HoweEnterprise.com
US Senator John Cornyn only respondent of representatives to Howe Enterprise questions regarding Texas House Bill 241—forensic audit of 13 Texas counties Our publication recently sent a question regarding Texas House Bill 241 to our representatives including State Representative Reggie Smith, State Senator Drew Springer, US Representative Pat Fallon, US Senator Ted Cruz, and US Senator Ron Cornyn. Of those, only US Senator Cornyn has responded. Texas House Bill 241 is a call for a forensic audit of the 2020 General Election of November 3, 2020. It calls for an independent third party to audit every precinct in each county with a population of 415,000 or more. This would leave out Grayson County which has been studied to “likely” have had fraudulent activity according to former Army Intelligence Captain Seth Keshel. Our question asked whether they were in support of HB241 and their overall thoughts the election process. Senator Cornyn’s response: Dear Mr. Walker: Thank you for contacting me regarding the integrity of America's voting systems. I appreciate the benefit of your comments on this important matter. The Constitution affords all Americans the right to vote, and integrity of our elections is fundamental to preserving this right. I firmly believe that our standard should be that we should make it easier to vote legally in America but also, at the same time, make it harder to vote illegally. I support efforts to expand voter access, but these efforts cannot interfere with the integrity of our elections. Many Americans are concerned about the integrity of the election, and I share the belief that allegations of irregularities and fraud need to be investigated to their fullest extent. At a time when trust in our institutions is near an alltime-low, we must remain vigilant and continue to work together to preserve the right to vote and im-
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July 26, 2021
City budget
Council member Georgia Richardson and Dale Dale Rideout review the 2021-22 budget. Staff photo. (Continued from page 7)
The council adopted the proposed budget unanimously.
US Senator John Cornyn prove our election procedures. Protecting the integrity of our elections is something that benefits everyone. As such, I have long advocated for common-sense safeguards, such as voter ID requirements, which are reasonable, constitutional and a highly popular mean of safeguarding the legitimacy of America's elections. As a member of the United States Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, I am working on a bipartisan basis with my colleagues to ensure our government has appropriate tools and resources to eliminate future election interference. As such, I believe candidates running for an elected position should immediately contact the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) if a foreign government contacts them regarding an opponent's campaign. There should be no doubt concerning the integrity of our election system, and the FBI should investigate any possible cases of interference by a foreign government. I appreciate having the opportunity to represent Texas in the United States Senate. Thank you for taking the time to contact me. Sincerely, JOHN CORNYN United States Senator
Advertise Your Business in The Howe Enterprise Monte Walker—Ad Manager, Grayson Publishing, LLC news@howeenterprise.com
The council opened the meeting by approving a $200,000 budget for the HCFCD which was approved by the HCFCD board prior to the meeting. The same amount was approved for expenditures to sewer payments. Councilman Dale Rideout made a motion to name Brett Bearden Mayor Pro Tem which passed unanimously with the exception of Bearden, who abstained. The council approved a pay increase of the city administrator position beginning August 1 to $80,000 per year. The motion was made by Bearden and second by Rideout and was approved unopposed. The council appointed Mayor French, Police Chief Hudman, and City Administrator Stanley to the Grayson County Mitigation Team representing Howe. The council also voted to reject all bids received for the Howe Chloramine Conversion and Take Point Improvements project. Over 12 months ago, Howe budgeted a complete chloramine conversion on the City of Howe’s water system which would allow for the combination of surface water with the existing well water. The goal was to begin taking water from the Greater Texoma Utility Authority water line that
runs on the east side of Howe. The bids came in exceptionally high, and the city chose not to move forward with any and all bids. Chief Hudman led with departmental reports and stated that the Howe Police Department answered 196 calls to service, generated 10 reports, made one felony arrest, three misdemeanor arrests, and issued 76 citations, and responded to two accidents. Public Works Director Mickey Phillips stated that they carried out 85 service orders for a total of 110 hours of work. They prepared five water leaks for a total of 14.5 hours of work. Worked six sewer mains for routine cleaning which totaled 12 hours. They have begun the study for the wastewater treatment plant. Economic Development Director Walker stated that the sales tax receipts for June were $37,157. A property alongside US Highway 75 has an offer for a commercial development but could not state what the project was. He said there are currently nine events on the books for Summit Gardens for the remainder of the year. The HDF will be spending $750 to stripe O’Connell St. near Summit Gardens for venue parking. It will be similarly designed as Haning Street. He gave a recap of the Hotter ‘N Howe event and invited everyone to the Blue Bell Ice Cream Social to be held on Aug. 5 at the Chamber/EDC office.
