Despite two decades of GOP control, the Texas Legislature is ranked as the 26th most conservative of the 50 states.
State
House Bill Proposes Reform of Student Testing
Will the amount of Texas student exams be lessened?
Citizen Activists: Make Local Elections Partisan
Grassroots conservatives support a bill requiring candidates for city office to declare a party affiliation.
Texans Hoping for Answers are Left in the Cold
Much of the testimony has appeared more like posturing rather than meaningful culpability.
Abbott Says Announcement on Ending COVID Mandates Coming ‘Pretty Soon’
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis lifted all COVID-19 restrictions in September. Will Texas follow suit?
MOST RECENT
Austin Judge Blocks Abortion Ban During Coronavirus Emergency
The ban on nonessential procedures was designed to save medical resources for those fighting the Chinese coronavirus.
Proposed Spending Cut: The Moving Image Industry Incentive Program
The Texas Legislature needs to cut spending now to fulfill their obligations and ease Texans’ tax burden.
Texas Attorney General: Local Governments Must Allow the Sale of Firearms
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton issued an opinion letter ruling that local governments may not restrict the sale of firearms during disaster declarations.
Abortion Providers Sue to Keep Killing Babies During Pandemic
Paxton slammed the Planned Parenthood lawsuit on Twitter, saying it was “unconscionable.”
Tilman Fertitta Forced to Lay Off More Than 40,000 Employees
“This is very hard on a lot of working families, but we have to survive or there is no company.”
Bloomberg Staffers Sue After He Reneges on Pay Promise
Four Texans argue Bloomberg reneged on his promise to employ them through November “no matter what” when he laid them off this month.
Slashing Spending: No More Taxpayer Subsidies for Art
Nearly $30 million is budgeted for an agency staff of 14 employees with the sole purpose of wasting taxpayer dollars—enough to cover the salaries of 478 teachers.
As Texans Struggle, Will Local Officials Cut Their Own Pay?
Below are the salaries of county officials who have issued “stay-at-home” orders in their communities.
Glenn Hegar: Texas Economy Already Battered, Unemployment Rising
“I have no doubt that people are going to start forecasting [unemployment is] going to be slightly in the low double digits.”
Proposed Spending Cut: Eliminate the Texas Enterprise Fund
Abbott and the Texas Legislature should eliminate the Texas Enterprise Fund and use the savings to provide additional tax savings to everyday Texas families.
ARCHIVE
Taxpayers Deserve to be Paid Back
Corpus Christi's KRIS television reported this week that the Nueces County Hospital District is asking t
he Legislature to pass a bill that will allow them to recover money on behalf of taxpayers when those who receive "indigent" care later receive an insurance settlement windfall for that same care. The District estimates that it loses about a half million dollars every year as a result of this phenomenon.
Governor promotes taxpayer protection
AUSTIN, Texas – In his State of the State Address, Texas Governor Rick Perry today proposed a strong new constitutional protection for the state’s taxpayers. The measure would limit the growth in state spending to a rolling, three-year average of inflation and population growth.
The president of Texans for Fiscal Responsibility, Michael Quinn Sullivan, praised the proposal.
“Gov. Perry is putting the needs of working Texas taxpayers ahead of bureaucracy. By restricting the growth in government to maintaining the costs of current services, the legislature will be forced to live within the taxpayers’ means,†said Sullivan.
Extreme Property Taxes Cause Texas to Lead Nation in Home Foreclosures – Breaking the Backs and Dreams of Ordinary Texans
In case anyone t
hought the revolt against skyrocketing property taxes is just coming from mostly white middle class suburbs, the Brownsville Herald carries a powerful staff editorial today denouncing the recent seizure of 250 local homes and businesses because owners could not afford to pay their property taxes. The article notes that, in addition to the city and county, taxpayers are on the hook for two school districts and a navigation district, among other taxing authorities.
Hang Up on the Texas Telephone Tax
Not including t
he new margin tax surcharge from Sprint, Texans already paid 18 percent of their telephone bill in government taxes and fees. That's outrageous. Why shouldn't the same sales tax apply to telephone bills as to every other purchase?
Sprinting To A New Tax
My Sprint cellphone bill arrived today, featuring a brand new fee: The Texas Margin Fee Reimbursement. This is Sprint's attempt to make visible the new business tax implemented by the Texas Legislature last sprint. Some in the legislature are crying foul, but Sprint has the nerve to do what lawmakers usually don't — admit that business taxes are borne by people, not business. Most other businesses won't put the burden of the tax on the bill — but you and I are still paying for it.
Governor’s budget proposals will promote accountability, transparency
AUSTIN, Texas – Gov. Rick Perry today proposed four key budget reforms designed to promote fiscal responsibility.
Michael Quinn Sullivan, president of Texans for Fiscal Responsibility, praised the proposals, saying they shine more sunlight on the state’s finances.
“These proposals set the tone for good budget policy and sound government. They promote higher levels of accountability and transparency,†said Sullivan. “Texas’ hard-working families deserve honest bookkeeping from the state legislature. Since we foot the bill, taxpayers should be allowed to review all the expenses to know our money is being spent wisely.â€
Who in Austin is Concerned About Taxpayers? Who Won’t Mention Them?
A central pur
pose of Texans for Fiscal Responsibility is to give taxpayers a voice in Austin in the face of the powerful forces that lobby for more spending. Is there a way to determine whether fiscally conservative organizations or groups that advocate more government have greater concern for taxpayers?
˜Local Control’ Poor Excuse For High Taxes
Local bureaucrats and their Austin apologists have found the ‘local control’ religion, but only as a...
You Can Vote Today to Return the Surplus
In a matter of mo
nths, your legislator will hopefully, after hearing from you, vote to return the surplus to taxpayers. However, you can vote today in an online poll sponsored by the Houston Business Journal which asks respondents how the Texas surplus should be allocated.
Rep. Paxton Files Amendment to Allow Governor to Reduce Wasteful Spending
Today, State Rep. Ken Paxton filed a proposed constitutional amendment (House Joint Resolution 46) that would give the Governor authority to cut wasteful spending in the budget. Currently, the Constitution allows the Governor to exercise a line item veto over individual budget items.