East Texas reps file bills to oppose Marvin Nichols Reservoir

AUSTIN– State Rep. Cole Hefner of Mount Pleasant and State Rep. Gary VanDeaver of New Boston have both filed bills in opposition of the proposed Marvin Nichols Reservoir.

“Private property is a sacred right in America. This should especially be true in our great state
of Texas. And yet, our people face a continued threat from big cities who wish to take away their land for the benefit of strangers to our communities,” a press release from Hefner’s office said. “That is what the proposed Marvin Nichols Reservoir project is all about: taking thousands of acres from Northeast Texans to solve the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex’s water problems.”

Hefner’s House Bill 2109 would require Texas’s water development board to remove a proposed reservoir from the State Water Plan if it doesn’t start construction within 50 years of it first being included in the plan.

Our news partner, KETK, reports that VanDeaver’s House Bill 2114 prevents engineering firms from working on constructing reservoirs if they were involved in the preparation of a state or regional water plan.

“I am grateful to Rep. VanDeaver for his outstanding leadership on this critical issue and look forward to working with him to protect our property rights. Generations of East Texas families have lived and died on these lands, and it is their right to allow their heirs to do the same. These lands are their heritage,” said Hefner. “DFW must find another solution to its water woes without depriving our people of their land.”