Bastrop Advertiser and Bastrop County News (Bastrop, Tex.), No. 12, Ed. 1 Thursday, May 19, 1977 Page: 3 of 12
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Highlights
and
Sidelights
Texas
The 53-year-old electric
chair may have seen its last
use in Texas.
Governor Dolph Briscoe
signed into law a bill which
will substitute lethal drug
injections for "Old Sparky"
as the method of carrying out
future death sentences.
Texas and Oklahoma are
the first states to go to
execution by drugs.
Both the Texas and
Oklahoma laws actually are
not effective until September
1. A Texas single execution is
scheduled before that time -
that of Robert Excel White
on June 15.
Briscoe declined to say
whether he would order a
delay until the new law goes
into effect in three months.
"I see this legislation as
providing a more dignified
and humane way of carrying
out the death peanalty,"
Briscoe commented in sign-
ing the bill.
Rep. Ben Z. Grant of
Marshall and Senator Bill
Braecklin of Dallas sponsored
the bill.
Efforts to abolish the death
penalty have failed in the
current session of the
legislature.
The new law directs the
director of the Texas
Department of Corrections or
someone he designates to
carry out sentences of
execution by injections of a
"substance that will cause
death."
"Old Sparky", which has
killed more than 360 men, is
expected to be donated to a
museum.
Pay Bill Passes
A $369 million teacher pay
bill won House approval by a
lop-sided majority.
At the same time, House
members voted to increase
teacher retirement benefits
by $213 million.
The pay bill would increase
By Lyndell Williams
Press Association
base salaries of beginning
teachers from $8,000 to
$9,024 the first year of the
biennium and $9,384 the
second year -- about 12 per
cent. A teacher with 21 years
experience may get a raise of
from $$11,780 to $14,382 ~ 13
per cent A six year teacher
would get about six per cent
increase.
Meanwhile, the Senate
Education sub-committee is
considering an $820 million
overall school finance bill
which would give teachers a
$320 million raise -- 5.1 per
cent in 1978 and 3.4 per cent
in 1979. The Senate also is
considering a teacher retire-
ment bill.
More Jobs
Texas Employment Com-
mission detected substantial
progress toward curbing
unemployment during
March.
About 5.1 per cent of the
labor force was seeking jobs
at that time.
That compares with 5.5 per
cent in February and 6.1 per
cent in March of 1976.
"While all segments of
manufacturing and non-
manufacturing experienced
upturns from last month,
non-manufacturing groups
had the most significant
increases," TEC noted in its
statistical study.
The number of Texans out
of jobs in March was at the
lowest point since August
1975. A total of 286,000
Texans were jobless in
March, TEC said.
Courts Speak
The Court of Criminal
Appeals, acting on a state
motion for rehearing, agreed
to reconsider a Tarrant
County murder conviction it
reversed last month.
A Pasadena woman won an
$87,242 damage verdict
through a Supreme Court
appeal against a Jack-in-
J' ^a-
"Texas' Oldest Weekly Newspaper"
LB LAND and BETTY PANNLLL - PUBLISHERS
LHLAND R I'ANNELL - EDITOR
BI TTY PANNELL - MANAGING EDITOR
BOB STANDIEER - CIRCULATION MANAGER
SHIRLEY REESE - OFFICE MANAGER
NANCY YOUNG - TYPESETTING - LAYOUT
HERBERT JASTER - TYPESETTING
REID SHARP - STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER
□
MEMBER 1977 ASSOCIATION
Annual Spring Festival
Sacred Heart Church, Rockne
SUNDAY, MAY 29
SUPPER
HOMEMADE SAUSAGE - FRIED CHICKEN
GAMES & REFRESHMENTS
DANCE IN EVENING
8:30 to 12:00 o'clock
SPECIAL
CHICKEN PRIED STEAK
Served With
Mashed Potatoes
English Peas
or Green Beans
Every Day Special
*i
99
SSSSSSSeSSSSSSSSSS^-^^SSSSSSSSSSSSSSS
OPEN 11:00 A. M. TO 2:00 P. M.
TUESDAY, WEDNESDAY & THURSDAY
11 :00 A. M. TO 2:00 P. M.
