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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Aug. 31, 1989)
He Battalion STATE & LOCAL 3 ursday, August 31,1989 flJW e Ye going to have races’ G R 0 ni e white Downs horse track to open on schedule IS ^^ ^^^.USTIN (AP) — One of the two Texas horse tracks scheduled to run first legal pari-mutuel races in than 50 years this fall may not 11 on * l was reported Moll', Wednesday. I vine ®r llt officials of the second track, ’ a G. Rollie White Downs near Brady, said they will get out of the gate on an uij,^ schedule Oct. (>. rU f»We’re going to open,” said Jan IBfcui of the Brady track. “We’re ean going to have races.” ‘d cm ; Rollie White tind Manor it worrie Downs, east of Austin, had been ) spend' granted fi ie first racing dates by the r Tex.is Racing Commission. Both tr|(ks had told the commission they would open Oct. 6. BVt Manor Downs, officials ref used tolcomment Wednesday, referring call' to the Austin law firm of John- sori & Johnson. The firm failed to return three calls from the Asso ciated Press. nut the Austin American-States- s and nainir ;ering: 'ists pa egislati .ing di nmittei V for 1 he gu; nalitv. man, quoting several racing sources, reported that pari-mutuel racing at Manor Downs might not begin rac ing until November. The newspaper quoted a veteri narian as saying, “Trainers have been told the earliest they could open would be November. I was told there was a possibility of a sale (of the track). I had heard months ago there would be new ownership after the track was licensed.” Jack Shaw, a horse owner from Manor, said he was at the track late last week. “There is no way they can have that track ready by Oct. 6.,” Shaw said. “They haven’t started building a thing. The rail is down. There is lots of equipment there, but nothing is moving. It doesn’t look like any thing is happening.” The track hasn’t notified the Texas Racing Commission of any possible delay, commission spokes man Angie Roberts said. Roberts said track officials have been asked to appear at the panel’s Sept. 11 meeting to report on their progress and plans. “We haven’t heard anything offi cially,” she said. “They are on the agenda for Sept. 11. That's when they’re supposed to update the com mission.” ■. — Horse race gambling had been il legal in Texas since the 1930s. But after a voter referendum in 1987, the Legislature legalized pari-mu tuel wagering on both horse and dog races. The Racing Commission has li censed several Class 2 horse tracks, but only G. Rollie White and Manor Downs had requested racing dates for this year. thr 46 racing days from Oct. 6 through Dec. 30, Roberts said. The track also had been awarded several racing days each week from Jan. 5 through April 29, 1990, she said. At Brady, Black said G. Rollie White Downs has scheduled racing for Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays from Oct. 6 through Jan. 28. She said the grandstand has been com pleted and other work should be wrapped up on time. Lobbyists may be summoned to testify for panel id PACii 'under; ■ AUSTIN (AP) — The chairman in 1%'Ba legislative committee examining in the lApie laws on campaign finance and 1 inQir-pP' nding by lobbyists said Wednes- cfa\ he may summon lobbyists to tes tify before his panel. J’Tfwe don’t get any lobbyists who at CUfAnt to testify, we’ll ask some if they account iBll come and testify,” said Rep. Pete xpense jLincy, D-Hale Center. Very i f BL ane y’ s House State Affairs Com- ■ittee began looking Wednesdayat i 1 the campaign finance and lobbying once lir laws. A Senate committee is sched- 'ti a lob: filled to do likewise. >,000'catwThe investigations follow months of news reports about lobbyists who spent more than $1.8 million on cn- ■rtainment and gifts for members ol the Legislature during the 1989 tegular session. Ilhat money, which averaged has tot ff n,)re than $12,()()() per day during ■ Je 140-day session, purchased food, ' ® ■'inks, hunting and fishing outings, Blf games at exclusive private clubs, ■y, since iously in ski trips, Mexican vacations, and even a trip to the championship box ing match in Las Vegas, Nev. In addition, recent news reports showed that some powerful legis lative committee chairmen used con tributions to their political funds, called officeholder accounts, to pay for everything from home mort gages to airplane leases. Laney said he wasn’t certain what E roblems may exist with the current iws on lobbyist regulation and polit ical financing. However, he said all the news re ports had raised questions in the public’s mind. “Anytime there’s a perception there’s a problem, there’s a prob lem,” Laney said. “I don’t think any one on this committee or in this Leg islature wants to do anything