the race for Texas Republicans on this year’s ballot who are running for State Representative will be the toughest many have ever had. Texas House races will receive special focus as Democrats picked up 12 seats two years ago and they need only win 9 seats this cycle to hold the majority. That possibility is very much in play.

With such an important election only two months away, I have had a number of constituents reach out and ask what they can do to keep Texas red. I’ll attempt to answer that question in this newsletter but here’s the overview:

1. Vote
2. Encourage others to vote (especially in areas with competitive races)
3. Donate to candidates in key races
4. Volunteer

VOTE

The most important thing you can do is go vote, period. While I have no Democrat opponent in this election, President Trump and Senator Cornyn need to “run up the score” in more rural parts of the state to win reelection. Many people are vocal fighters on social media, but if they don’t follow up by actually voting, they are Shakespeare’s “tale told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, signifying nothing.”

Please make sure that you go all the way down the ballot to ensure your voice is heard on local elections as well. These races are often decided by a handful of votes and have a huge impact on our communities.

Finally, I would like to remind you that one-punch straight ticket voting is no longer on an option on ballots this year. Take this into account when planning on going to the polls and–again–go all the way to the bottom of the ballot!

ENCOURAGE OTHERS

Secondly, talk to friends and family and make sure they understand the importance of voting in this election and that there is no option to do one-punch straight ticket voting. Especially in more urban parts of the state, the ballot can often be multiple pages and some folks are tempted to vote for a couple of offices at the top and then leave everything else off.

If you (or they) believe in keeping the Republican majority in the Texas State House because the policies of Texas have benefited the people of this State and Country more than the policies of a Democrat-controlled Legislature, it is imperative that we completely fill out our ballots.

DONATE

This is also an election where monetary contributions matter a great deal. Races for seats in the Texas House are normally run on a relatively small budget compared to congressional elections-so strategic contributions can make a much larger difference in these races than they would elsewhere.

Eric Holder, the former Attorney General in the Obama Administration, heads the National Democrat Redistricting Committee. He is raising millions of dollars from left wing donors to give to State Representative races in hopes of gaining Democrat majorities in State Legislatures across the country. Texas is on the list and his organization and many other federal left-leaning PACS have already contributed hundreds of thousands of dollars to their Democrat State House candidates in Texas.

That is why I have been donating to Republican House candidates across the state. Since I do not have a Democrat opponent, I am able to send resources to other campaigns where they are needed. If you would like to contribute directly to candidates, I would be more than happy to discuss which candidates/races might benefit most from your support to keep Texas red.

VOLUNTEER

Finally, donate your time as a volunteer. I’m sure your local county Republican party–here’s the link to Wichita County’s–would love to put you to work. There are also other races around the state where you might be able to contribute your time in a number of different ways.

A FINAL WORD

Every election is important. Due to the effects on redistricting (see the separate section below for more info), this Texas House election will have ramifications over the next decade. If you’ve ever thought about getting involved, there’s no time where it could matter more.

May God bless you and your family,

James

. . . This is an excerpt from a newsletter sent September 8, 2020

REDISTRICTING

 

I’ve often been asked why redistricting is such an intense and emotionally charged process. The answer is that boundary lines on maps can often mean the near-certain loss of a member’s seat, either to the other party or to another member within one’s own party. It is about as personal a business as happens in the Legislature and can be perceived-rightly or wrongly-as the settling of grudges or playing favorites. It can also be extremely partisan and can have profound impacts on elections over the next few cycles as demographics change.

Redistricting is a constitutionally required process that happens every 10 years to redraw congressional and legislative districts based on population changes in the state. While preparations are already underway for the process, the opening kickoff cannot happen until the US Census Bureau reports the official numbers. In normal years, that happens by April 1 of a ‘1 year (’91, ’01, ’11, ’21, etc.). However, COVID pushed back the data gathering operation and we have been told not to expect numbers before July of next year. The three month delay is already a difficulty, but that also means the Legislature will not be able to tackle redistricting during its normal legislative session which ends on May 31st, 2021. As a result, expect at least one late summer special session to tackle redistricting.

Plans to enact new redistricting maps proceed through the legislative process just like any other piece of legislation. In other words, they must pass both chambers of the Legislature and be signed by the Governor. If, for whatever reason, the Legislature is unable to pass a plan (or the Governor vetoes it), there is a constitutionally mandated backstop-the Legislative Redistricting Board (LRB). The LRB is a five-member body of state officials (Lieutenant Governor, Speaker of the House, Attorney General, Comptroller, General Land Office Commissioner) which must meet within 90 days of the end of the regular session and adopt its own plan (within 60 days of convening).

If past history is any indication, whatever maps are agreed to will be challenged in court, and that can be a lengthy, drawn-out process.