AND
5:00 P. M. 'TIL
FRIDAY, SATURDAY & SUNDAY
PRO SHOP
CAFE
Hwy 95 between Bastrop Elgin
Phone Bastrop 321 3396
O|>om 11 A.M. Daily
Muoi|«y
the Box restaurant which
didn't act fast enough to get
police to avoid a k niv-
wielding incident in which
she was hurt.
"Hie Supreme Court held 33
Beaumont policemen are not
entitled to longevity raises
frown bv the city council.
Lee Otis Johnson, once
sentenced to 30 years for sale
of a single marijuana
cigarette, lost a burglary
conviction appeal to the
Court of Criminal Appeals.
An Austin man convicted
of heroin possession won an
appeal to the Court of
Criminal Appeals on grounds
evidence was seized in an
illegal search.
An El Paso robbery
conviction was reversed by
the same court due to
statements by the jury
foreman.
AG Opinions
A commissioners court has
no authority to adjust the
assessed value of land for a
past year on the basis of an
agricult ural use affidavit filed
subsequent to the original
assessment, Atty. John hill
held.
In other recent opinions,
Hill concluded:
The legislature may con-
stitutionally give municipal
courts authority to grant
injunctions to prevent city
ordinance violations.
Conveyances and condem-
nation orders concerning
Water Control and Improve-
ment District property are
not excepted from required
public disclosure and should
be released for inspection on
request
The original version of the
Texas "gas for irrigation act"
is subject to constitutional
challenge, but a committee
substitute is valid.
Short Snorts
State budget writing is
now in the hands of a
10-member House-Senate
conference committee after
Senators passed a $15.6
billion appropriations bill
following approval of $15.3
billion in spending.
The House approved sev-
eral of Governor Briscoe's
law and order proposals
including authority to deny
bail under certain circum-
stances and to issue eviden-
tiary search warrants.
The Senate voted $35
million in sick leave benefits
for school personnel.
Senators also passed a bill
to raise political candidate
filing fees by amounts
ranging from $50 to $500.
Statewide fees would be
$1,500, county office fees
$300.
Texas wheat farmers are
expected to produce more
than 100 million bushels this
year in spite of drought and
delayed plantings.
The House gave its
blessings to a massive
reorganization of state gov-
ernment in 16 principal
departments headed by cabi-
net type gubernatorial ap-
pointees.
Chili is now the official
state dish. Governor Briscoe
signed the legislative resolu-
tion so designating it.
Social security will
need $83 billion
The future of the social
security system is something
that nearly every American
has a stake in . Personally. 1.
J. J. "Jake" Pickle, would
rank the solving of this
problem second only to the
energy question as a priority
for the 95th Congress.
Since its inception in 1935,
the social security fund has
been paid by equal contribu-
tions by employer and
employee. Currently each
pays 5.85 per cent on all pay
up to $16,300. The self-
employed pay at a rate of 7
per cent. Besides the basic
payments for the retired and
their survivors, over the
years the system has
expanded to provide dis
ability payments and hospital
insurance (medicare).
But the system has run into
difficulty in recent years for
severalreasons.These include
an error by the Congress in
double-indexing of benefits to
the cost of living and wage
rates; fewer workers to
the recent sev ere recession.
If no changes are made in
the present system, the
disability insurance fund will
go broke in 1979 and the oM
age fund will be in the red by
1983. Accordingly, in my
view, this Congress must
tako positive steps to assure
the long range stability of the
program.
Last week Health, Eduea
tion and Welfare Secretary
Joe Califano presented the
Administration plan to the
House Ways and Means
Social Security Subcom-
mittee of which 1 am a
member.
Calculating that $83 billion
will be required to put the
system back on a sound
financial basis by 1982. the
Administration has proposed
a bold departure from the
present system.
In brief, the remedy the
Administration advocates is
as follows:
using $14 billion from
general revenues
support each retiree (this .....over a three-year
problem will be aggravated period, gradually removing
as the birth rate declines) and the ceiling on the amount of
LCRA revenue
bonds sold
Lower Colorado River
Authority Board of Directors
today sold $70 million in
revenue bonds for continued
construction of Fayette
Power Plant Unit 1, 8 miles
east of La Grange. Low
bidder for the purchase was
Bache Halsey Stuart Inc. of
New York, which submitted
an effective interest rate of
5.93872 per cent
"In light of the current
bond market and the Dow
Jones indicators of Monday,
and rates on our prior bond
sales, I feel this rate is the
best possible the Authority
could have gotten at this
time," sayd general manager
Charles Herring. "This com-
pares very favorably with the
rate the Authority received
on its issue of $30 million on
November, 1976, With this
issue, we complete the
financing for the Authority's
half of the estimated cost of
Unit 1 construction."'
