Small Town News

Conaway fears loss of county

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Congressman Mike Conaway, the Midland Republican whose 11th congressional district includes Burnet County, is concerned enough about the possibility of losing the county and other territory in the upcoming redistricting process that he has his staff keeping an eye on the map-drawing process in Austin.

"We're concerned enough that we are monitoring the situation pretty close," Sam Ray, Conaway's Chief of Staff, said Monday from the congressman's Washington office.

Several proposed redistricting maps have already been filed with the Texas legislature, which will draw the new congressional districts in coming weeks, and most of them have Burnet County as part of the 31st Congressional District represented by John Carter of Round Rock.

None of those maps have much of a chance of being approved, legislative and congressional sources said Monday.

"We are weeks away from approving a congressional redistricting map," said State Sen. Troy Fraser, R-Horseshoe Bay, a member of the Senate Select Committee on Redistricting, which will take the lead on drawing a new Texas congressional map.

One map that has not been officially submitted to the legislature, but which is making the legislative rounds in Austin and the congressional delegation in Washington, is one purportedly formulated by Congressman Lamar Smith of San Antonio.

Details of Smith's map are scarce, but reportedly it would include Burnet County in a new 34th Congressional District which would include part of western Travis County and stretch north into Weatherford, which is west of Fort Worth, and south to Kerrville.

While Fraser said it is too early to speculate on the makeup of a new congressional map, he conceded that there is a possibility Conaway's district could undergo significant change.

"Burnet County is the eastern-most part of Conaway's district and his district was pretty odd shaped," Fraser said. "With the changes that will have to be made to accommodate four new districts it is not inconceivable that several districts will undergo significant changes."

Reapportionment of the state's congressional districts is part of the redistricting process, which occurs every 10 years to account for shifts in population as reflected in new census figures.

Texas currently has 32 congressional districts, but because of population growth the state will gain four new districts this year.

State senators still have not reached agreement on a budget and will not move on to redistricting until a budget is approved, Fraser said.

Once they get to redistricting the first task will be reapportioning their own 31 Senate districts and then they will turn to congressional redistricting, he added.

Smith's map reportedly is not universally popular among Republicans, who control the redistricting process because of their legislative majorities in the state House and Senate and with Rick Perry still in the governor's office.

Some, notably Congressman Joe Barton of Arlington, reportedly don't like Smith's map because they do not feel it maximizes Republican strength in the state.

Smith's map reportedly will result in 23 safe districts for Republicans or conservatives.

One of the maps already submitted to the legislature, by the conservative Grass Roots Institute of Texas (GRIT), would guarantee Republicans or conservatives 28 seats, said Bill Burch of Grand Prairie, president and executive director of GRIT.



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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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