Three Democrat candidates accepted donations from contractors after the city had awarded contracts, which is prohibited by local law.
Local
Incumbent Patterson Wins GOP Primary for North Texas House District
State Rep. Jared Patterson defeats challenger James Trombley in Republican primary race for House District 106 in Denton County.
Election Official’s Mistakes Worry Primary Voters in Texas’ Largest County
“How are the citizens of Harris County supposed to have confidence in the election with this kind of data?”
Where Are the Police in South Dallas?
Residents plead with their police chief and city councilman to make their community safe again.
Commentary: Will Keller Stand for the Unborn?
Eleven Texas cities have had the courage to declare themselves as sanctuary cities for the unborn. Will Keller be #12?
MOST RECENT
What to Expect on Ector County’s Ballot
Ector County’s hospital district and Odessa College feature a slate of trustee candidates on the May 4 ballot.
Garland Asks Voters for $423M in Debt, Tax Hike
The city plans to raise its property tax rate by 12 percent if all eight spending proposals are approved.
Dallas Residents Protest High-Density Development
Proposed rezoning of Mountain Creek Parkway area would bring in apartment buildings and businesses too close to home.
Commentary: Will San Antonio Voters Stand Up for Chick-fil-A?
After the city council discriminated against the popular chicken restaurant, San Antonio voters have a chance to make their voices heard.
Staff Blog: There’s No Such Thing as a Nonpartisan Election
Stop relying on politicians to be honest about themselves, and do a little searching.
Ector County Sheriff Mike Griffis Announces Re-Election Campaign
The Ector County sheriff announced his intent to seek a second term, kicking off his 2020 campaign.
Austin: Let Us Fund Abortions With Citizens’ Money
Numerous local officials recently pleaded for state permission to use citizens’ money to fund abortions.
Amarillo College Bond Election Puts Future of Senior Center in Question
Amarillo Senior Citizen Center could see major changes following May’s bond election.
Wylie ISD Proposes $193M in New Debt, But No New Campuses
Wylie residents are already repaying over $600 million in district debt with soaring school property tax bills. Officials say expansions will save taxpayers $91 million compared to cost of new campuses.
Melanie Graft: Reaching Beyond our Comfort Zone
“The hardest part is getting started,” says Granbury resident Melanie Graft. “But it is going to take getting out of our comfort zones and becoming active to be the change we want to see.”
ARCHIVE
Enough (Tax) Money to Burn a Wet Mule
Rarely is a verbal response to a budget surplus seen that tickles my fancy, so when it happens, there are little tingles in my arm hair.
“Cut our taxes and give it back. Don’t just waste it on junk. Just like when they need more money they raise taxes, when they have extra they should give it back.”
– Upper Valley homeowner Farzad Malekzadeh
Amen brother.
Buying Endorsements
In the world of marketing, its not unusual to pay celebrities to endorse your product. Does anyone think Tiger Woods is advertising those razors for free? Apparently marketing-exec-turn-state-rep-candidate Angie Chen Button decided to try it in her election bid. So she quietly put a Garland City Councilman, Larry Jeffus, on her campaign payroll, and has him wander HD 112 criticizing her opponent, Randy Dunning… Larry neglects to mention his fiduciary relationship with Angie. He’s received nearly $40,000 for four months of “work” — not a bad gig. But wait, there’s more.
Too Smart for Tyroch
Last Sunday a group of friends and I from Young Conservatives of Texas went up to Belton to walk precincts and meet voters for Ralph Sheffield’s campaign. Ralph is a great guy. He’s the owner of a mexian food restaurant called Las Casas in Temple (Go and try the “White Wings”).
Wasting Taxpayer Dollars on Luxury Suites, Thousands on Meals
Martha Tyroch, a candidate for State Representative in HD55, has a disturbing pattern of charging taxpayers for luxury accomodations and lavish dinners.
Laubenberg endorses Dunning
Taxpayer hero Jodie Laubenberg has come out strongly supporting Randy Dunning in the run-off race for House District 112 in Richardson and Garland. Why is she supporting Dunning?
Survey Reveals Texas Cities Waste Money
Hot air has arrived before summer, as the City of Austin has paid $20,000 in public funds for a survey of the public on global warming, which asks questions such as “whether you will be affected by climate change.” It also asks respondents to say what the difference is between “global warming” and “climate change.”
Water To Nowhere
It is possible for a city to spend half-a-billion dollars over 25 years for an as-yet unbuilt facility. Just ask the Austin City Council, which seems intent on doing just that. In the mid-1980s, the city planned to spend $165 million to build a water treatment plant. So far they’ve expended $96 million without even construction plans anywhere close to finished, and the project cost has nearly tripled. apparently keeping Austin weird means making taxpayer broke.
More Self
Yesterday I had the privilidge of speaking in Collin County at an event hosted by the chambers of commerce. The real treat, though, was getting to hear County Judge Keith Self address economic policy and fiscal reform. We’ll have more on him in the coming days, but you might want to check out his website: www.keithself.com. Texas needs more county judges, and elected officials in general, like Keith Self.
Anti-Taxpayer League
West Texans probably felt their wallets being picked this week, as government-growers and tax-hikers went to Odessa in an effort to prop up the frail candidacy of Buddy West in a Republican run-off. West got kudos from anti-taxpayer lawmakers like Delwin Jones of Lubbock, Jim Pitts of Waxahachie, Jim Keffer of Eastland, and Edmund Kuempel of Seguin. Five Republicans, and not a fiscal conservative in their midst.
Policing The Books
Austin Police have been wrongly spending money seized during the course of investigations – violating state and federal laws governing the way those dollars can be used. Who called in the budget cops? Austin’s own chief of police.