Travis County Commissioners Court
June 16, 2009,
Item 2
>> number 2 is to approve proclamation recognizing katy johnson, kiley ba t.j.ar and katy gleghorn for their work as associates in the intergovernmental relations office during the regular session of the 81st Texas legislature.
>> I didn't know if Commissioner Eckhardt or I was going to speak to this issue.
but I am fully prepared to express my gratitude and pleasure with the work that were done by our associates.
i think we had a very good legislative session this year.
i would like to think that the Commissioners court felt better informed about what was happening over at the legislature on a weekly basis.
i think that our key staffers in our departments and in our -- among our independent elected officials were better able to track what was going on with the legislation.
and the Travis County was much more visible at the capitol this session around.
and a large part of that was because of the associate's that we had working with us in our intergovernmental relations office.
five interns, all of them students at st.
edward's university, participated this spring.
today we are honoring three of them who completed the full internship, but I also want to recognize markosoto and alex brown who hung out with us for a better part of the session.
each of our interns dedicated between 12 and 20 hours a week to their internship.
they analyzed bills and resolutions.
they prepared and sent notices to executive managers and key staffers about committee hearings and other bill status changes.
they attended and reported back on committee hearings.
they dropped cards on behalf of Travis County on bills the court had voted to support or oppose.
and they prepared and distributed reports on the legislature for members of the court for executive managers, key staffers and independent elected officials.
i know that you all thought I was doing a fabulous job all session, but it really was them who were doing all the hard work of amall ga mating information and preparing it for this court.
in the process, we hope they learned a lot about both the legislative process and about how county government works.
and we're grateful for their service and hope they won't be strangers around here.
with respect to that, we have prepared resolutions for each of them, which we're asking the court to vote upon and present to them today.
>> for all that work they must have received a great deal of compensation.
>> [ laughter ]
>> we bought them lunch a few times.
that was about it.
>> there was always feet peat is a and chocolate in the conference room.
i helped myself a couple of time.
>> let's have nem come forth as we read out their names.
katy johnson.
katy gleghorn.
and kiley ba t.j.ar.
and the men were smart enough not to come.
both males.
should I read the proclamation?
>> judge, it's at your discretion.
>> I tell you what, the first paragraph is different.
we'll read all of those.
we'll read one of these in its entirety, though.
katy is on top, whereas katy johnson graduated from mckinney north high school in 2005 and is currently a political science and economics major at st.
edward's university, whereas katy served as a legislative associate to the intergovernmental relations department of Travis County during the regular session of the 81st Texas legislature.
whereas the work of a legislative associate is vital to the successful -- to a successful session for Travis County.
whereas katy served so ablely during this session by assisting with legislative research and specifically by focusing on the federal american recovery and reinvestment act of 2009 and its effect upon Travis County.
whereas during her time as an associate, katy gained valuable firsthand knowledge of the governmental process and insight into the issues facing local government.
whereas her hard work and dedication towards analyzing bills, researching potential vehicles for county-related legislation and studying parliamentary procedure has been greatly proficiented and valued, and whereas it is clear that katy will go on to achieve significant personal academic and professional goals during her bright future.
now therefore be it resolved that the Travis County Commissioners court does here by recognize the important contributions of miss katy johnson during her time as a legislative associate.
and we said the same thing for ms.
gleghorn, who graduated from georgetown high school in georgetown, Texas, right?
>> yes, sir.
>> and is currently a political science and economic's major at st.
edward's university with plans to graduate in 2011.
and kiley graduated from central high school in san angelo Texas in 2005 and is currently a writing and rhetoric major, writing and rhetoric.
that sounds familiar to members of the Commissioners court.
and a minor in political siens.
i move approval of all three.
resolutions?
>> second.
>> we tried to talk dietz into giving all of y'all a gold watch of some sort.
he complains that that's not in his budget.
>> any comments?
>> I wanted to say I worked with y'all a good bit of the session.
i know it was whirlwind.
y'all were just incrediblebly professional, provided huge amounts of information.
it was great having y'all sitting in on the subcommittee meetings and contributing there too.
it was always a spirited conversation.
and I'm glad what happens in vegas stays in vegas.
>> [ laughter ]
>> we did manage to see y'all in the hallway a few times and after the first week you didn't even look lost.
>> [ laughter ] right at home.
any comments before heading off to -- have y'all finished the exams yet?
>> we're all done.
i'm done.
>> kiley are in summer school already.
>> working hard.
>> aced them all, I bet.
any comment?
>> we want to thank dietz and the court for this opportunity.
we learned a lot.
>> I would like to say that I definitely learned a lot about local and state government, and I will have a lot to take with me in whatever I choose to do.
thank you.
>> if you ever want to come and work without pay...
>> [ laughter ]
>> I really appreciate it.
>> all in favor?
that passes by unanimous vote.
>> thank you.
>> and you get to carry these valuable proclamations with you.
>> judge, we have our court photographer here.
we would love to see if we can take pictures.
>> thank you.
>> thank you, guys.
we appreciate the opportunity.
thank you.
>> [ inaudible ]
The Closed Caption log for this Commissioners Court agenda item is provided by Travis County Internet Services. Since this file is derived from the Closed Captions created during live cablecasts, there are occasional spelling and grammatical errors. This Closed Caption log is not an official record the Commissioners Court Meeting and cannot be relied on for official purposes. For official records please contact the County Clerk at (512) 854-4722.
Last Modified:
Tuesday, June 16, 2009 2:41 PM