Once the watchdog has gathered information on the legislation, committees, and legislative votes, the watchdog needs to compile a weekly report and send to the CLTP Watchdog Coordinator. These legislative status reports will be the basis for tea party action.
Watchdogs are encouraged to turn in at least a weekly status report every week during the 140 day Texas legislative session. Watchdogs may turn in reports more often but the Watchdog Coordinator will develop the Watchdog newsletter from submitted reports on a weekly basis ending by 12 noon Saturdays. This will be about a 20 week exercise. A dedicated email has been setup (watchdog@clearlaketeaparty.com) for watchdogs to email their reports. The CLTP legislative analysts will then collate the information received and provide the CLTP Executive Board with a comprehensive analysis and recommendations on what actions are required to help pass or block legislation. In order to facilitate analyzes of watchdog data, watchdogs are requested to provide one Status Report per bill or committee.
It is recommended that the CLTP Watchdogs begin with tracking the various committees. It is expected that approximately 8000 bills will be filed in the 2011 legislative session. By focusing on key committees, watchdogs can find out what bills are coming through which committees. By focusing on Senate and House Committees, the watchdogs can identify the key legislators who are responsible for moving or blocking legislation moving through their respective committees.
It is also important to consider that when following legislation or committees that the House now has a super majority of 101 Republican members. A large amount of conservative legislation should be passed by the Texas House. However, the Texas Senate remains a 19 to 12 Republican majority (same as before the mid-terms). When making a decision on what to track and who to track, consideration should be given to following the Senate side of the Texas Legislature. It is there that the battle over conservative legislation will occur.
The format for the status reports is as follows:
 |
CLEAR LAKE TEA PARTY
WATCHDOG STATUS REPORT |
|
Watchdog Name: |
Date: |
Bill Status Report |
Bill No: |
Bill Description: |
Author: |
Assigned Committee: |
Priority: Emergency Urgent Routine |
Action Due Date: |
Status Summary: (Be brief and concise in describing the status of Bill)
|
Recommendation: (Be brief and concise in describing what you think is needed to support or block the bill)
|
Committee Status Report |
Committee Name: |
Committee Chair: |
Assigned Bill of Interest: |
House or Senate Committee |
Priority: Emergency Urgent Routine |
Action Due Date: |
Status Summary: (Be brief and concise in describing the Committee issue/list key legislators)
|
Recommendation: (Be brief and concise in describing what you think is needed to influence the legislation)
|
Legislator Status Report |
Legislator Name: |
Representative or Senator |
Issue: (Be brief and concise in describing the issue concerning this legislator)
|
Recommendation: (Be brief and concise in describing what you think is needed to support or block the bill)
|
Thank you for accepting personal responsibility in holding our elected officials accountable.
Watchdog Training PDF
Tea Party Watchdog Training Program
|
