Taxpayers lose duly elected water director, gain attorney at $3,200 a meeting

What a bargain.

The Kinney County Groundwater Conservation District Board is now short a board director, because another director wanted to change the regular meeting date to accommodate the schedule of the district’s lawyer.

To hear Charlie Gaines announce his resignation, advance to 2:28:43. Discussion on the time change is at 1:56:56.

Video by Adam Olson for Las Moras Springs Conservation Association

The board discussed this change many times since May, and each time, now-former Director Charlie Gaines asked that any changes be postponed at least until the end of the year.

But no. In July, Director Wes Robinson - who serves as board president - called for a vote to move the meeting to 2 p.m. on Wednesdays, seconded by Director Randy Schott, the one who had this idea in the first place.

Directors David Palmer and Gaines both said that wouldn’t work for them. Gaines added that when he first joined the board, directors decided to set the meetings in the evenings to give the public a better chance to attend.

“The public needs to be here in the evening with us,” he said.

Robinson replied with the outrageous and unacceptable statement that the meetings are not for the public.

“The thing is, these meetings are for the board, not the public,” he said.

That’s wrong. Whatever other meetings Robinson says are for the public - committees, workshops - and whenever they are held, any and every meeting with a quorum is for the public. KCGCD is a taxpayer supported entity. It wouldn’t exist without the taxpayers. This director is way out of line telling the public that the district’s doings is none of its business.

Palmer said he couldn’t attend daytime meetings not just because of his work but because “we’re here to implement policy in the public’s interest…the public has a full right to have every opportunity to be here.”

Gaines had asked for a show of hands from the audience to find how many of those present wanted evening meetings. The majority raised their hands.

Palmer said, “And as you can see by the show of hands that the majority of the public works during normal business hours…our meeting should be after normal business hours so that the majority of the public can be here.”

After several more minutes of discussion, Robinson asked Ellis what day was best for him. He said the third Thursday. So Robinson amended his motion to that date. And then….

“That’s great. I’ve got a direct conflict with another meeting on that one,” Robinson said.

So the day changed again, because Director Robinson couldn’t make it on the third Thursdays. And the vote changed to make it the fourth Tuesday.

Gaines tried again to get Robinson to delay making any changes until the end of the year.

Nope. “We need an attorney here now, not in January,” Robinson said.

So in the end, voting to make the change without delay were Robinson, Schott, Matt Bland and Blake Ward, with Gaines and Palmer voting against (Perry Menley was absent that night).

At the August meeting, Palmer called a vote to change the meeting back to its original time and day.

Gaines said that he and his wife operate some two dozen businesses and “when I was elected, we cleared our calendar for the second Wednesday for four years” and that he was already booked on the fourth Tuesday for the rest of the year.

Palmer added that it isn’t fiscally responsible, with today’s technology, to pay $3,000-plus extra to have the attorney attend in person, “when a Zoom call could result in the same gain to this board,” he said. He added that the change was to get Ellis here every time.

Robinson disagreed, replying, “…we changed the meeting date to a date that he was available during the month and there was no conflicts with any of his other clients….not so he could be here at every meeting or had to be here at every meeting.”

Odd. In July, Robinson said, “We need our attorney here because our board is fighting with each other at every meeting…I think we need to have our attorney here and that’s why I motioned for that day and time.”

Ellis said he could attend remotely if the district improved its technology.

Well. At $3,200 a meeting, that’s $38,400 a year. I think the district could improve its technology for way less than that. The Kinney County Commissioners Court has people attend by videoconference at virtually every meeting, if not all of them. KCGCD could do the same.

“The tradeoff is, we’re going to have a director that was elected by the people to represent their interests and he’s not going to be able to do his job….” Palmer said.

Palmer’s vote failed 3-4, with Palmer, Gaines and Menley voting aye and Robinson, Schott, Bland and Ward voting nay.

“So you’re voting Mr. Gaines off…?” Menley asked.

“No…I didn’t vote anybody off,” Robinson said.

“That’s what it amounts to,” Menley said.

At the end of the August meeting, Gaines announced his resignation.

He had already anticipated how it would go, he said, and so already contacted Kinney County Judge John Paul Schuster to find someone to appoint to represent Precinct 2.

To hear Menley’s motion to change the meeting back to the original time advance to 52:20

Video by Adam Olson for Las Moras Springs Conservation Association

In September, Menley said the board knew Gaines couldn’t attend if the meeting date was changed.

“Y’all voted him off,” he said.

“That’s a mischaracterization,” Robinson said.

“No, it’s not. When a man states that he was voted in to be in a position and you change the meeting time for a hired employee….you changed (the time) to suit the lawyer, he’s a paid employee. This man was voted in by the people. I think that’s an ethical violation.”

Ward said, “I didn’t know he was going to quit so don’t go making false accusations.”

“Well, he already said he couldn’t attend the meetings,” Menley said.

Ward said he has to alter his schedule to be able to attend. “It’s part of being on a board. If you can’t serve you can’t serve.”

Bland agreed and added, “I’m not going to be switching back and forth just because somebody wants something that’s above anybody else. We are here because every person wants to be here....nobody made him (resign).”

I think Charlie Gaines really wanted to be here. Otherwise he wouldn’t have asked over and over for the board to postpone the change.

If Gaines’ request had moved the four board members in any way, one or more of them would have voted to postpone the change to the end of the year.

But no. “We need an attorney here now, not in January.”

Remember? That was Wes Robinson.

Key here is that Gaines is one of the three board members who are pushing for a drought plan. Robinson isn’t one of those.

Neither is Randy Schott, who dreamed up this meeting change in the first place.

Both of them are pumping permit holders and both of them are a major barrier to getting a drought plan. Robinson holds two permits, one for 2,700 acre feet and a commercial permit for 400 acre feet (commercial, or industrial, is only good for selling water. Why would anyone here have a permit that’s only good for export?).

Schott, who also has a huge solar farm on his Kinney County ranch (which gives him a break on his property taxes. Records indicate it covers 1,800 acres and has a capacity of 140 MW), holds a permit to pump 1,190 acre feet a year.

Also keep in mind that Robinson is president of this water board, and remains so until after the next water board election in November 2026 (up for election will be Ward, Precinct 3; Gaines’ replacement - if there ever is one - Precinct 2; and Schott, Precinct 1).

The other two who are resisting a drought plan are Matt Bland and Blake Ward.

So now the water board consists of four people - two of whom have pumping permits - who obviously don’t want a drought plan, and just two - Palmer and Menley - who do.

We just lost a true voice for saving our aquifer. And even though those on the board who want a drought plan were in the minority, they were able to shift things from time to time.

Not now. And I think the other four know it. Why wouldn’t they?

Gaines could have cleared his calendar for another year. He already had cleared his calendar for four solid years of second Wednesdays. Organized.

But this makes it so much easier for the four.

So while it wasn’t an ethical violation, really, this action broke the spirit of the thing. Robinson and Schott are primarily responsible for Gaines resigning.

And the health of the aquifer and the springs come last, obviously.

“No more pie-in-the-sky DFCs,” as Robinson said.