Normally, the Legislature only has one “must-pass” bill, the budget. In 2021, the need to do redistricting means we’ll have two-and neither are likely to be easy.

READ FULL NEWSLETTER HERE

2020 Early Voting Announcement

Early voting for the March primaries kicks off on Tuesday, February 18th with the races to conclude on March 3rd. As we always do, we’ll provide information in the body of the newsletter on how to find out the logistics of voting in your area and other voting resources. As a reminder, I rarely, if ever, endorse in the local races. While I sometimes have strong opinions on these races, I must be in a position to work well with whoever ends up winning. This prospect is made considerably more difficult if I endorse against the eventual winner. I will share with you how I am voting on many of the up-ballot races, as it is often very difficult for people in the district to have any real information about these races (especially the judicial ones).

The following is who I will be supporting on my Republican primary ballot:

• President – Donald Trump
• US Senator – John Cornyn
• US Representative District 13 – See comments below
• Railroad Commissioner – Ryan Sitton
• Judge, Court of Criminal Appeals, Place 3 – Bert Richardson

My support for the incumbents at the top of the ticket, President Trump and Senator Cornyn, needs little explanation. Both men are obviously the best Republicans on the primary ballots when it comes to representing the state against their Democratic challengers in November. The same goes for Ryan Sitton who is running for reelection as a railroad commissioner.

The TX-13 congressional race is an extremely crowded one with 15 candidates. The March 3rd election is really about which two candidates will make the run-off as it is extremely unlikely that anyone will be able to garner 50% of the vote in such a crowded field. There are a number of quality candidates who I believe would do a good job representing us in Washington. With that said, I think it is nearly impossible for someone who has not lived in the district for a substantial amount of time to effectively understand the makeup of the people who live here and how they should be represented.

Also, I have had a handful of people reach out to me to ask my opinion about the propositions on the ballot. As a reminder, the propositions on the primary ballot are simply a form of opinion polling. They are not binding in any way and are mostly used as a way to gauge general interest on certain issues of the day. I think it’s also important to recognize that they are often worded in ways to obtain a specific result, not necessarily gauge the primary electorate’s stance on issues that can be nuanced.

There’s one other item I’d like to touch on that matters not only for this election, but also for our civic life in general. I cannot stress enough the importance of local elections. Though the races at the national level are the ones that get all the attention in the media and on Facebook, it is the local politics in your city, county, school districts, and state that have a more direct impact on your life. If you want to have a big impact on politics, spend time learning who your local elected officials are and begin engaging with them. Very few of us can have a meaningful effect on what is happening at the national level, but many have the time, talent, and ability to influence local politics.

It is a blessing to represent you in the Texas House.

James

. . . This is an excerpt from a newsletter sent February 17, 2020

READ FULL NEWSLETTER HERE

New Year, Running Unopposed and CPS Review

As some of you may know, I have been blessed this year to be unopposed in both the Republican primary election and in the general election in November. That means that I will be “reelected” as your state representative for another two year term (2021-22). The best part of being unopposed is that it allows me to use the next 11 months to dig in on policy work as we prepare for the next legislative session.

As we have started the new year, my staff and I are setting goals and objectives for our legislative priorities.  Since the foster care system, Child Protective Services (CPS) and its parent agency, the Department of Family and Protective Services (DFPS), have long been a high priority for me, I thought it would be timely to share some of these ideas as we plan for the next legislative session.

Overall, there is a lot of reason to be optimistic for the future of foster care in Texas.  First, Texas families of all stripes continue to answer the call and take at-risk children into their homes, either on a temporary basis or as a new forever home through adoption. In December 2019, DFPS reported that they have seen an increase in the number of adoptions in the last fiscal year.  Second, staff turnover at the agency has steadily declined over the last several years, which can help lead to better results for kids.  Finally, Texas continues to roll out Community Based Care (CBC), a paradigm shift in the delivery of child welfare services, whereby non-profit organizations manage foster care services at a community level in order to better align services with the needs of foster children.

Notwithstanding these positive trends, there is always room for improvement.  Specifically, wrongful child welfare investigations and removals continue to be a problem for many families in our state creating trauma for children and unnecessary churn and distractions for the workers trying to improve outcomes for those kids.  I also am concerned for the implementation of the Family First Prevention Services Act (FFPSA) (a federal law which significantly redirects federal funding around foster care services) as well as the ongoing saga of the federal court case surrounding case load standards and other CPS items.

With any area of large governmental involvement, there are two distinct but interrelated areas to monitor-legislation and administration. Drafting law and directing state spending are two essential activities for which the Legislature is solely responsible, yet when done poorly, create massive challenges for even the best agencies. Conversely, it is equally true that innovative and carefully crafted laws can be undermined by poor implementation. Both sides are essential to good governance!

