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Lawsuit Against TCR Over Their Survey Permission Form

by | Apr 28, 2016 | Blog Article | 0 comments

Now that we’ve updated you on the open records lawsuit against the AG and TxDOT, let’s turn our attention to the lawsuit filed against Texas Central over their survey permission form.

In the lawsuit filed by TAHSR member Jim Miles in Leon County, Jim asked the Court to rule that the survey permission form Texas Central is demanding landowners to sign is unlawful because it goes beyond the scope of what is allowed under Texas law. Jim is also asking the Court to rule that Texas Central doesn’t have the right to get on his private property. Here is a link to the lawsuit Jim filed:

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On April 15, Texas Central responded to Jim’s lawsuit. Now they are saying that the survey permission form is … wait for it … VOLUNTARY, even though they’ve been telling hundreds of landowners that they MUST sign the form and let Texas Central on their land, or they will get sued. If it is voluntary like Texas Central is telling the Court in bold letters, then why are they suing landowners in Harris County to get on their property?

Texas Central is also telling the Court it can’t rule on Jim’s lawsuit. They claim the issue raised in Jim’s lawsuit is “moot” because they aren’t going to sue Jim “on the terms of the survey permission form.” But they are still trying to get on Jim’s land. It says so in the answer they filed with the Court.

So why is Texas Central telling the Court they aren’t going to sue landowners like Jim, when that is exactly what they are doing in Harris County? Why can’t Texas Central just be honest with Texas landowners and the Court?

Here is a link to Texas Central’s response in Jim Mile’s lawsuit:

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Here are links to the lawsuits Texas Central filed in Harris County:

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After Texas Central filed its answer to Jim Miles’ lawsuit in Leon County, Jim sent a proper notice to Texas Central to take the deposition of one of their representatives. Jim wants to know—under oath—why Texas Central thinks it has eminent domain authority and the right to enter his property to take a survey. Jim also wants to know if Texas Central has all of its money in place from its Japanese partners in order to finish construction of the high-speed train. Here is a link to Jim’s deposition notice:

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Once again, Texas Central is refusing to send a representative, like CEO Tim Keith, to answer questions under oath. Instead, they filed another motion to “quash” the deposition. They also asked the Court for a protective order because they are afraid of giving any discovery related to the high-speed train.

Here is a link to the document Texas Central filed so that they don’t have to answer questions under oath or provide any information related to their project.

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Request To TCR for Transparency

by | Apr 27, 2016 | Blog Article | 0 comments

Now that the legal battles are moving forward in our fight against the high-speed train, we want to provide TAHSR supporters with updates on what is going on. We know these posts will be informative, showing you that we are challenging Texas Central at every turn. We also want you to see that although Texas Central keeps telling people they are a transparent organization that does things “the right way,” that is far from the truth.

In a letter sent to Texas Central’s attorney on April 18, we asked Texas Central to send us an unredacted copy of their Japanese partners’ “Feasibility Study” which contains an evaluation of Texas Central’s ridership projections and cost estimates for the high-speed train. Texas Central gave this study to the Texas Department of Transportation, but both Texas Central and TxDOT refuse to make it available to the public.

In the same letter, we also requested that Texas Central turn over a clean copy of its blacked-out legal brief, which it sent to the Attorney General in an effort to convince the Attorney General to let TxDOT withhold this information from the public.
Texas Central still has not responded to our letter.

Here is a link to the letter we sent, including a copy of the blacked-out letter brief Texas Central sent to us:

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And there’s more…We sent a letter to the Texas Attorney General’s attorney on April 16 asking the Attorney General to turn over the blacked-out legal brief he received from Texas Central. Based on this legal brief, which was never disclosed to the public, the Attorney General allowed TxDOT to withhold Texas Central’s feasibility study, ridership projections and cost estimates even though they are public information. The Attorney General’s office responded to our letter, but he is refusing to disclose the legal brief. Here is a link to the letter we sent to the Attorney General:

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READ THIS CLOSELY…Then prepare yourself for the next document…

In the open records case we filed against TxDOT to get Texas Central’s feasibility study, ridership projections and cost estimates, we sent a subpoena to Texas Central asking to take a deposition of one of their representatives, like Tim Keith. We want to know why he thinks it is proper to hide Texas Central’s information from Texas landowners whose private property they are trying to take through eminent domain to line the pockets of their Japanese partners. Here is a link to the deposition notice we sent to Texas Central:

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You are going to need to sit down for this one…

Texas Central received our subpoena, but they are refusing to send a representative to sit for a deposition. Instead, they filed a motion asking the Court to “quash” the deposition so they don’t have to answer questions under oath. They are also asking the Court for a protective order so they don’t have to provide any discovery related to their Japanese partners’ feasibility study, or their ridership projections or cost estimates. Here is a link to the motion Texas Central filed:

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A Spotlight on the High-Speed Bailout

by | Apr 8, 2016 | Blog Article | 0 comments

Newspapers throughout Texas ran a recent opinion editorial written by Tim Keith, CEO of Texas Central Partners (TCP), who is proposing to construct a high-speed rail system between Houston and Dallas that impacts all Texans. I’d like to respond to a few statements made by Mr. Keith with more information for Texans to consider. As Grimes County Judge, Chairman of the Brazos Valley Council of Governments, Chairman of Texans Against High-Speed Rail and, most importantly, as a native Texan, I believe TCP and the Japanese investors miss the mark on Texas values. I have learned if it sounds too good to be true, you should dig a little deeper.