"It is my hope this
coal fired plant will enable'
LCI^\ to provide some
stahiBzation of rising costs of
electricity now produced
almost exclusively in Texas
by natural gas and fuel oil."
"More importantly," Her
ring says, "it is a significant
step away from dependence
on natural gas supplies which
have become increasingly
scarce, expensive and unde-
pendable in peak demand
periods."
Scheduled for commercial
operation in June, 1979, Unit
1 is jointly owned by LCRA
and the City of Austin.
MIMI G'S
Steak & Stein
CHAR • BROILED STEAKS
House Special
T-BONE or CLUB
,2 0, $375
FM ROAD 1441
NORTH SHORE OF LAKE BASTROP
321-3814
Buy 1 pizza
get 1 free
ORDER 2 THICK'N CHEWY ORTHIN N CRISPY
PIZZAS OF EQUAL VALUE, AND WEIL GIVE YOU
THE SECOND ONE FREE. JUST PRESENT
THIS COUPON.
OOOO FOR 1 FREE THICK N CHEWY •
OR THIN N CRISPY* PIZZA WHEN YOU
BUY 1 OF EQUAL VALUE OOOO ONLY AT THESE
PARTICIPATING PIZZA HUT RESTAURANTS
Offer expires : May 23
M ' • *
PlWM
4lul
Our pcopk' maki' if befU'f
Hwy. 71 W* t
Bantrop
tax paid by employer until
the tax is based on the total
wage;
increasing the rate of
self employed from 7 to 7.5
percent;
adding $600 to the
employee wage base in 1979,
1981. 1983. and 1985. This
would be beyond the already
projected increases. For
example, the base is sup pas
ed to be about $19,000 in
1979. This would raise it to
$19,600.
In addition, the Adminis
t rat ion would shift funds
from the QASI fund next
year to the disability
insurance fund and place the
system in conformity with
recent court decision regard
ing equal treatment of
women and men.
While applauding the Ad
ministration for taking this
problem head on I must say
at the same time 1 am very
disturbed about the pro
t he Bastrop Advertiser, Thursday May 19. 1977. Page 3
non profit institutions and
state and local governments
in a very difficult situation.
While expressing reserva
tions. I feel we cannot
postpone actions just because
they will be painful. The
longer we put off the
inevitable the harder the bite
will be. The social security
program is still stable and
solvent, but we've got to act
this year to keep it fiscally
sound.
visions to tap the general
treasury. We are trying to
make up a deficit by
borrowing from another fund
already in deficit by over
$100 billion the last two years
and another $60 billion or so
for the next fiscal year.
Secondly. I do have some
doubts about destroying the
50 50 contributions of
employers-employees which
has been the cornerstone of
the program for 40 some odd
years. This would place
Homemaking courses
to be offered
The Bastrop High School
Homemaking department
will be offering two summer
programs in June. The
courses to be taught are
"Clothing Construction" by
Mrs. Jessie O'Brien and
"Experimental Cookery" by-
Mrs. Cindy Wilkins. Both
courses will begin on June 6
and are free to the public.
High school students who
have taken at least 1 year of
homemaking may take either
course for 1 quarter credit
toward graduation.
For more information
please contact either Mrs.
O'Brien or Mrs. Wilkins at
321 3911 Monday Friday
between the hours of 8:30
m. and 3:30 p.m.
About
Festival,
dinner.
500 turned out for the Lake Bastrop Acres fire department Spring
I he festival featured arts and craft sales, auction, and a Bar-He-Que
GUS'S DRUG STORE
Specials May 19 - 25
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Pannell, Leland R. Bastrop Advertiser and Bastrop County News (Bastrop, Tex.), No. 12, Ed. 1 Thursday, May 19, 1977, newspaper, May 19, 1977; Bastrop, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth395228/m1/3/: accessed March 28, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Bastrop Public Library.