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Were now tied to Georgetown

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Burnet County remained in a legislative district with northern Williamson County and Milam County in a redistrict-ing bill the Texas House of Representatives approved last week at the end of a marathon session.

Burnet County's new home will be District 20, represented by Charles Schwertner, R-Georgetown.

The House voted 92-52 shortly before 3 a.m. to approve the new map, fulfilling its duty to reapportion its 150 districts once new census figures are compiled every 10 years.

Burnet County officials and citizens had expressed a preference to not be linked to Williamson County in the re-districting map, citing differences in priorities and culture, and hoped to be made a part of the Hill Country district of Rep. Harvey Hilderbran, R-Kerrville.

Hilderbran said he pulled his amendment to put Burnet County in his district after he lost support from West Texas legislators he had to have to win the vote.

There is still a chance Burnet could wind up in his district if the Legislative Redistricting Board ends up drawing the redistricting map, Hilderbran insisted.

"Our bill probably will be sent over to the Senate on Monday and it's probably going to just sit there for at: least two weeks, because: the Senate has not done anything on redistricting yet," Hilderbran said. "If the Senate does not vote out a plan for re-apportioning its districts by the end of the session, then it will go to the LRB and that's when Burnet would need to come out in big mumbers."

The Legislative Redistricting Board is composed of the Lieutenant Governor, House Speaker, Attorney General, Comptroller and Land Commissioner and will be charged with drawing the redistricting maps if the legislature does not approve a plan by the end of the legislative session, May 31.

It is all but certain that the Senate will not alter the House map, Hilderbran said.

"There's no law against it, but it's custom," the veteran Kerrville legislator said. "They don't mess with ours and we don't mess with theirs."

Burnet County Judge Donna Klaeger said the county is eager to work with Schwertner if the House-approved map becomes official.

"I talked to him (Schwertner) and told him our desire to remain in a rural district was nothing personal," Klaeger said. "We are eager to work with him and develop a good relationship and we will be happy to introduce him to people over here and get him involved."

Burnet County has been part of District 54, currently represented by Jimmie Don Aycock, the past 10 years, linked with Lampasas County and the Killeen and Fort Hood portion of Bell County.

Significant growth in Bell County made it necessary for Burnet County to be severed from District 57.

Hilderbran had filed an amendment that included a map with Burnet County' in his District 53 and said he also could support an amendment filed by Rep. Tim Kleinschmidt, R-Lexington, that did the same thing.

But shortly after 11 p.m. it was announced on the House floor that Hilderbran's amendment had been withdrawn and at about 11:30 p.m. an announcement came that Kleinschmidt's amendment had been withdrawn.

Hilderbran said Thursday he decided not to introduce his amendment after West Texas legislators had earlier won approval of an amendment that preserved separate districts for freshman Tea Party Reps. Jim Landtroop of Lubbock and Charles Perry of Plainview.

"Once the West Texas guys got their amendment approved and got their map the way they wanted it I lost their support for my amendment because some of the same counties were involved and they didn't want to mess with it," Hilderbran said.

Hilderbran had been hoping to pull together a coalition of rural Republicans and Democrats who opposed the original HB 150 map.

Opposition from Hispanic groups to the House-passed map is likely to lead to a court challenge, but any changes that might come would likely have no effect on Burnet County's placement, legislative sources have said.



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© 2011 Burnet Bulletin Burnet, Texas. All Rights Reserved. This content, including derivations, may not be stored or distributed in any manner, disseminated, published, broadcast, rewritten or reproduced without express, written consent from DAS.

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