Tim Keith

Tim Keith

Chief Executive Officer

Let me emphasize one point – the project will never need, ask for or receive any type of taxpayer funded bailout.

TCP often claims they will not seek taxpayer bailouts for their project, but also states they will likely seek some form of government backed loans or bonds. It is important to clarify that in all types of government backed loan or bond programs the taxpayers (including, yes, all Texas taxpayers) would absolutely be on the hook when the project fails financially. I don’t know what they call that in California where Mr. Keith received his college education, or in New York where he spent much of his career, but I can tell you what we call it here in Texas – taxpayer subsidy and taxpayer bailout. Government subsidies and bailouts are a primary reason why businesses and individuals are fleeing from states like New York and California to come to Texas. Let’s make sure we do not follow those states off the cliff by implementing these ideas in Texas.

Judge Ben Leman

Judge Ben Leman

Grimes County Judge, Chairman of Texans Against High-Speed Rail

Tim Keith

Tim Keith

Chief Executive Officer

Here are three reasons why a taxpayer funded bailout will not happen:

It’s not legal.

First, a default on taxpayer backed loans or bonds, which are legal, will have the same effect as a bailout when this project fails. This clearly proves this statement false. Additionally, the federal government has already spent billions of taxpayer dollars (and again, yes, this includes Texas taxpayers) for high-speed rail projects like the one in California. There are countless examples where state and federal governments have subsidized or bailed out private companies… think GM and auto industry, big banks, Solyndra, Amtrak, ethanol industry, etc. Without a doubt, Texas and/or federal lawmakers will be unwillingly forced into bailing out this project later if we let it get started.

Judge Ben Leman

Judge Ben Leman

Grimes County Judge, Chairman of Texans Against High-Speed Rail

Tim Keith

Tim Keith

Chief Executive Officer

It’s not how the market works. There is no precedent or appetite for the state to rescue a private company.

I am sure TCP has heard of Amtrak and knows Amtrak is a private, for-profit rail company heavily subsidized by the federal government (which, again, includes all Texas taxpayers). As I stated earlier, our federal government is also spending billions of dollars subsidizing (and, therefore, bailing out) high speed-rail projects like the one in California and has subsidized many other companies across the country. Apparently, neither TCP nor their Japanese investors understand that everyone here in Texas realizes it is all still taxpayer money whether the subsidy comes from the local, state or federal level. It is also a fact that governments subsidize high-speed rail systems all over the world. There has never been a successful privately-funded, constructed and operated high-speed rail system in the world. This includes the HSR in Japan that TCP is always heralding as a success story, which was actually constructed with public funds and then subsequently privatized. Clearly, the market accepts subsidies to save the existence of HSR systems and his quote is not accurate.

Judge Ben Leman

Judge Ben Leman

Grimes County Judge, Chairman of Texans Against High-Speed Rail

Tim Keith

Tim Keith

Chief Executive Officer

The system will be backed by investors’ capital and operate at a profit, based on ridership, revenue and service that meets consumer demand.

As I described earlier with TCP utilizing government backed loans or bonds, the majority of this project will ultimately be backed by the full faith and credit of the United States Government. This means you and me, thus this statement is false. It should also be noted that TCP refuses to release any details of their Economic Impact and Ridership Studies. Repeatedly, TCP chants that their studies show this rail will be profitable. We all know that to cite a study as factual but not release the study for review, results in the taxpayers not giving any credibility to the claims. At a minimum, if TCP desires to use eminent domain, they should be required to provide the data and assumptions utilized for the studies to the State of Texas, elected officials and the citizens.

Judge Ben Leman

Judge Ben Leman

Grimes County Judge, Chairman of Texans Against High-Speed Rail

Tim Keith

Tim Keith

Chief Executive Officer

I’ll say it again, the privately developed investor-funded, high speed rail system will not need or receive a taxpayer funded bailout.”
TCP clearly believes in the old adage, “If you repeat an inaccuracy often enough it becomes the truth.” Texans, both rural and urban, have a saying we believe in that applies in this circumstance: “We’d better put our boots on because the manure is getting pretty deep.

