Dawn Buckingham

By Lew K. Cohn

Managing Editor

The Highlander

Public comment deadline for a proposed Air Quality Standard permit for a proposed rock crushing plant south of Marble Falls has been extended by three weeks until Oct. 31, state Sen. Dawn Buckingham, R-Lakeway, said Friday.

Meanwhile, the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) will hold a 7 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 26, informational meeting about the Asphalt Inc. permit application at Lakeside Pavilion, 307 Buena Vista, Marble Falls, Buckingham said.

“To my constituents in Senate District 24 I hear you,” Buckingham said. “Many of you in the Marble Falls and surrounding areas have voiced your concerns and frustrations about a proposed rock crushing permit request and an inability, in some cases, to get your questions answered. That's why I reached out to the regulatory agency involved on your behalf demanding more transparency.

By Glynis Crawford Smith

The Highlander

Dr. Dawn Buckingham took her oath of office today, Jan. 10, as the new senator for Texas District 24 and she shared time yesterday for telephone interviews with the press.

She succeeds Sen. Troy Fraser of Horseshoe Bay after coming out on top of five Republican candidates, besting Rep. Susan King in the run off and swamping Democrat Virginia Leeder of Llano 214,568 to 81,836, statewide in November.

“We really appreciate Sen. Fraser's years of service,” said Buckingham. “Those are big shoes to fill and he has worked with me to make a smooth transition and make sure the district is represented well throughout the transitional period.”

In District 24 that are includes the counties of Burnet, Lampasas, Llano, Blanco, San Saba, Comanche, Gillespie, Brown, Bandera, Bell, Callahan, Coryell, Hamilton, Kerr, Mills, and parts of Taylor and Travis.

By Lew K. Cohn

Managing Editor

The Highlander

State Senator-elect Dawn Buckingham filed her first bill last week, seeking to hold Texas' presidential electors to their pledges to vote for the candidate elected by the majority of Texas voters.

Senate Bill 394, titled the Texas Elector Accountability Act, would make so-called “faithless electors” who fail to vote for the Texas general election winner subject to a civil penalty of $5,000. It would also make them ineligible to serve again as state electors in subsequent elections.

The bill was filed by District  24 Sen. Buckingham on Dec. 21 and will be considered during the next legislative session, which begins in January. A companion bill was filed in the Texas House by District 14 Rep. John Raney, R-College Station.

By Lew K. Cohn

The Highlander

Managing Editor

Primary runner up Debbie Bindseil upset Coach Larry Berkman to take the Republican runoff election for the Precinct 4 Justice of the Peace in tonight's final Burnet County election returns.

NOTE: The following results are for how BURNET COUNTY voters cast their ballots. They may or may not line up with state outcomes. For a graphic that shows how county and state results compared, see Friday's edition of The Highlander.

After all the polling locations closed Super Tuesday evening, March 1, and the votes were tallied, it became apparent that Burnet County voters mirrored the rest of Texas in favoring Republican presidential candidate Ted Cruz over Donald J. Trump, 4,026 votes to 3,145.

In locally-contested races, there were many clear-cut winners, as well as several expected runoff situations (if the top candidates did not gather at least 50.1% or more of the votes for that position):

* Indicates anticipated runoffs.