Austin American-Statesman from Austin, Texas • 1

17 I New, pullout pages Our daily TV viewing guide and comics have a new home in the Life section. Along with the guide are the horoscope, crossword puzzle and bridge. E5-8 TV, Inside Property value fax B2 Ranger inquiry B3 Deaths B4-5 Neighbor B6-7 Wednesday, May 31, 1995 Weather B8 on lao ma 'lam personally against an income tax. V. George W.

Bush, governor Bush also said Tuesday that he has not decided Whether to sign or veto a bill that would grant Circle Ranch greater powers over its development in southwest Travis County. "I'm going to withhold judgment until my legal staff has had a chance to review the bill," he said. On reforming the state's tax structure, Bush said property tax relief does not have to mean the onset of a state personal income tax. "I am personally against an income tax," Bush said. "I believe and hopefully we'll find a way to have property tax relief without an income tax." When asked how to achieve one without the other, he said he could not provide specifics.

islature didn't consider the idea. Under a constitutional amendment adopted by voters in 1993, Texas cannot have a personal income tax without it first being approved in a statewide referendum. In addition to studying tax reform, Bush said he wants to research the reasons behind the flood of bills sent to him by the Legislature that restrict Austin's power to control its growth. "I do not like the trend of the state serving as referee," he said. The state oftentimes must referee disputes, though, when it comes to (local) matters." The Circle bill would give a board appointed by the governor and composed primarily of Circle residents the ability to condemn property, issue subpoenas and regulate water quality.

It effectively extricates the 3,500 Circle residents from city regulations. Sen. Gonzalo Barrientos, D-Austin, opposed the bill so strongly that he filibustered it twice for a total of 21 hours, 19 minutes. The legislation was devised and driven by Circle developer Gary Bradley, who supported former Gov. Ann Richards over Bush in the 1994 election.

Bush suggested that the legislation "reflected years of frustration by members of the House and the Senate." When asked whether the legislation really reflected the frustration of a couple of developers, Bush said, "I haven't spoke to the big developers; so, I can't answer if they are frustrated or not." Governor says help should come Without personal income tax By Stuart Eskenazi American-Statesman Capitol Staff Gov. George W. Bush, who focused on four goals during the legislative session, said Tuesday he is ready to tackle another issue. And it's a humdinger. "We must look carefully at property tax relief, at relieving property owners of a high burden," Bush said at a news conference during which he reflected on and looked beyond the legislative session that ended Monday.

"That's why we're going to look at it dur-, ing the summer," Bush said. it Four years ago, a task force headed by former Gov. John Connally recommended a state income tax. However, the Leg 1 -TU Constables want truancy program to be expanded Thornton takes race for mayor of San Antonio 'rT7 i 7S I I 1 i -v -l 1 "K' Vs. ft 1 Associated Press SAN ANTONIO City Council Member Bill Thornton compiled a commanding lead over Kay Turner in the San Antonio mayoral race Tuesday night.

With 260 of 270 precincts in, Thornton had 50,785 votes (52.6 percent) to 45,747 (47.4 percent) for Turner in a runoff election: The runoff was necessary because Thornton just missed winning a majority 24 days, earlier over Turner, an outspoken community activist v- il i il "I I i fcm i i i tI Increased attendance in the last six weeks of school from the previous six weeks, when attendance among the district's 15,448 middle school students rose from 91.9 percent to 93.5 percent. Cost $22,000, far less than the $55,000 allocated. The remainder was returned to county coffers and could be used to fund the program from the start of school in August through Oct. 1, when the county's fiscal year begins. Raised an additional $114,094 for the Austin Independent School District, which receives almost $15 in state money each day for each student attending class.