In closing, I ask the reader to determine what is accurate and on what principles you will base your decision to support or oppose this project. In Texas, we do not like taxpayer subsidies or bailouts for private entities or foreign governments. In Texas, we also do not like any entity, much less those pushing on behalf of foreign investors, utilizing the power of eminent domain to take our private property for their private business purpose. These are two long-established core values that have made Texas one of the most successful states in the country and why so many people move here. We must all work together to ensure these principles and our great state of Texas are protected for future generations to come. If you agree with me, then I invite you to join the fight and learn more about this ill-conceived project at www.TexansAgainstHSR.com and follow us on Facebook to stay up to date on what you can do to help stop this affront to Texas values.

Judge Ben Leman

Judge Ben Leman

Grimes County Judge, Chairman of Texans Against High-Speed Rail

PRESS RELEASE March 30, 2016

by | Mar 30, 2016 | Blog Article, Press Releases | 0 comments

OPPOSITION GROWING OUTSIDE PROPOSED HSR CORRIDOR

Heart of Texas Council of Governments Passes Resolution Opposing Dallas Houston HSR

Jewett, Texas – Joining the Brazos Valley Council of Governments, the Heart of Texas Council of Governments (HOTCOG) has also passed a resolution opposing the Dallas Houston High-Speed Rail. Counties making up the membership of HOTCOG are Bosque, Falls, Freestone, Hill, Limestone and McLennan Counties. Despite having only a very small section of the currently proposed route clip the corner of just one of the member counties, the HOTCOG overwhelmingly voted to oppose this project, highlighting that concern about this HSR project is spreading outside of areas impacted by the proposed route.

The resolution details the negative impact the proposed HSR would have on the counties between Dallas and Houston, but also the wider threats of taxpayer subsidies and precedent setting use of eminent domain that would affect all Texans.

Also emphasized in the resolution are the questionable cost and ridership estimates shared by Texas Central, the company backing the HSR project. The council even called on the state and federal governments to halt support for the project until it could be determined that only existing rights-of-way would be used for the project and no public subsidies would be made available to the private company.

Kyle Workman, president of Texans Against High-Speed Rail, said, “If losing the support of one of their key markets in the Brazos Valley wasn’t enough, the mere passage of the Heart of Texas COG’s resolution should have Texas Central’s investors very nervous. This has been a statewide issue from the very start, but now we see official opposition to the project growing throughout the state in spite of the rail’s proposed route location. This isn’t just an issue of taking specific properties for their proposed HSR, but one of property rights and taxpayer subsidies that impact the entirety of our State.”

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PRESS RELEASE March 17, 2016

by | Mar 17, 2016 | Blog Article, Press Releases | 0 comments

TAHSR LAND DEFENSE FUND FILES LAWSUIT AGAINST TEXAS CENTRAL RAILWAY AFFILIATE TO CHALLENGE SURVEY PERMISSION FORM

Texas Central Survey Permission Form Seeks Unlimited, Indefinite Access to Private Property

Jewett, Texas – The TAHSR Land Defense Fund has filed a lawsuit on behalf of Jim Miles, a Leon County resident, against Texas Central Railroad & Infrastructure (TCRI), an affiliate of Texas Central Railway (TCR), to challenge an exceptionally broad “survey permission form” that landowners along the proposed route of the Dallas Houston HSR are being asked to sign. The lawsuit, filed in the 87th District Court in Leon County, asks the Court to declare that the survey form exceeds the scope of survey activities allowable under Texas law.

Through the survey form, TCRI seeks permission to enter private property to conduct a series of surveys and invasive activities, like drillings and soil borings. The form is virtually unlimited in scope and duration, and would allow TCRI access to private property to performany activity it wanted to for an unspecified period of time. In addition, the form extends permission not only to TCRI but also to an unlimited number of unnamed persons, affiliates, and entities. As a result, TCRI had the right to extend its permission to anyone simply by claiming they are somehow affiliated with the Dallas Houston HSR.

The survey form is even more problematic given that TCRI still has not identified whether it is claiming eminent domain authority as a railroad, an electric railway, or some other entity. Likewise, the form does not identify any statute or authority that would allow TCRI to enter private property for any purpose, let alone to perform a variety of invasive surveys and other procedures.

Kyle Workman, president of TAHSR, said, “Despite claims of transparency and a commitment to work with landowners, no Texas Central official or affiliate has ever been able to provide the exact statute or evidence that their project is eligible for or has the authority of a railroad company. And although they have testified before our State Legislature that they have this authority, they are still unwilling to show proof. By TAHSR Land Defense Fund supporting this lawsuit, we are hoping to protect all the landowners who received this permission form, as well as the fundamental private property rights that would be trampled by the unlimited allowances of this survey permission form.”

Blake Beckham, TAHSR special litigation counsel and attorney for Jim Miles, stated, “We are confident that the survey form goes well beyond what Texas law allows. TCR and its affiliates should be immediately stopped from conducting any surveys until they explain to the court and to landowners why they believe they have authority to enter private property. This is yet another example of TCR withholding information from landowners whose property they intend to take. If TCR wants to take surveys, they must comply with the strict limits set forth under Texas law.”

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