David Simpson 2024

Despite the misadventure of the Northeast Texas Municipal Water District (NETMWD) attempting to sell water to the Dallas-Fort Worth area, good may come.

Avinger, Daingerfield, Hughes Springs, Jefferson, Lone Star, Ore City and Pittsburg are realizing what a critical role they serve in East Texas through the NETMWD.

Even errors, hubris and folly mysteriously accomplish the Lord’s purposes. “The king’s heart is a stream of water in the hand of the Lord; he turns it wherever he will.” (Prov. 21:1).

Who is the “king” in regard to the NETMWD? Is it the general manager, Wayne Owen? Is it the board that approves his plans? Is it the seven city councils that appoint its directors? Or is it the citizenry who elect the city councils? In varying degrees, they all have kingly roles.

Years ago, I addressed the Avinger council about the NETMWD. The council dismissed my concerns about hiring Owen and huge increases in spending for lawyers and lobbyists. They did not think it was their business. I hope they think differently now.

My depiction of Owen as a Trojan horse was not intended to be derogatory but to point out his obvious conflict of interest and the scheme to broker the deal quietly.

He wants the DFW area supplied with water from East Texas reservoirs. Like Odysseus, instead of trying to scale the formidable walls of Troy and take it by siege, Mr. Owen appears to have solicited an invitation to come into the district and sell its water for them.

Or maybe this was not just Mr. Owen’s cunning plan. The directors, either wittingly or not, are responsible. They brought him in and hired him in 2022 and extended his contract in 2024.

Incredibly, Chairman Cox and other directors are pleading ignorance and parroting this notion that they are simply in the business of selling water and monetizing assets.

However, government is not a business. It is a trust. It is not for profiteering. NETMWD is a water trust formed to provide recreation and supply water to East Texas.

The crux of the problem with the NETMWD is that its directors view themselves as salesmen — selling their water any way, anyhow. They don’t see themselves as trustees.

Though they are back-stepping now, they have not taken responsibility for brokering this deal in the dark. They would be glad to let Owen take the blame for that.

They say there is no contract today, but in December there were enough details that they planned to present the deal to the seven city councils in executive sessions.

Here is my concern: It is easy to be persuaded when a lot of money is put on the table of a small, struggling city, especially when you only hear one side of the equation.

I know, because when I was mayor of Avinger, two agreements were made by the district — one with Longview in 1995 and another in 1998 regarding the district’s internal matters. I relied only on the district’s explanations. The agreements were quietly approved without much public knowledge, debate, or independent counsel. I trusted the district and went along. I regret it. I would do it differently now.

If the seven councils make a similar mistake, it will have greater consequences. This sale would make NETMWD an unequal partner with the powerful metroplex’s North Texas Municipal Water District. It would be like partnering with a rich hoarder that does not know how to say enough. It would eventually undermine the entire Cypress watershed.

The seven cities should oppose any large sale of water rights or water to the metroplex, and thankfully, several have.

The directors responsible for this expensive mishap should resign. Professed changes of heart and feigned forthrightness for the future appear shallow and due only to public scrutiny. Forgiveness should be sought instead. There has been enough obfuscation. What is lacking is not knowledge — it’s humility.

Finally, I appeal to the people of the seven cities, as the final bulwark for fulfilling the original mission of the NETMWD. Elect council members who understand their responsibility to appoint directors who will act as trustees — and not profiteers — of the watery jewels of East Texas.