< Previous www.TerryLowry.com February 2020 16 Majority of Federal Arrestees are Foreigners By Judicial Watch, JudicialWatch.org Edited Months after the U.S. Sentencing Commission revealed most federal crimes are executed by Hispanics and involve immigrants and drugs, the Department of Justice (DOJ) reported that foreigners accounted for the vast majority of federal arrests last year. Apprehensions Doubled Apprehensions in the f ive judicial districts along the Mexican border, home to a quarter of all drug cases in 2018, have nearly doubled in the last decade. It doesn’t end there; the number of Central Americans captured by federal authorities in the five border districts tripled in one year alone and has risen 30-fold in the last two decades. The disturbing f igures were released by the DOJ’s Bureau of Justice Statistics, the government agency responsible for collecting crime data. In a 25-page report, the agency outlines a distressing trend of criminal activity involving foreign nationals, revealing that non-U.S. citizens accounted for 64% of all federal arrests in 2018. Federal Arrests of U.S. Citizens FELL “From 1998 to 2018, the share of all federal arrests by country of citizenship rose from 28% to 40% for Mexican citizens, rose from 1% to 20% for citizens of Central American countries, and fell from 63% to 36% for U.S. citizens,” the DOJ report states. The document details the alarming increase in immigration crimes, from 20,942 back in 1998 to 58,031 in 2017 and an astonishing jump to 108,667 by 2018, marking a breath- taking 418.9% increase in two decades. 539.6% INCREASE in Immigration-Related Arrests The five judicial districts along the Mexican border— California, Arizona, New Mexico and western and southern Texas—have experienced an eye-popping 539.6% in immigration-related arrests in the last two decades. Taxation Without Representation GUEST EDITORIAL By Commissioner Andy Meyers Fort Bend County Precinct 3 Our country was founded on the idea that it is unjust to tax citizens without providing proper represen- tation in government. But in many parts of Fort Bend County, a huge portion of our residents are subject to just that — taxation without representation. Let me elaborate. Each year, the City of Houston garners nearly $20 million from sales tax revenue in their extra- territorial jurisdiction (ETJ) in Fort Bend County Precinct 3 alone. The legal structure that Mayor Turner uses to vacuum up Fort Bend sales taxes is called a strategic partnership agreement (SPA). Houston Takes – Gives Back Nothing Half of that money is retained by Houston City Hall, where Mayor Sylvester Turner needs our money as a life raft to keep Houston’s finances afloat. The other half is collected, allocated, and deposited back to the bank accounts of a handful of local Municipal Utility Districts (MUD) who enter into the SPA agree- ments with the City of Houston. The MUDs use the revenues mainly to subsidize their water and sewer costs. It’s a good deal for the residents of those MUDs who partner with Mayor Turner – a redis- tribution of the entire community’s wealth that benefits a few tremendously. But the secrecy in the system is starting to crack in Fort Bend, and we aren’t alone. One Million Pay Houston – Receive Nothing During the 86th Legislative Session, Harris County Republican State Representative Valoree Swanson took to the microphone during committee hearings to call out the City of Houston for exercising the same scheme throughout her district in the unincorporated areas near Spring, Klein, and Tomball. At this point, more than 1 million Texans across the region are now paying taxes to Houston without getting a government service in return, or a financial wind- fall to their MUD. Citizens who are caught in Houston’s ETJ can’t even vote in Houston city elections. This is a convenient trump card for Mayor Turner over our citizens, who have no current legal mechanism available to remove themselves from Houston’s ETJ, absent a vote of the Houston City Council. Current Scheme Not Fair I say “current”, because in the 86th Legislative Session, I cham- pioned House Bills 957 and 958, for two purposes. First, HB 957 would have forced Houston (and only the City of Houston, not any MUD) to spend 50%, (about $5 million annually), of the SPA money on projects that benefit the citizens paying the tax – proj- ects like roads, law enforcement, parks, and flood control. HB 958 would have allowed residents to petition for detach- ment from Houston’s ETJ, giving citizens a say in their taxation and system of government, instead of being stuck in a legal no man’s land - subject to a city council and mayor they cannot elect. These bills died after the committee hearings, when my 2020 Republican primary opponent worked to gather sig- natures to support Houston’s objections. The special inter- ests and Houston are fighting harder than ever before, but the tide is clearly turning in Austin. And I will be back in the 87th legislative session to fight on. This time, with even more allies. EDITOR’S NOTE: Current Commissioner Andy Meyers is seeking re-election. Commissioner Andy MeyersPRSRT STD US POSTAGE PAID DALLAS, TX PERMIT # 3260 the LINK Letter 10924 Grant Road, #133 Houston, TX 77070 www.terrylowry.com For Early Voting Times and Locations see www.TerryLowry.com Fort Bend County FORT BEND COUNTY SPECIAL EDITION FOR THE PRIMARY ELECTION Terry Lowry host of the What's UP Radio Program invites you to visit www.TerryLowry.com Early and Election Day Voting Locations And a printable Sample Ballot Can be found at www.TerryLowry.com Click: Voting Information EARL Y VOTING HOURS FEBRUARY SUN MON TUES WED THURS FRI SAT 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 MARCH 1 2 MARCH 3 4 5 6 7 7:00am - 7:00pm 1pm - 6pm Election Day 7:00am - 7:00pm Times vary by location Check times & locations at www.TerryLowry.comNext >