TSSWCB Board Members

Overview

TSSWCB State Board Members are elected by Soil and Water Conservation District (SWCD) Directors in the state district they represent. This Board is responsible to the State Legislature and the landowners of Texas. This places the SWCD program in Texas in the hands of the landowners, all actively engaged in farming or ranching. 

Scott Buckles, Chairman

Scott Buckles of Stratford is a member of the Texas State Soil and Water Conservation Board. In 2011, Scott was elected to represent Area I, which encompasses 49 Soil and Water Conservation Districts in the panhandle and south plains region of Texas. Prior to being elected to TSSWCB, Buckles served 26 years on the board of directors of the Sherman County SWCD. Scott is the managing partner of Buckles Farms. The family operation has been in business since 1917 and currently produces corn, grain, sorghum, wheat and stocker cattle. He is also the co-owner and operator of a crop and aerial spraying service. When Scott has spare time he builds and operates a 1/8th scale railroad. He is always looking for passengers…even the dogs enjoy the rides. When not at the farm he enjoys the cool mountain air in Red River, New Mexico. Scott and his wife Dana have 3 children, Carson, Haley and Hunter. 

Joe Freeman, Member

Joe Freeman of Llano is a member of the Texas State Soil and Water Conservation Board. In 2024, Joe was elected to represent Area II which consists of 50 counties in the western to trans-Pecos, encompassing, 43 Soil and Water Conservation Districts. He has been a director on the Llano Soil and Water Conservation District since 2015, where he currently serves as secretary. In other areas of leadership, Freeman currently serves as Founder and President of the Cowboy Christmas for Kids Charity and a member of the Texas Southwestern Cattle Raisers Association and American Quarter Horse Association. He has previously served as the President of the Hill County Livestock Raisers Association, President of the Llano County Farm Bureau as well as the President of the Llano County A&M Club. Freeman is a 5th generation rancher that runs a cow-calf operation in Llano County.  He and his wife of 46 years, Carol, have two children, Ross and Sarah. He also has four grandchildren.

José Dodier, Jr., Vice-Chairman

José Dodier Jr. of Zapata is a member of the Texas State Soil and Water Conservation Board. He was elected to the State Board in May of 2005 representing Area III. Dodier has a distinguished history of service to soil and water conservation. In addition to his work on the State Board, he is Chairman of the Zapata Soil and Water Conservation District Board and has been a member of that board for 25 years. He served as President of the Association of Texas Soil and Water Conservation Districts from 2000-2003 and Immediate Past-President from 2003-2005. He served on the board of directors of the National Association of Conservation Districts from 1997-2005. Currently, he sits on the Workforce Solutions South Texas Board as well as the Zapata International Bank of Commerce Board. José is a partner in Don José Land & Cattle Company in Zapata County, which is a conservation-driven, cow-calf operation that produces commercial Charbray cattle. José is married to Janeann and they have a daughter, Danielle.

David Basinger, Member

David Basinger of Deport is a member of the Texas State Soil and Water Conservation Board. He was elected in 2018 to represent Area IV which is made up of 52 counties in East Texas. In addition to his work with the State Board, he has served on the Lamar Soil and Water Conservation District since 2002, where he is currently chairman. He is also a former vice president on the board of directors of the Association of Texas Soil and Water Conservation Districts (ATSWCD) and president of the North East Texas Association of Soil and Water Conservation Districts. In other areas of leadership, Basinger has served on the Prairieland School Board for over 20 years, is a member of the Lamar County Farm Bureau and Deport Cemetery Board as well as a past member of the Lamar-Delta Levee Improvement District. Basinger runs 3,200 acres in the Sulphur River Bottom where he farms corn, soybeans and hay. He and his wife of 39 years, Connie, have two children, Matthew and Christopher. He also has two granddaughters.

Barry Mahler, Member

Barry Mahler of Iowa Park is a member of the Texas State Soil and Water Conservation Board. He was elected to the State Board in May 2007 representing Area V. Mahler is an Iowa Park businessman, cotton and wheat farmer. Mahler also serves Precinct 3 on the Wichita County Commissioner’s Court and is a reporter for Farm Bureau Roundup, a weekly farm radio program produced by Farm Bureau. Mahler has been a District Director on the Wichita Soil and Water Conservation District for the past 40 years. He has previously served as President of the Association of Texas Soil and Water Conservation Districts and a former Alternate Director of the National Association of Conservation Districts (NACD) Board of Directors. Barry and his wife Sheri have two sons, Braden and Matthew.
 

James Clement III, Governor Appointee

James Clement of Kingsville is a veteran rancher and the senior vice president of Grass and Rangeland at EarthOptics. He is the director for Ranchbot Monitoring Solutions, Frontiers Market, and Beggs Cattle Company. He is a director and chairman of the Natural Resources and Wildlife Committee for the Texas and Southwestern Cattle Raisers Association and a director for the American Quarter Horse Association, National Ranching Heritage Center, and the South Texas Property Rights Association. He is a Marine Corps Infantry Officer, with service in the active and reserve components since 2008. Clement received a Bachelor of Arts in Communication from Goucher College and a Master of Business Administration from Cornell University.