"What interests me is this: Kids are in school instead of on the streets getting in trouble," County Judge Bill Aleshire said. "That's worth a whole lot." Students in class are less likely to tax the criminal-justice system, See County's, B2 By Chuck Ljndeu. American-Statesman Staff A school-attendance program that sent constables to the homes of truant middle school students received high marks Tuesday for increasing attendance, costing less than anticipated and raising money for the Austin school district. With the success of the effort's six-week trial documented, constables recommended that the program be expanded through the next school year despite their increased workload. "I get paid the same whether I do this or not," Constable Rocky Medrano said.

"But we've got to do what's best for. this community, and Travis County would be a lot better off if this program would continue year-round." In a report to county commissioners at Tuesday's meeting, constables said the program: keep turnout low as Thornton took an early lead and never relinquished it However, the turnout was higher than expected. Predictions had been that the election would draw a maximum of 70,000 voters, or 14 percent of the city's electorate. The original election produced a 17.45 percent turnout, a record low for a regular City Council election. Thornton, 51, first was elected to the City Council in 1991.

He has vowed to oppose any property tax rate increases and to continue adding police officers to the city's 3 mors ssntencsd for racial beatings I ft -t i I I I 1 i 1 ill, i if-'umttt 1 nrnfFt i I'll I i 4 -y. p' "gu it iorce. tie naa uie endorsements oi several city leaders, including incumbent Mayor Nelson Wolff. Wolff could not seek re-election because of term limits. Turner, 48, had called for a "back to basics" approach to city services and has urged voters to reform what she considers a city government too tightly linked to special interests.

She ran for mayor and lost in 1991 and has successfully campaigned twice against the Applewhite reservoir. Thornton had raised $755,000 through the latest campaign reporting period. Turner had raised about $65,000. Thornton and Turner emerged from a field of six candidates in the May 6 city election to make the runoff. Thornton garnered 49.9 percent of the vote, just missing topping the 50 percent needed to avoid a runoff.

Turner won 43.5 percent. dants attacked Henderson and Criswell to intimidate and threaten a separate group of young black men attending a Livingston teen club with white female friends. "Two innocent men were viciously attacked and beaten because of their skin color. This type of racial intimidation will not be tolerated," U.S. Attorney Mike Bradford said.

Kingston was sentenced to 43 months in prison, Cryer to 42 months and Schultz to 37 months. Earlier in May, Hannah sentenced Robert Fails, 21, of Ona-laska to 20 months in prison and Harris Thompson, 19, of Livingston to 30 months in prison. None of the defendants is eligible for parole, which was abolished in the federal system in 1987. Staff photo by Rebecca McEntee Traffic snarled after deadly crash Traffic snaked to the horizon Tuesday after a fiery crash closed the northbound lanes of Interstate 35 in Round Rock, leaving one man dead and another severely hurt. Police said a 1985 Ford pickup heading south in the 3500 block of 1-35 about 11:40 a.m.

crossed the median and struck a north bound 1990 Honda. The drivers, neither identified, were pinned in their automobiles, one of which caught fire. The men were taken by STAR Right helicopter to Brackenridge Hospital, where the driver of the Honda was pronounced dead. The driver of the pickup was in intensive care late Tuesday. In CBS switch, KBVO will be KEYE Austin American-Statesman law Associated Press LUFKIN Three Livingston men were sentenced to federal prison Tuesday for violating the civil rights of two black men by beating them 17 months ago.

U.S. District Judge John Hannah Jr. had sentenced two other men to prison earlier in the month for the beatings of Carmen Bruce Henderson and Gary Criswell, both of Livingston, a town of about 5,200 residents 55 miles northeast of Houston. Darren Kingston, 20; Richard Cryer, 19; and Milton "Trey" Schultz 21, pleaded guilty on March 14, 1995, to a charge of conspiracy. The charge alleged that on Dec.

31, 1993, and Jan. 1, 1994, the defen- Lotto marks birthday with 3rd-biggest prize By David Elliot American-Statesman Staff Three could be a tempting number for Texas lottery players today because it's been a big week for treys. Tonight's jackpot will be an estimated $55 million the third-largest prize in Texas history This week marks the Texas Lottery's third birthday. And the third year of sales May 1994 through May 27 of this year is the best year yet, with 2.8 billion tickets purchased. That's up from 2.6 billion a year earlier and 1.8 billion the first yean Match three numbers tonight and you will win well, $3.

