Information is currency for democracy.                   - Thomas Jefferson

A day without sunshine is like, you know, night.    - Steve Martin

Education is unique among consumer products; when it fails to work as advertised, it's the customer that gets labeled as defective.         - Kevin Killion

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Courage is the most important of all the virtues, because without courage you can't practice any other virtues consistently. You can't be consistently kind or fair or humane or generous, not without courage, because if you don't have it, sooner or later you will stop and say, "The threat is too much. The difficulty is ...too high. The challenge is too great. ~ Maya Angelou

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


BOOSTER CLUBS


 

First, the policy ...

According to Eanes ISD board policy GE in place when we requested the following public information:

Booster clubs who handle any monies through dues collections, fund-raising, etc., shall have an annual audit. This should be approved by an audit committee of the organization. An annual financial statement must be filed with the Superintendent. This statement must provide the following information for each fiscal year:

a. Beginning cash balance.

b. Total revenue and expenditures by major category.

c. Closing cash balance.

This report is due on or before July 1st of each year.  (Note:  Eanes ISD changed board policy during 2006 - new due date is September 1.)


Now, the practice:

Chaps Club Financial Statements

Open Request dated March 23, 2004 (requesting 2002-03 to present)

Attorney General assistance - July 14, 2004

EISD certification dated September 14, 2004 to the Office of the Attorney General that no responsive documents exist.

 

A community member, surprised at the lack of responsive documents, offers assistance

 and we obtained these documents on October 6, 2004.  Note:  2002-03 documents still outstanding.


WHS Booster Club Financial Statements

 Open Request dated March 23, 2004 (requesting 2002-03 to present)

 Attorney General assistance - July 14, 2004

 EISD certification dated September 14, 2004 to the Office of the Attorney General that no responsive documents exist.

 

A community member, surprised at the lack of responsive documents,

offers assistance and we obtained these documents on October 6, 2004.


Visit Community Update 4 and Community Update 11 and Community Update 15 to learn more.


Protecting the status quo, good 'ol boy network, business as usual ...

Speaking of "finagling,"  Buck Wood is also the attorney/lobbyist who represented lobbyist Thomas Ratliff (son of professional lobbyist Bill Ratliff) in a very friendly lawsuit "against" Eanes ISD back in 2006 ... timed just before the legislature met in 07.  Eventually, Ratliff dropped the sweetheart lawsuit but not until a law was passed to make obtaining public information cost-prohibitive.  Ratliff lobbied hard for this bill, testified, and wrote a congratulatory letter to the superintendent when it passed and then, of course he and his attorney Buck Wood dropped the lawsuit. 

Interesting that just a few months before Ratliff filed the lawsuit, KeepEanesInformed gathered Eanes ISD public information, specifically Ratliff's emails between and among a school principal and fellow booster club members.  KeepEanesInformed had already confirmed that Eanes ISD was not complying with board policy that requires the provision of a financial audit to the superintendent annually from each booster club.  The emails obtained by KeepEanesInformed (immediately before Thomas Ratliff and his buddy Buck decide to "sue" the district) indicated that apparently $2900 was missing from one booster club bank account.  Further, there were multiple bank accounts and no one could figure out who the accounts (and money) belonged to ...  the district or the booster club.  In emails between and among the school principal and booster club board, Ratliff encouraged the others to "keep this under our hat."  (Sorry, folks, Ratliff's hat is "invitation only.")

Well, as 'ol Buck would say, "This kind of thing has been going on forever." 

Ghost busting
Brownsville Herald - TX United States

"This kind of thing has been going on forever," Buck Wood, an Austin ethics attorney and former Capitol worker, told The Associated Press last week.  Such misuse of funds is outright theft, as it takes money from unwilling taxpayers and diverts it from projects that might actually benefit the public, instead of only those people who have finagled such sweetheart deals.


 

 

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