CEO: Drawing Toyota to Texas Worth $40 Million Subsidy

When Toyota announced in early 2014 that it was moving its North American headquarters from Torrance, Calif., to Plano, the business story was quickly overtaken by a political one: Did Texas get ripped off?

While then-Gov. Rick Perry had agreed to a $40 million incentive deal, news that North Carolina had offered more than $100 million raised questions about whether the public subsidies even factored into the company’s decision.

During a wide-ranging on-stage interview Thursday with The Texas Tribune’s Evan Smith, Toyota CEO Jim Lentz tried to put the incentives in context.

“While that’s a lot of money, it pales in comparison to the in excess of $1 billion that I’m investing just in this campus by getting all the people here,” Lentz said at an event hosted by the Austin Economic Club. “The way I look at it is, we both have skin in the game. Texas now has an interest in Toyota and we now have a big interest in Texas.”

Read more: http://www.texastribune.org/2015/10/01/toyota-ceo-move-texas-worth-40-million-subsidy/

Neiman Marcus laid off 500 employees, or 3 percent of its workforce

Neiman Marcus laid off 500 employees today which represents about 3 percent of its workforce of 16,000 people.

That includes about 157 people in Dallas where the luxury retailer is headquartered and employs about 4,800 people.

CEO Karen Katz said no sales associates have been let go and all the job cuts are in corporate and support positions. The cuts were throughout the company including distribution facilities.

“Even as we adjust our course, our mission is unchanged,” Katz said. “ Every employee of Neiman Marcus Group has a single focus: our customer. We remain dedicated to serving them by offering the most incredible luxury and fashion merchandise in the world’s most beautiful stores and dynamic websites.”

Read more: http://bizbeatblog.dallasnews.com/2015/10/neiman-marcus-laid-off-500-employees-or-3-percent-of-its-workforce.html/

Texas Lyceum Poll Results

Republicans:
http://www.democraticunderground.com/10141222103

Democrats:
http://www.democraticunderground.com/1251639308

Trump tops Texas poll, 5 points ahead of Cruz

Source: Austin American-Statesman

Television personality and billionaire Donald Trump is leading the Republican presidential pack in Texas with 21 percent support among likely voters, five points ahead of the state’s own U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz, according to the latest poll.

Still, this is somewhat good news for Cruz, who gained modest ground since the last poll which placed him third with 15 percent support.

Because the Republican field remains large, the poll also asked registered voters who their second choice for president would be. The question revealed that 37 percent of Trump’s supporters would support Cruz, followed by 24 percent for retired neurosurgeon and political newcomer Ben Carson.

The poll, conducted by the non-partisan Texas Lyceum, shows an early snapshot of Texas that resembles national polls: Carson is polling at 12 percent; former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush at 10 percent; former business executive Carly Fiorina at 6 percent; and U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio, of Florida, at 3 percent.

Read more: http://www.statesman.com/news/news/national-govt-politics/trump-top-texas-gop-pack-5-points-ahead-of-cruz/nnr6L/

Texas Lyceum Poll: Clinton 36%, Sanders 24%, Biden 15%

State treasurer accused of sexist, racial comments

The Martinez administration is canceling a deal it made in June to provide personnel services to the office of state Treasurer Tim Eichenberg, saying Eichenberg has ignored its advice, made sexist and demeaning comments to administration staff and remarked about the race of employees in the Treasurer’s Office.

In a letter to Eichenberg dated Sept. 14, State Personnel Office Director Justin Najaka said the agreement to provide human services assistance to the Treasurer’s Office would be terminated Oct. 15. The Personnel Office has never before canceled such an agreement with a government agency, Najaka wrote.

Eichenberg said in a written statement that the allegations against him in Najaka’s letter were a personal attack. “However, I recognize that as a public official I am exposed to personal attacks and sensationalism,” he said.

Eichenberg, a Democrat, is in his first year as treasurer. Like the attorney general, land commissioner and secretary of state, the treasurer is part of the executive branch but elected separately.

Read more: http://www.abqjournal.com/651970/news/allegations-called-personal.html

Secretary of State Duran seeks to bump AG from prosecution

SANTA FE – The criminal case against Secretary of State Dianna Duran has taken new twists, with Duran’s attorney asking a judge late Wednesday to disqualify the office of Attorney General Hector Balderas from handling the case due to alleged bias and recent acrimony between the two statewide elected officials.

Meanwhile, Balderas has said his office will no longer represent the Secretary of State’s Office, returning 31 cases Duran’s office had referred to the AG for further investigation. Most of those cases involve instances in which candidates filed delinquent campaign finance reports.

The motion seeking to disqualify the AG’s Office from prosecuting Duran argues that Balderas has a conflict of interest due to his past working relationship with the secretary of state, while also arguing he appears to have a political “vendetta” against Duran.

“This perversion of the criminal justice system can be seen as nothing more than a thinly veiled attempt to seek retribution of the most punitive kind against Ms. Duran,” the secretary of state’s lawyer wrote in the motion, which says Duran intends to call two lawyers in the Attorney General’s Office as witnesses in the case.

Read more: http://www.abqjournal.com/651951

American reaches new contract with passenger service agents

American Airlines has reached a new contract agreement with its customer service and gate agents that includes significant pay raises, airline and union officials announced Wednesday.

The deal covers 14,500 passenger service agents and reservation representatives at the Fort Worth-based carrier represented by the Communications Workers of America and the International Brotherhood of Teamsters. It must be ratified by members.

“This is an industry-leading agreement that makes major improvements in the wages and benefits of thousands of passenger service employees at the new American Airlines,” Ron Collins, the unions’ bargaining chairman, said in a letter to members.

The contract includes an immediate pay raise that brings the agents’ wages equal to what Delta Air Lines pays its employees, plus 3 percent. There is an additional 9 percent wage increase over the life of the five-year contract.

Read more here: http://www.star-telegram.com/news/business/aviation/sky-talk-blog/article37117749.html#storylink=cpy

TCU reinstates football players accused of beating students, stealing beer

Two TCU football players who were arrested Sept. 21 after fellow students accused them of beating them up and stealing their beer have been reinstated to the football program, coach Gary Patterson said Wednesday.

Senior defensive end Mike Tuaua, 22, and redshirt freshman wide receiver Andre Petties-Wilson, 19, were accused of assault after leaving a party on Sept. 4 and of stealing a case of Keystone Light beer.

The university’s disciplinary review process was completed Tuesday after which both players were reinstated to the football team, Patterson said after practice Wednesday night.

They were suspended for three games but are eligible to play Saturday morning against the Texas Longhorns.

Read more here: http://www.star-telegram.com/news/local/community/fort-worth/article37157388.html#storylink=cpy

The Only Texas Governor Appointed by the Federal Government

Today marks the 146th anniversary of the resignation of Texas Gov. Elisha M. Pease, who resigned during Reconstruction during the state’s years-long battle towards reunification — the only governor to be appointed to the state's highest office by the federal government.

While that may not seem surprising – an antebellum Texas governor opposing the Union – Pease’s reason for doing so may: He sought to preserve the 14th Amendment.

Prior to his appointment as governor in the wake of the Civil War, Pease had served in both houses of the Texas Legislature, along with two terms as the state’s chief executive.

During his first tenure as governor, Pease used his bully pulpit to pass “A Bill to Establish the University of Texas” in 1858, which was modeled in part off the University of Virginia. He also helped create the first public school system in Texas.

Read more: http://kut.org/post/only-texas-governor-appointed-federal-government