Local Elections

By ROY MAYNARD
Staff Writer

Terry Phillips, a candidate for the Smith County Commissioners Court Precinct 3 seat, says he's no politician - and that's not a bad thing.

"I don't have any political experience," the real estate developer and property manager says. "I'm not a politician. But I'm a conservative Republican, and I believe government should be limited, fiscally responsible, and open and accountable to the people."

Those aren't words he'd use to describe the Commissioners Court, he adds.

"I got into this race to bring some common sense on issues to the commissioners court," Phillips says. "With my business background and conservative principles, I believe I can make a difference on this court. I got tired of seeing some of the things going on."

He takes issue with the pay raises members of the court voted for themselves last year.

"I was against the raise from the beginning and nothing has changed," Phillips says. The people did not like it. The raise was a slap in the face to them."

He acknowledges that incumbent Commissioner Bobby Van Ness abstained from the vote on the raises.

"As far as I'm concerned, that was a 'yes' vote," Phillips says. "He could have voted one way or another. He didn't. I will vote yes or no on every issue."

And Phillips takes a clear position on the raises themselves.

I will not take that raise, any part of it," he says. "I will take the pre-raise salary. And I will not vote for any future raise that may come up."

He also has a clear position on the need for a new jail.

"I definitely believe we need a jail, but it needs to be no-frills facility, and at a fiscally responsible price," he says. "We need just the jail package itself, and nothing else - I'm thinking in the $50 million area. And if we prove to the people we can do it wisely, I think they'll go along with it."

But convincing the voters to support a jail bond proposition will require a rebuilding of confidence in the court, he adds.

"We have to earn people's trust," Phillips says. "We need everything out in the open, without any backroom planning. We have to have open meetings, where we listen to people. Everyone is aware we need a jail, and that it will cost something to build it. We just need to have more public meetings, maybe get some more folks involved. And I think the plan could be sold."

He also pledges to try to keep taxes low.

"I think our tax rate is sufficient," he says. "We need to set budget priorities. We always need to look for ways to cut costs - that should be a continuous process. The taxpayer deserves value and results. Raising taxes is the last avenue that should be looked at."

Another area of concern for most citizens is the condition of the county roads, Phillips says.

"We have 600 miles of bad and poor roads," he says. "I think we've got to make that a top budget priority. We need a long-range plan to upgrade our roads. We need to hire a county engineer with road management experience."

Phillips graduated from John Tyler High School and from Tyler Junior College. He worked in the oil and gas industry until the late 1980s, he says, when he went into real estate.

Phillips faces Van Ness, Toby Cross and Ken Langley in the Republican primary. Since no Democrat has filed for the seat, the winner of the primary will be the next commissioners.

If none of the four candidates wins more than 50 percent of the votes on March 4, the top two voter-getters will face each other in a runoff on April 8.

Commissioner Precinct 3 includes the voting precincts of 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 10, 15, 17, 19, 22, 24, 27, 32, 46, 47, 56, 61, 64, 68 and 69.

Terry Phillips
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