Match six that's three, twice and you will be the state's newest millionaire. Lotto tickets for tonight's 9:59 p.m. televised drawing cost $1. ai Pick your lotto fantasy If you win tonigtit's $55 million lottery jackpot, what will you do with the money? Call Inside Line at 416-5700 and enter LOTO (5686) when prompted. Then, choose from these answers: Buy a house larger than the one Michael Deil is building.

2. Stand on top of your desk at work and yell, "I won the lottery! I quit!" 3. Invite your co-workers to lunch and volunteer to pick up the tab. 4. Purchase a professional sports team.

5. Travel around the world-stopping occasionally to inspect and perhaps purchase an island. 6. Make a sizable donation to a favorite charity. 7.

Launch a business. 8. Move out to a big ranch in the country. 9. Head to Las Vegas and try to double the winnings.

Austin musicians, including Guy Forsyth, Toni Price, Julieann Banks, Riley Osbourn, Tim Daunch and Eddie Cantu, were brought in to record the station's new theme song, Your Eye On Austin. But perhaps the biggest promotional push will be a $242,000 house giveaway. The Palmer Homes house is under construction in Georgetown. Starting June 1, registration forms can be picked up at participating Palmer Homes' model homes and mailed to the station. Starting July 3, when Channel 42 debuts its weeknight newscasts, viewers will have to watch for their names to appear in spots that will air during the 5 and 10 p.m.

news. If your name appears, you have 1 minute, 42 seconds to call in. Forty-two people will win pack Station takes new call letters to change image, try to gain network identity By Diane Holloway American-Statesman Staff When KBVO Channel 42 switches from Fox to CBS on July 2, it will switch its call letters to KEYE pronounced K-eye. After that, the station plans to give away a $242,000 house. More about that later.

"Although KBVO had a strong image here and has been a Top 10 Fox affiliate, the lion's share of that image was tied almost exclusively to children's and other Fox-oriented programming," Channel 42's general manager, Dennis Upah, said Tuesday. "We wanted to send a message from the very beginning that K-EYE is different. Now CBS is literally our middle name." Upah said the decision to change the station's call letters came after months of research. Other TV markets where networks have switched affiliations have shown a high level of "call-letter confusion," Upah said, and the new K-EYE name will help viewers find CBS programs and not further confuse them. The new name also will give the station's news operation, which is being built from scratch (KBVO doesn't currently have a full local newscast), many promotional opportunities.

The morning newscasts, for example, will be dubbed "K-E YEopener News," followed by "K-EYEwitness News" at noon, 5 and 6 p.m. With the switch only a month away, Channel 42 is gearing up for the move. CBS promotions featuring stars such as Fran Drescher of The Nanny and Joe Regalbuto of Murphy Brown have been touting Austin's new CBS station for a week. The station has hired a graphics design firm from New York to ere-' ate a new on-air look. And several dreams only to find the dreams were extensions of their lives.

A Waco truck stop waitress bought the truck stop. A Mansfield gas station attendant now stops at full-service pumps. What would you do if you won $55 million? Inside Line wants to "know. Call 416-5700 and when prompted, enter category LOTO (5686) and listen to the choices. After all, it's your dream And it's free.

But dreams of winning the big one are free. Most lottery winners would buy or build a house or purchase a new car, lottery officials say. Others want to venture north. "We had an older lady from Pasadena who came in one time and said she was going to take her neighbor on an Alaskan cruise," said Keith Elkins, lottery spokesman. Some winners visualized their ages mat inciuae a Key.

un Aug. the house will be given to the owner of the key that opens the door. A CBS celebrity will be in-side the house, wraiting to greet the See KBVO. B5.