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Hill Country Chapter of
Texas Democratic Women
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December
2019
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January Meeting
Tuesday, January 7, 2020, 11:00 a.m.
Ray and Joan Kroc Center, 201 Holdsworth Drive, Kerrville
Luncheon cost: $15 per person
Reservation deadline: Thursday, January 2, 2020
Reservations for the luncheon are due no later than Thursday, January 2, 2020. To make a luncheon reservation, call Linda Stegall at 830-257-2795 or click on this link to her email:
lindastegall@hotmail.com.
Payment for meal reservations, when not canceled, should be made to the treasurer, as HCTDW is responsible for paying for all reservations. To cancel a reservation, call or write Linda Stegall at the above phone number or email.
(Please do not reply to this newsletter to make or cancel reservations.)
To attend the program only, starting at 11:40, advise Linda Stegall so that the necessary seating will be available. The meeting is open to the public.
The luncheon is a home-style buffet which includes Caesar salad, meatloaf, mashed potatoes, fresh vegetable medley, bread and banana nut cake
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he cost of the luncheon is $15.
Program:
Anne Dunkelberg, Associate Director and Program Director of the
Center for Public Policy Priorities,
"Health Care Access and Public Policy:
Texas Challenges and the 2020 Elections"
Anne Dunkelberg, Associate Director and Program Director of the Center for Public Policy Priorities, will present the program, "Health Care Access and Public Policy: Texas Challenges and the 2020 Elections."
Her talk will explore Texas' worst-in-nation uninsured problem, including who are the 5 million uninsured Texans and the state-level policy solutions available to our state leaders. It will also look at the gaps in the Affordable Care Act (ObamaCare) that Congress could fix, and the range of health reform proposals being advanced by candidates for the U.S. Presidency. Finally, participants will learn about efforts they can join to ensure the governor, lieutenant governor, speaker and legislature take real actions in 2021 to reduce the number of uninsured Texans
Anne oversees health care policy for CPPP, an independent, tax-exempt organization founded by the Benedictine Sisters of Boerne in 1985 to advance public policy solutions for expanding access to healthcare. She focuses on policy and budget issues related to health care access and immigrants' access to public benefits. She joined the Center in 1994 from the State Medicaid Director's Office at the Texas Health and Human Services Commission. A native Texan, she received her B.A. from the University of Texas at Austin, and her Master of Public Affairs from the LBJ School of Public Affairs at the University of Texas at Austin.
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President's Message
As I write this, the House is considering articles of impeachment for President Trump.
Listening to the various witnesses, it is hard to understand how we hear the same information yet draw such different conclusions. The old picture of two blind people asked to describe an elephant while one touches the trunk and one touches the hind foot doesn't seem to fit because most of us on the Democratic side think we see the whole elephant. No matter how this ends, our country will still be divided. We will still be left with believing our part of the elephant is correct.
As we move into 2020, we need to evaluate how we can work to diminish the divide we are seeing. Democrats will have a primary where our support for candidates will test our ability to work together whether our favorite person wins or loses. Turning Texas blue and working to elect a Democrat as President will be a challenge.
Hill Country Texas Democratic Women want to be informed voters. With that as a goal our programs are presenting a wide variety of issues. It is important that we take the information we receive at our meetings and share them with others. We can be like a pebble thrown in a pool that causes waves to spread. Our pebble of information can help inform others. Some of those who hear what we learned will find they agree with us and thank us for sharing. Perhaps that small step will put us on a path that brings us together rather than one that divides.
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Legislative Report
Your Texas Driver's License is Your REAL ID and Voter ID
What is so special about this driver's license? It is imprinted with a white star in a gold circle, designating this license as a REAL ID as well as a current Texas driver's license. Since October 2016, Texans have been receiving notices that their driver's licenses and person identification cards must be renewed, along with a list of documents such as birth certificates and verification of address, that have not been requested in the past. Many of our members have received these requests this year and expressed concern about the impact on voting.
The reason for the focus on your Texas driver's license is the federal REAL ID Law passed by Congress way back in 2005 in response to the 9/11 attacks. The stated purpose of the REAL ID Law is to bring all state driver's licensing up to a basic level of security to "combat terrorism, identity theft, and other crimes by strengthening the integrity, accuracy, and security of the driver license and identification card issuance process."
Letters from the Texas DPS will request proof of identity, date of birth, social security number and primary residence address using verifiable documents. The REAL ID card also must have security features built into the card, and the DPS must have developed required procedures for protecting personal data provided by citizens.
The deadline for acquiring a REAL ID driver's license or personal Identification with the star emblem is October 1, 2020. Persons who lack a REAL ID after the deadline will not be allowed to board a commercial airline in the U.S., enter a nuclear facility or enter a federal building unless they have a passport or travel card. Due to the deadline, the Texas DPS is sending notices to drivers who have a license that will expire after October 1, 2020 encouraging them to renew early through the REAL ID process.
Our Texas Voter ID law will not change on October 1, 2020. Voters can still use their driver's license or personal identification without the star as their government-issued photo ID after October 1, 2020 until it expires and even after it expires for a period of 4 years. If you are 70 or older, the expiration date does not matter as long as the government-issued ID is otherwise valid.