illegal, immoral or unethical. “I think the issues themselves (for his committee) will cover all the lobby reporting, all the campaign disclosure, all the way down to the local offices’ disclosure. If we’re going to look at it, we’re going to look at it all.” Laney said he won’t call any legis lators to testify but may hear from them, also. “I’m not going to call any mem bers (of the Legislature), but if any want to testify they’ll sure be wel come,” he said. “This is all of the members’ business and the lobbyists’ business, so I think they’re going to be very interested.” Some 800 lobbyists registered for the 1989 Legislature. State law requires them to report their total spending each month on entertainment and gifts for lawmak ers. Parks and Wildlife proposes restrictions on stocking wildlife AUSTIN (AP) — The Texas Parks and Wildlife .Commission said Wednesday it wants to know about every wildlife stocking ap plication made by individuals in the wake of allegations that the politically powerful received spe cial treatment in placing animals on their ranches. Parks and Wildlife Executive Director Charles Travis recom mended that the commission be told of any stocking request made by an elected or appointed state official. But Commissioner Tim Hixon said that the proposal “singles out a particular group. And I’m not sure it’s entirely fair.” Hixon said that perhaps all stocking requests could be pub licly posted, but Commissioner Lee Bass said, “You may invite ev ery poacher in the county to some guy’s ranch.” The commissioners agreed that the Parks and Wildlife De partment inform them monthly of all private stocking applica tions. There are between 12 and 24 requests for antelope and deer stockings from private individu als a year, according to depart ment officials. News reports earlier this year told of several stockings of ante lope, deer, fish and other animals onto lands owned by public offi cials,- including House Speaker Gib Lewis, University of Texas Regent Louis Beecherl and for mer Parks and Wildlife Commis sion chairman Ed Cox Jr. Travis said the commission could vote on the new stocking policy at its November meeting. Commission Chairman Charles Nash said he believes the policy would address concerns raised by the public. “We’re tightening it down a little bit, enclosing those maybe existing loopholes that were there,” Nash said. “Before, we were not advised of any stockings. And I think that will be the major change.” Under the proposed new rules, T ravis would prescribe the form and condition of the stockings through a written agreement with the landowner. All stockings would be for in vestigation, propagation, distri bution, scientific or educational purposes. LULAC investigation leads to forced resignations SAN ANTONIO (AP) — The League of United Latin American Citizens has asked ten former national presidents to resign from the group’s foundation board amid an investigation into financial irregularities, league officials said. National LULAC president Jose Garcia de Lara said the ten have five days to quit. Other wise, the Hispanic rights organization will sus pend sponsorship of the foundation and the foundation’s tax exempt status will be stripped, de Lara said. “They really have no choice,” said de LaraJ a San Antonio architect who won re-election as LULAC’s national president on a promise of fis cal reform. “We need to clean this up.” The San Antonio Express-News reported Wednesday the allegations of financial irregula rities involve at least $88,000 and range from cronyism to secret bank accounts of funds do nated to the foundation. A subsidiary of the 140,000-member league, the LULAC Foundation, collects corporate dona tions to the organization’s educational, job and civil rights program. The former LULAC national presidents or dered to quit the foundation board are Hector Godinez of Santa Anna, Calif.; Manuel Gonzales of Waco; Oscar Laurel of Laredo; Ed Pena of Washington, D.C.; Roberto Ornelas of Dallas; Pete Villa of Seattle; Paul Garza of Laredo; Edu ardo Morga of Los Angeles, chairman of the foundation board; Mario Obledo of Sacramento, Calif.; and Oscar Moran of San Antonio. of totf I pay! : only® (ouf ail gel and r: !o I s A higher form of math or science requires a higher form of calculator. II-60 The more you count on math and science, the more important it is to choose the best possi ble scien tific 0* course needs, with just the right functions , !| and features for faster, easier results. Whether you require a general, intermediate or advanced scientific calculator, TI has your number: the easy- to-use TI-30 STAT, the solar- calculator. And now, that’s an^^ powered TI-36 SOLAR, the easier decision than ever. 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