Election day in Lake Highlands
State Representative Allen Vaught has provided background information on these amendments in an effort to help encourage informed trips to the voting booth.
Rep. Vaught's article detailing the first three amendments can be viewed here; the second article detailing amendments 4 through 7 can be seen here.
This article details the final four amendments up for consideration today.
Proposition 8: Authorizing the State to Contribute Resources to Veterans’ Hospitals
The proposition will read: “The constitutional amendment authorizing the state to contribute money, property, and other resources for the establishment, maintenance, and operation of veterans hospitals in this state.”
With about 1.7 million veterans currently living in Texas, Proposition 8 would authorize the state to contribute money, property, and other resources to establish, maintain, and operate veterans’ hospitals in Texas. The U.S. Dept. of Veterans Affairs operates nine in-patient veterans’ hospitals in Texas, but not one in the Rio Grande Valley.
Supporters say veterans have sacrificed much to keep their country safe and secure, and deserve to have ready access to the benefits they have earned. Prop. 8 would encourage the U.S. Dept. of Veterans Affairs to partner with the state to establish and maintain these hospitals. With only a limited number of veterans’ hospitals in Texas, the rising cost of traveling to these facilities can impede or delay necessary health care for some veterans and place a burden on the families of those veterans admitted to a hospital far from home. Prop. 8 would improve access to medical care for Texas veterans, especially in underserved areas such as the Rio Grande Valley.
Opponents say amending the Constitution for this purpose is not necessary because the Constitution would not prevent the state from contributing to a veterans’ hospital. Amending the Constitution to send a message to the federal government to build a veterans’ hospital in Texas likely would have little or no effect on the federal government’s decision. Moreover, specifically authorizing state contributions for hospital facilities that previously have been funded exclusively by the federal government could lead to the expectation that the state would contribute a portion of the funding for future facilities.
Proposition 9: Establishing a Right to Use and Access Public Beaches
The proposition will read: “The constitutional amendment to protect the right of the public, individually and collectively, to access and use the public beaches bordering the seaward shore of the Gulf of Mexico.”
Proposition 9 would establish the public’s unrestricted right to use, and have access to and from, public beaches. The right would be dedicated as a permanent public easement. A public beach would be defined as a state-owned beach bordering the Gulf of Mexico.
Supporters say the proposition would strengthen the already established Texas Open Beaches Act by enshrining it in the Texas Constitution and by putting it to a public vote. This move would secure open beaches against any future legislative or judicial action that could undermine this important legal principle. A vote to secure open beaches would send a strong message that the state’s residents wish to preserve access to these resources for present and future generations.
Opponents say The Open Beaches Act already provides too much authority to the state to restrict the right of private landowners to enjoy their property. Prop. 9 would lock into the Constitution a law that has allowed the state to force property owners to remove structures that end up on the public beach when it shifts due to weather events and erosion.
