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Applications for Fort Bend County Fair Queen open through June 13
The Fort Bend County Fair is accepting entries for the Fair Queen Scholarship Contest through June 13. Pictured is 2023 Fort Bend County Fair Queen Kathryn Thompkins. Contributed photo
Fort Bend / Southwest • Volume 49 • No. 18 • $1.00
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Report: FBISD decisions, not a missing email, to blame for bond program overruns By Ken Fountain KFOUNTAIN@FORTBENDSTAR.COM
Months after the news broke about a projected $136.2 million cost overrun for Fort Bend ISD’s record $1.26 billion bond program, a report of an outside investigation released April 22 finds that the main culprits behind the overrun are the prior administration’s failure to account to new inflation costs while not incorporating changes in the scope of many projects into the budget - not the failure of one former employee to forward an email about cost projections to others in the administration.
The FBISD board late Monday evening voted 61, with Position 6 trustee Kristen Davison Malone abstaining, to waive the board’s attorney-client privilege and release the report prepared by Michelle Morris, an attorney with the Houston firm Rogers, Morris & Grover. The firm, which has done extensive work for the district in the past, was retained by the board at the recommendation of Position 3 trustee Rick Garcia, a member of the board’s audit committee. Outgoing board president Judy Dae, presiding over her last meeting after electing
not to seek reelection to her Position 2 seat, said that releasing the report was necessary out of transparency to the voters. At the board’s February 5 meeting, a few weeks after board members first became aware of the cost overruns, Deputy Superintendent Steve Bassett gave an extensive presentation to explain how the bond program, which had been overwhelmingly approved by voters in May 2023, had incurred such massive overruns just a few months later.
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An outside investigation has found that the Fort Bend ISD administration’s failure to account for increased inflation figures is the primary reason for cost overruns on the $1.26 2023 bond program. File photo by Ken Fountain
EPA addresses environmental concerns, including WA Parish plant, at environmental town hall
Community Reports The Fort Bend County Fair is accepting entries for the Fair Queen Scholarship Contest through June 13, 2024. The contest is limited to the first 20 entries. A mandatory orientation meeting will be held on Sunday, July 14, at 2 p.m. at the Fairgrounds in building W. “Being a Queen candidate is an experience like no other. The candidates undergo a journey that allows them to obtain basic real-life skills to be applied personally and professionally throughout their lifetime,” Fort Bend County Fair President Alicia Casias said in a press release. “The competition fosters strong bonds between the candidates inspiring lifelong friendships. The Fort Bend County Fair Queen will serve as an ambassador throughout the fair’s 10-day run. As part of her duties, the Queen attends receptions, livestock shows, and auctions. In addition, the Fair Queen represents the Fort Bend County Fair Association at community events, luncheons, holiday gatherings, and other fair activities throughout the year. The Fort Bend County Fair Queen Scholarship Contest is for females between the ages of 15 and 19 who are residents of Fort Bend County. The competition is based on a personal interview, an essay, a networking event, and overall participation. Winners receive scholarships and prizes for their efforts. The 2024 Fort Bend County Fair Queen will be crowned on Friday, September 27. For more information, visit fortbendcountyfair.com or call the Fair Office at 281342-6171.
Moustafa Ali, a junior at Lamar CISD’s Bush High School and a leader of its environmental club, addresses an EPA Town Hall in Missouri City last week. Photo by Ken Fountain
By Ken Fountain KFOUNTAIN@FORTBENDSTAR.COM
A nearly full house filled the Missouri City Community Center last week as officials from the federal Environmental Protection Agency and representatives of several area environmental groups held a town hall meeting. The meeting, billed as the “EPA Region 6 Environmental Awareness Town Hall in Fort Bend,” brought EPA Region 6 director Earthea Nance and several of her staff members based in Dallas to the area while they were attending a conference in Houston. Aside from Texas, Region 6 includes
Arkansas, Louisiana, New Mexico, Oklahoma, and 66 tribal nations. Before her appointment by President Joe Biden, Nance, an environmental engineer, had been a professor at Texas Southern University in Houston. Representatives of area environmental groups during a panel discussion included Donna Thomas and Veronica Peña of Fort Bend Environmental Organization; Stefanie Tomaskovic, director of the Coalition for Environment, Equity and Resilience; Jennifer Hedaya, executive director of Air Alliance Houston; Adrian Shelley, executive director of the Texas branch of Public Citizen; Maria Lopez of
Mi Familia Vota; and Nova Jones of the Houston branch of the Sierra Club. “This administration is doing more than has been done in generations. I know it’s still not enough. Because we have to work within the boundaries of existing regulations and laws, the pace of government can feel too slow, and I know this can be frustrating. It can even by infuriating,” Nance said in her opening remarks. Nance explained that major environmental laws in the United States, including the Clean Air Act and the Clean Water Act, are enforced through the concept of “federalism” - that is, federal laws are administered
through state government agencies. “Many factors that affect your daily lives, including where facilities are built, and proximity to schools and neighborhoods, are determined by local governments. EPA does not have authority over some things such as local zoning decisions. Under the framework of shared government power, we are also required to work with states, including the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, that comply with the law,” she said. Nance said the EPA can act by issuing rules “based on sound science and the law” and award-
ing grants to local agencies and groups. The agency also has oversight authority over permitting in the states, and engages with state agencies like TCEQ to ensure compliance. Much of that oversight is done with the assistance of public comments on such matters as siting of facilities and permitting, she said. She said that her staff now includes 20 members who are specifically engaged in “environmental justice” - that is, dealing with the impacts that environmental hazards can have on minority and low-income communities.
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