If you are interested in additional detail about 2020 and beyond for child welfare, we’ve got more for you in the bulk of the newsletter.

May God bless you and your family,

James B. Frank

. . . this is an excerpt from a Newsletter sent on January 27, 2020

READ FULL NEWSLETTER HERE

End of Session Recap Part 2 – Income Tax & Health Care

Every session feels a little different as you get drawn into different issues and responsibilities. The 86th was one that was defined, for me, by my committee responsibilities and the world of healthcare that they encompassed. It’s an incredibly important policy arena and, while the learning curve is steep, I am very glad that I was able to dig in during this session (and in the upcoming interim).

There may be no more important issue to Texans and how they interact with their government than on healthcare. It is a vital issue but one too often characterized by overwhelming bureaucracy, bad information, high costs, and political fear-mongering. Also, to a large degree, healthcare and health insurance (not the same thing) policy is driven at the federal government level, leaving the state a smaller room for policy maneuvering.

In this newsletter, we have highlighted the major legislation that came through the Human Services and Public Health Committees on which I served. While by no means exhaustive (Human Services had 285 bills referred to it; Public Health had 360), it is intended to provide a window into many of the issues my staff and I worked on. We have also provided a brief synopsis of HJR 38 which will, if approved by voters in November, prohibit the imposition of a state income tax in Texas.

It has been fantastic to be back home now for over a month. Hope to run into you in the district soon!

May God bless you and your family,

… this is an excerpt from Newsletter dated April 22, 2018

End of Session Recap Part 1

We are just over one month removed from the end of the 86th Legislative Session. Since the 20-day deadline for the Governor to veto bills has come and gone, we now know what the final work product of the 86th Legislature looks like. These next few newsletters are my attempt to give you an overview of what the Texas Legislature did for you (and sometimes to you) during the 2019 legislative session.

With everything that took place in the 140-day legislative session, we thought it would be most convenient for the reader to break up the End of Session Recap Newsletter into 3 parts over the next 3 weeks. This newsletter, Part 1, will deal with the major legislation passed during the session . Part 2 will deal with what I spent the bulk of my time on this session — the work of the Human Services Committee and Public Health Committee. And Part 3 will discuss the interim and what to expect going forward from me, my office, and for state government as a whole.

Some of this, especially the information about SB 2 and HB 3, will seem familiar. We have already discussed these two bills in some depth in previous newsletters. However, these two issues (property tax transparency/reform and school finance reform) are what this session will be remembered for so we’re including information about them one last time.

It has truly been great being back hom e in Wichita Falls. I am thankful that a state rep in Texas gets to spend 19 months of every 24-month cycle living in his/her hometown. Not only is this much better for my own quality of life, it makes it much easier for representatives to stay connected to the needs and desires of their communities. I am also grateful for the opportunity recently to speak to various civic groups and organizations, including the Helen Farabee Centers Board, Wichita County Republicans, and Burkburnett Rotary Club. I fielded questions from them about the session and what law changes could mean.

Finally, the July 4th holiday is a reminder of the freedoms that we enjoy and should be a reminder of the sacrifices of those who died to give us these freedoms and opportunities. While it is fashionable in some circles to insult our country, it is clear by the number of people trying desperately to get into the United States that it remains a beacon of freedom and hope. These freedoms and opportunities seem evident to the world, but are missed by many within our borders.
May God bless you and your family,

… this is an excerpt from Newsletter dated April 22, 2018

Early Voting for Proposed Bonds Starts Monday, April 23rd

Election on May 5th, Early Voting Starts Monday, April 23

Early voting for the proposed bonds begins on Monday and continues through the actual election day of May 5^th.   It is my hope that every voter in Wichita Falls will take the time to review and decide how to vote on each and every bond proposal on the ballot. Before jumping into specifics on each proposal, I would like to share some general thoughts about the issue:

1. I am excited about some of the projects that are being proposed. I firmly believe that it is incredibly important that we look forward with both optimism and vision so that we can grow and prosper as a city and as a region.

2. I am also concerned about the increase in tax burden that these projects will be adding to the already high property taxes in the area. I am concerned from both a personal standpoint and the impact that these higher costs will have on existing and prospective businesses, especially capital intensive businesses which pay a disproportionate share of real estate taxes.’

3. That being said, the votes are not nearly as clear-cut as some would have you believe. I have heard many essentially suggest that you must “VOTE YES or you don’t love this city.” I completely reject that argument as it is fine to love this city and want it to grow, but have honest disagreements over the means. On the other hand, I have heard others imply that there is no such thing as a worthwhile government project, which is neither true nor particularly forward thinking.

There are real advantages of voting yes on these bonds and real costs and consequences as well.

… this is an excerpt from Newsletter dated April 22, 2018