The intersection of Voter ID and REAL ID occurs when registered voters apply to renew their driver's license or personal identification card either because it will soon expire or to meet the REAL ID deadline, and cannot produce the documentation required by the REAL ID Law. The REAL ID law could make it more difficult for some Texans who have been voting for decades to obtain the basic government-issued ID they have always used to enable them to vote. Issues over name changes and errors on birth certificates may create obstacles for citizens and voters. The DPS does offer an email address for contacting them if a birth certificate is not obtainable.
If the DPS already has your proof of citizenship and your verified Social Security number, you may be able to apply for a REAL ID online or on the phone. If not, you will have to appear in person and submit documentation. Instructions for applying to the Texas Department of Health and Human Services for a certified copy of your birth certificate are presented on the website for the Texas DPS (
dps.texas.gov). A detailed list of the various documents in certain categories that are required by the REAL ID Law can be found on the web site of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (
dhs.gov).
The bottom line is: you can still vote in the 2020 General Election with a Texas driver's license that is not a REAL ID, according to current law, but the best bet for the future is to make sure you have a REAL ID.
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Back By Popular Demand
Support TDW - Order Our Special T-Shirts
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HCTDW's December Charitable Giving
For the third year in a row, HCTDW chose the Hill Country Crisis Council as the recipient of its annual charitable giving. In addition to dishes, flatware and kitchen towels for families served by the council and are beginning new homes, monetary donations were also collected. Presenting the donation box to Brent Ives, Crisis Council executive director, are Barbara Young, Barbara Wise, Heather Farmer, Sue Sommers, Shannon Palmquist and Sylvia Ostos.
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HCTDW Board
Meet Your Board Members
Linda Stegall, Communications
I was born in Beaumont Texas, but moved to Louisiana for a few years. Later I moved to Houston, where I went through grade school. I graduated from the University of Houston with a teaching degree and taught special education for 26 years.
My husband is a retired special education teacher. My son is a computer specialist and is married with three sons and lives in Dallas. My daughter is a lawyer who is teaching English to law students in France. She lives in Rully, France and is married to a French wine salesman and has three teenage children.
During the 22 years we have lived in Kerrville, we have traveled a lot. We have visited our daughter in France many times and have loved the sights in Paris. I have loved living in Kerrville and the Hill Country. I am on the board of American Association of University Women, Delta Kappa Gamma, and have joined four book groups. It is good to stay busy and enjoy life to the fullest.
The communication committee has been fun to work on for Texas Democratic Women
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HCTDW's board meets on the last Tuesday of the month at 1:00 p.m. at the Doyle School Community Center, 110 W. Barnett Street. There will not be a meeting in December; the next meeting will be January 28, 2020. Anyone interested is invited to attend.
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2020 Membership Renewals
The membership directory will be distributed at the February meeting. If you haven't yet renewed your membership for 2020, please do so by the January meeting; otherwise your information will not appear in the directory.
The easiest way to get a membership application is online. Go to the HCTDW website
hillcountrytxdemocraticwomen.org
and click on Menu and then on Membership. Applications will also be available at the registration table at the January meeting.
If you are receiving this newsletter and are not a member, won't you please consider joining?
Welcome to new members Lynette Wedig and Joe Herrera.
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Questions about your HCTDW membership? Any changes in your address, phone or email? Send them to Barbara Young at barb7801@hctc.net.
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TDW 2020 State Convention - Standing Tall, Stepping Up!
February 7 - 8, 2020
Wyndham Garden Hotel & Conference Center
Austin, Texas
Early Bird Registration- by January 16, 2020
$125 for full convention package.
$150 after January 16
Democratic Events around the Hill Country
Kerr County Democratic Party
To receive emails from the Kerr County Democratic Party, email Barbara Veldhuizen at
barbara4kerrdems@gmail.com and ask her to add you to her list.
Gillespie County Democrats
GCDA meets the 3rd Wednesday of every month, 6:30 p.m. at the Gillespie County Law Enforcement Center, 1601 Main, Fredericksburg.
Democratic Women of Comal County
Join DWCC for a monthly meeting:
2nd Friday of every month, 10:30 a.m.-noon, Tye Preston Memorial Library, Canyon Lake
3rd Monday of every month, 6:30-7:30 p.m., New Braunfels Public Library, New Braunfels
3rd Wednesday of every month, 6:30-7:30 p.m., Mammen Family Public Library, Bulverde
Visit
democraticwomenofcomalcounty.com for more information.
Medina County Democrats
Medina County Democrats meet the third Tuesday of each month. The next meeting is Tuesday, December 17, 6 p.m. at Braden Keller Center in Castroville.
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Find HCTDW on Facebook
HCTDW invites members to "like" our Facebook page:
Texas Democratic Women of the Hill Country.
Websites
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Newsletter
If you have information for the newsletter or know someone who would like to receive it, please write Jeannie Berger at
jsberger@twc.com. You are welcome to forward this newsletter to anyone who would be interested.
The next issue of the newsletter will be sent in mid-January.
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Contact Information for Officers and Executive Board:
Standing Committee Chairs:
Hill Country Chapter of Texas Democratic Women
P.O. Box 293014
Kerrville, TX 78029-3014
hillcountrytxdemocraticwomen.org
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