What You Need to Know if You Plan to Present

Every August, the Texas Parks and Wildlife Commission holdsa general public comment session (hearing) at Texas Parks and Wildlife Department’s headquarters in Austin, 4200 Smith School Road, Austin, TX 78744.  We encourage you to attend the meeting in-person and show your support for our mountain lion.

Here are some things you need to know about the process:

·       Speakers have the opportunity to talk about any topic within the Commission’s jurisdiction, though they may not take action onany topics that are raised. You may be asked a question, however.

·       Before the general public comments begin, if youwish to make comments, you must complete, sign, and deliver a registration form to the Clerk within a reasonable time (plan on at least one hour before the public hearing). If you have written documents to provide the Commission, give them to the Clerk when you register.

·       The presiding officer determines the order in which people provide their comments, assuming they’ve registered based on the above step.

·       Comments are limited to two minutes. The Commission uses a stoplight system to indicate your remaining time (yellow =limited time; red=no time). Practice and time your speech so you know it fits within the two-minute limit.

·       If a group of people want to speak before the Commission, organize your comments as a group so that you provide unique individual remarks and are not repeating each other’s comments.

Suggested talking points:

·       If you are in a group, consider asking one member to present the views of all rather than have individuals potentially repeat viewpoints already mentioned. You can list the names of the people that your comments represent. Individual comments should be unique.

·       Introduce yourself and thank the Commission for allowing you to speak.

·       Be respectful of the Commission and the audience.

·       Tell them what compelled you to present before them.

·       Stick with the facts. See our Six Steps to Responsible Management on TexansforMountainLions.org. Any of them are great talking points for the Commission.

·       The Commission has reviewed and likely discussed the petition components with TPWD and others and has knowledge of the request, so know that what you’re telling them probably won’t be new information. They need to hear from you, however, so voice your concerns.

·       Two minutes to present your views may not seem like much time, but you can say quite a lot if your comments are organized and concise. Bring written talking points so you stay on target.

·       You will be told to stop if you exceed the two-minute limit by more than a few seconds.

Rules of Conduct are very simple:  Don’t make any profane or personally threatening remarks to anyone attending the meeting, including the Commissioners, TPWD staff, or the audience. Anyone who engages in this behavior may be removed from the hearing.

If you have any questions or comments about the process or talking points, please send an email to Info@TexansforMountainLions.org.

Thank you for supporting Texas mountain lions!

‍