Hays County Republican Party Social Media Protocol

Purpose:
Social media is a powerful, impactful tool. As leaders among our fellow conservatives in Hays County, it is incumbent upon us to leverage this tool in a way that educates and informs our neighbors without inciting negativity and ire. Our posts are meant to connect us with our followers, support our candidates and Republican elected officials and communicate legislative information. Thus, please follow the following social media guidelines and protocol when posting or commenting on our social media platforms.

Posting Responsibly Practices:
Posts must support the Mission of the Hays County Executive Committee: The County Executive Committee’s mission is to elect men and women of integrity who will fight for and govern with the values and principles we stand for as conservatives and Republicans.

1. Be Respectful and Courteous. Use good manners when posting or commenting. Notice the tone of your writing voice.
2. Use communication that does not damage HCRP’s reputation and brand.
3. Focus on positive posts and comments. Avoid negative posts and retaliation.
4. Use care when posting a controversial issue. Approval for a questionable or controversial post requires review by the Chair. When in doubt, run it by the Chair and/or Second Vice Chair (Communication). Another opinion is always good.
5. Focus on posts that connect and establish relationships with our followers.
6. Avoid anything that could be viewed as malicious, obscene, threatening or intimidating.
7. Posts with content that is defamatory, derogatory or inflammatory is not allowed.
8. Language that is vulgar or uses curse words is not allowed.
9. Check the facts. Make sure posts are accurate and fact based before posting. For example, if posting about an elected official’s voting record, use a reliable source of information such as a .gov web page.
10. Respect the law, which includes copyright law.

Comments or posts that are sexist, racist, ableist, ageist, homophobic, or hateful are strictly prohibited.

11. Ignore the trolls and do not engage. Ignore them or block them if they use comments that do not follow our guidelines.
12. Participation in a flame war or exchange of angry, abusive messages between users is not allowed. Shut down a post if this occurs.
13. Endorsement of contested Republican candidates during primary elections is not allowed. Vet candidates that are running in races that are nonpartisan and insure they are conservative candidates.
14. Use of Spanish on posts is encouraged. Be sure the use of Spanish language is correct.
15. Use hashtags on all posts. It will increase our followers.
16. Use photos that are in good taste. No photos should ever be used if it portrays someone negatively.
17. References to alcohol are not allowed.
18. Respond to questions or concerns our followers may have in a timely fashion. Do not ignore them.
19. Posts and comments are forever. Please keep that in mind.

Precinct Convention Locations (2024)

Proposition 1 – HJR 126 “The constitutional amendment protecting the right to engage in farming, ranching, timber production, horticulture, and wildlife management.”

Proposition 2 – SJR 64 “The constitutional amendment authorizing a local option exemption from ad valorem taxation by a county or municipality of all or part of the appraised value of real property used to operate a child-care facility.”

Proposition 3 – HJR 132 “The constitutional amendment prohibiting the imposition of an individual wealth or net worth tax, including a tax on the difference between the assets and liabilities of an individual or family.”

Proposition 4 – HJR 2 from the second special session “The constitutional amendment to authorize the legislature to establish a temporary limit on the maximum appraised value of real property other than a residence homestead for ad valorem tax purposes; to increase the amount of the exemption from ad valorem taxation by a school district applicable to residence homesteads from $40,000 to $100,000; to adjust the amount of the limitation on school district ad valorem taxes imposed on the residence homesteads of the elderly or disabled to reflect increases in certain exemption amounts; to except certain appropriations to pay for ad valorem tax relief from the constitutional limitation on the rate of growth of appropriations; and to authorize the legislature to provide for a four-year term of office for a member of the board of directors of certain appraisal districts.”

Proposition 5 – HJR 3 “The constitutional amendment relating to the Texas University Fund, which provides funding to certain institutions of higher education to achieve national prominence as major research universities and drive the state economy.”

Proposition 6 – SJR 75 “The constitutional amendment creating the Texas water fund to assist in financing water projects in this state.”

Proposition 7 – SJR 93 “The constitutional amendment providing for the creation of the Texas energy fund to support the construction, maintenance, modernization, and operation of electric generating facilities.”

Proposition 8 – HJR 125 “The constitutional amendment creating the broadband infrastructure fund to expand high-speed broadband access and assist in the financing of connectivity projects.”

Proposition 9 – HJR 2, regular session “The constitutional amendment authorizing the 88th Legislature to provide a cost-of-living adjustment to certain annuitants of the Teacher Retirement System of Texas.”

Proposition 10 – SJR 87 “The constitutional amendment to authorize the legislature to exempt from ad valorem taxation equipment or inventory held by a manufacturer of medical or biomedical products to protect the Texas healthcare network and strengthen our medical supply chain.”

Proposition 11 – SJR 32 “The constitutional amendment authorizing the legislature to permit conservation and reclamation districts in El Paso County to issue bonds supported by ad valorem taxes to fund the development and maintenance of parks and recreational facilities.”

Proposition 12 – HJR 134 “The constitutional amendment providing for the abolition of the office of county treasurer in Galveston County.”

Proposition 13 – HJR 107 “The constitutional amendment to increase the mandatory age of retirement for state justices and judges.”

Proposition 14 – SJR 74 “The constitutional amendment providing for the creation of the centennial parks conservation fund to be used for the creation and improvement of state parks.”

Links to Analysis / Review of Proposed Constitutional Amendments:
 
Texas Public Policy Foundation: Guide to 2023 Constitutional Amendments in Texas
 
Texas House of Representatives – House Research Organization: Constitutional amendments proposed for the November 2023 ballot
 
Texas Legislative Council: Analyses Of Proposed Constitutional Amendments
 
Texas Legislative Council: Condensed Analyses Of Proposed Constitutional Amendments
 
Texas Secretary of State: Explanatory Statements for the November 7, 2023 Constitutional Amendment Election

Lucie Trainor who represents both the RPT and the RNC will be holding a training for Poll Watchers at the Hays County Republican Party Welcome Center on Wednesday 05/18 at 7:00p. This training falls in line with our Election Integrity needs. The training covers the new election laws and the required certification to be a poll watcher. We have 37 candidates in the November election which will all be seeking poll watchers. Poll watching spans Early Voting and Election Day voting. It includes all of the Voting Centers. It also includes Signature Verification, Ballot Board, Central Count and the Canvass. The RNC has partnered with the RPT to create an interactive website which will couple every Election Worker or Poll Watcher with a trained volunteer team of Election Lawyers to give us live access to help with election problems. This exciting program will be covered in the training.