Some context
On July 25, a petition with more than 1,600 signatures from Bastrop voters was submitted to the Bastrop City Secretary's office. According to Section 10.07 of the Bastrop Home Rule Charter, at least 25% of registered voters as of the last municipal election are required to attempt a recall.
Kristin Miles, elections administrator for the Bastrop County Elections Office, said 6,228 voters were registered as of the May 4 election. This means at least 1,557 signatures were needed.
According to the first page of the petition, it was organized by Mayor Pro Tem John Kirkland, council member Kevin Plunkett and several others.
Interim City Secretary Irma Parker and Assistant City Secretary Victoria Psencik reviewed the petition.
What you need to know
At the Aug. 13 Bastrop City Council meeting, Parker—who started her position on Aug. 6—presented what she had learned so far.
"I'm not ready to declare it sufficient or insufficient because there's some stuff that doesn't make sense," Parker said. "Your section [of the Bastrop Home Rule Charter] about the recall initiative is so convoluted."
Parker reminded council members that there is a time crunch and that when she is ready to present her findings, it must be done at a regularly scheduled council meeting.
Per section 10.08 of the Bastrop Home Rule Charter, the city secretary's office has 30 days from the date of the petition's filing to make its determination. This means Parker has until Aug. 24 to decide.
Breaking it down
"The first thing that doesn't make sense, and I've never seen this before, ... it says in 10.07 [of the Bastrop Home Rule Charter] that [one of the] signers of each petition paper shall make an affidavit that the statements made therein are true," Parker said. "That doesn't make sense to me. That is like me going to an election, and you've already gone in and voted and left the ballot box, and I say, 'Do you want to do that again? Are you sure you knew what you were doing?' It doesn't make sense. I'm at a loss."
Parker said she will contact the Secretary of State, research Attorney General opinions and consult with Bastrop City Attorney Alan Bojorquez to determine how to proceed.
What else?
Bojorquez said residents can neither add nor remove their names following the original filing of the petition; however, City Manager Sylvia Carrillo suggested an alternative for those who may have changed their minds.
"The power of the recall is at the ballot box," Carrillo said, explaining that voters can make their final decision for or against Nelson's removal at the recall election if the petition is deemed sufficient.
Going forward
According to Parker, as well as the Bastrop Home Rule Charter and the Texas Election Code, the following will happen depending on Parker's decision about the petition:
- Deemed sufficient: Parker must certify that it is sufficient at a regularly scheduled Bastrop City Council meeting.
- Deemed insufficient: Parker must provide notice to the petition committee to advise them they have 10 days to amend the petition—which can only happen once.
- Final determination: After reviewing the amended petition, Parker must present her findings at a regularly scheduled council meeting.
- Following certification: If it is certified, Nelson has five days after the petition is presented at a regularly scheduled council meeting to request a public hearing to present his case.
- The public hearing: At the time of Nelson's public hearing request, which must be submitted in writing, the hearing must be scheduled by council members between five to 15 days from the date of his request.
- Following the hearing: Unless Nelson resigns, council members must then order a recall election no sooner than 90 days after the petition was filed, which would be Oct. 23 or 90 days from the date of the public hearing—whichever is later.
- Following the recall election: If a recall election happens and results in the removal of Nelson, council members must immediately declare a vacancy and call for a special election within 120 days of declaring the vacancy.
One more thing
Parker said another concern she has is whether those involved on both sides of the petition set up specific or general-purpose committees.
"If you're going to do this, you had to have spent some money, and the people have a right to know what's going on and who's paying it," Parker said. "We need to start complying with the law, and the people have a right to know."
In their own words
"Government needs to make sense, and it doesn't always, but we need to have a little common sense here," Parker said. "It's been a real dash to try and read everything—and I'm not taking sides; my side is with the people. The people are the ones who determine whether we are going to do a recall election or not. I want to be fair to the people. ... This decision is mine, and it's going to be a while before I come to a conclusion."
