Texas seeing recent spike in ‘jugging’ thefts

Law enforcement is seeing a rash of thefts in which victims are stalked after leaving banks with money bags, a crime that the perpetrators refer to as “jugging.”

AUSTIN — The dash for dollars is on.

State officeholders have been barred for the last six months from raising money as part of a mandated blackout period before and after the start of a legislative session.

Come Monday, the fundraising spigots officially open again. That goes for lawmakers and statewide elected officials, such as the governor and land commissioner.

For some incumbents, the chance to raise money again will provide the initial building blocks of a re-election campaign. Large totals raked in also will equate to early warning shots to potential primary challengers.

For some politicians with no fear of being uprooted, it can translate into an opportunity to flex a little muscle and momentum with a show of financial force by successfully tapping donors for major money just weeks after a legislative session.

There’s no time to waste. Officeholders will have little more than a week to raise cash before the reporting period ends June 30 in what will reflect on public reports as the first fundraising hauls of 2015.

The stakes could be even higher this year, as Texas is set to be a hotbed of presidential fundraising. A wide range of White House hopefuls will be looking to tap big-dollar donors throughout the state.

Some state politicians in the hunt for campaign contributions worry if they do not get in early, they could be left out.

“We’re all competing for the same dollars, so it’s a real rush to the starting gate,” said Rep. Jason Villalba, R-Dallas. “If you’re not first to the starting gate with the ask to donors, it could be difficult later on to get that support.”

Villalba, seeking a third term and girding for a potential tea party primary challenger, already has two fundraisers scheduled for next week, one in Dallas and another in Austin. They are among roughly three dozen fundraising receptions already scheduled through June 30, according to one schedule.

The state-mandated blackout period for fundraising is geared toward avoiding potential conflicts of interest. It covers incoming and current members of the Legislature, all statewide officeholders, legislative caucuses and some political action committees.

This year, the ban started on Dec. 14 and wraps up Sunday. The session came to an end June 1.

Lawmakers say it is a short period to raise money, but it also has proven to be one in which substantial cash can be generated.

Gov. Greg Abbott, already building what would become a juggernaut campaign money machine, brought in nearly $4.8 million in the days immediately following the fundraising freeze in 2013, according to state data.

Abbott will be engaging in an all-out fundraising blitz again this year, according to his office. He is planning to dial for dollars all through next week, and hold court at fundraisers in some of the big money cities around the state, including Houston and Dallas.

Other top leaders getting in early on the fundraising activity include House Speaker Joe Straus, who sits on a roughly $8.4 million war chest. An Austin reception for Straus is scheduled for Tuesday, and the San Antonio Republican also is an invited guest at separate fundraisers for two House incumbents the next day.

A reception for Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, a Houston Republican who had nearly $4 million cash on hand and about $1.5 million in debt at the beginning of the year, is scheduled for Thursday in Austin.

“It’s important to show strength and show the support you’re receiving from donors and individuals early on,” said Kelly Carnal, a former GOP fundraiser who now is the executive director of the Texas House Republican Caucus.

Carnal locked down a room weeks ago at the Austin Club to hold a reception next week for the caucus, the 98-member delegation of the majority party in the lower chamber.

In the past, she helped raised money for a swath of Republican officeholders and candidates, but this year she said working for the caucus has allowed her to focus efforts exclusively on one group. The people tasked with raising money, she said, sometimes face huge expectations during this particular reporting period, where there is only about a week and a half to wrangle dollars.

“There’s a tremendous amount of pressure,” she said.

Wealthy individual donors are likely to make up a large chunk of the overall contributions reported in the coming days, as some of the state’s biggest political action committees are planning to sit on the sideline for now.