Politics
Texas advocacy network asks court to identify sender of election mailers
The Transgender Education Network of Texas has petitioned a Travis County judge to help uncover who sent mass mailers using its name and materials. The USPS identified the holder of the bulk-mail permit used to send them, but the sender and the permit holder’s role remain unclear.
The Transgender Education Network of Texas is asking a Travis County judge for permission to question people who may know who is behind mass mailers that used the group’s name and materials.
The organization filed a pre-lawsuit petition Thursday seeking oral depositions or written answers to help identify potential defendants. It alleges the mailer’s author used TENT’s branding, website and photographs without its knowledge or consent, and distributed the pieces in a way intended to harm the group and sow confusion among Texas voters. The filing does not establish who sent the mailers or whether any law was violated.
The filing, known as a Form 202 petition, is a Texas procedure for gathering information before a lawsuit when a potential defendant’s identity is unknown. TENT says it wants to find the people responsible for what it describes as deceptive efforts targeting voters and damaging the group’s reputation.
On Friday, the U.S. Postal Service identified the company whose bulk-mail permit was used to send the flyers: Three Z Printing, based in Teutopolis, Illinois. A permit allows access to discounted postage, but its use does not by itself show that the permit holder printed or sent the mailers. Three Z Printing had not responded to an inquiry by late Friday afternoon.
The return address on the mailers names Texas Transgender Student Union, LLC. Business records show the company was formed about a month ago through a registered-agent service in Sheridan, Wyoming. After reporters visited the agent’s office, Northwest Registered Agent said it was ending its relationship with the LLC. The sender’s identity remains unknown.
The dispute puts the focus on who is using mass mail to reach Texas voters and whether the campaign’s use of a nonprofit’s identity crossed legal lines. The court petition is an effort to gather evidence; it is not a ruling on the claims.