Tell Lt. Gov. Patrick and Speaker Phelan to “notify your respective members.”
State
Ballot Propositions on the March Republican Primary Election Ballot
In addition to candidates for elected office, Republican voters will get a chance to vote on 10 ballot propositions.
Biden Administration Sues Texas Over Redistricting
DOJ claims new voting boundaries for Congress and Texas House discriminate against Latino and black voters.
2021 Texas Conservative Leader Awards Honor Real Fighters
Out of more than 150 submissions, 14 citizens earned the honor.
State Officials Play the Blame Game Instead of Outlawing Child Mutilation
“I keep asking myself: Why do we have to work this hard to get our elected officials to protect children in this state?”
MOST RECENT
Texas Senate Approves Another Bill to Outlaw Child Mutilation Procedures
As legislative time runs out, the fight to protect children now turns to the Texas House of Representatives.
Bill Directing Texas AG to Vet Voter Rolls Moves Closer to Abbott’s Desk
Texas GOP says Senate Bill 155 meets its election integrity policy goals of maintaining clean voter rolls and verifying voters’ citizenship.
Taxpayer-Funded Lobbying Ban Gets ‘Massive Loophole’ in House Revision
The committee substitute that passed the House State Affairs Committee last week is curiously different from the version that passed the overall Senate.
Texans Waiting for Lawmakers to Deliver on Election Integrity
With just two weeks left for Texas lawmakers to pass legislation, here’s where the grassroots’ top-priority election integrity bills stand.
Texas House Republicans Refuse to Outlaw Child Mutilation Procedures
“I keep asking myself: Why do we have to work this hard to get our elected officials to protect children in this state?”
Pornography Amendment Stalls Rural Broadband Bill
The Senate removed a provision to prioritize internet providers that block internet pornography by default.
Democrat Lawmaker Censured by Democrats for Supporting Constitutional Carry
While most Texas Democrats have favored gun control, opponents argue criminals don’t follow the law or abide by the restrictions, which causes harm to law-abiding citizens.
Bill Includes Fining Parents for Publishing Recordings of CPS
Had it been a law then, a portion of House Bill 135 may have punished the Pardos for publishing video footage of CPS illegally taking their child.
Priority House Bills Die as Clock Strikes Midnight
This deadline however meant more than just another date on the calendar, it sealed the legislative fate for hundreds of bills still languishing in the legislative process to include priorities of the Republican Party of Texas.
School Boards Intimidating Parents
“It doesn’t even feel like we live in America anymore.”
ARCHIVE
Republicans For Tax-Hikes?
So a Republican state senator goes to work, gets scared by the budget, advocates balancing budget by increasing taxes and spending all the savings, then declares his position is “conservative.” Is this a joke? Because it’s not funny… It’s also what’s going on right now.
Rainy Day Fund: A Last Resort
Talking about the weather is usually the last refuge of polite conversation, but discussion about Texas’ economic climate is the starting point for budget talk in Austin. It’s not a question of is it raining, but what’s the best umbrella to use. So far, the legislature hasn’t done anything to justify tapping the state savings account.
Higher Ed, Not Higher Spending
Tomorrow, as part of a university-sponsored lobbying effort called “Invest in Texas”, The University of Texas at Austin president Bill Powers is scheduled to testify in front of the Senate Finance Committee, using your tax-dollars to turn right around and beg the legislature not to take away any of your tax-dollars.
HB304 Targets Vote Harvesting in Texas
On Tuesday, March 1, the House Select Committee on Voter Identification and Voter Fraud will begin hearing testimony on the Voter ID bill that passed the Texas Senate two weeks ago. While this is definitely a good start at combating those who wish to skew the will of voters, I believe there is more that could be done during this legislative session. During this session, as in previous sessions, Voter ID has been the main focus for combating fraud, but there is another problem plaguing Texas – vote harvesting.
Don’t Tap Rainy Day Fund
The Tea Party Caucus Advisory Committee, made up of 13 tea party organizers from around the state, have issued a unanimous call to the legislative Tea Party Caucus and statewide elected leaders to hold the line on spending the State’s Rainy Day Fund.
Dr. Z’s Bad Meds
Some pretty nasty medicine was prescribed by State Rep. John Zerwas, MD, that he thinks will “dull the edge” of the current budgeting process. Sorry, doc, but yours isn’t a very sound diagnosis.
Voters Still Saying CUT
No matter how liberals try to spin it, Texas voters say in a new poll they clearly want the state’s budget balanced by spending cuts. As our own poll found, those same voters won’t be happy with legislators who do anything else.
Don’t Bet Budget On Gambling
Enticing whispers are floating through Capitol halls that Texas can have it all: more revenues, lower taxes and balanced budgets. All that – and more! – would come simply by expanding legalized gambling in Texas. Such promises might look good under flashing neon at night, but simply don’t hold up under sober inspection in budgetary daylight.
Eltife’s Crazy Budget
Well, you should give State Sen. Kevin Eltife two points for consistency. It seems that his knee-jerk reaction to principled, fiscally responsible public policy is to decry it as “crazy” and “insane”.
Education Spending: Texas vs. California
We Texans love to compare ourselves with California; we have created more private sector jobs, have a lower tax burden and lower unemployment rate, and folks are leaving the formerly ‘Golden’ State in droves to seek Lone Star prosperity. Without a doubt, there is much to cheer. There is one area, however, where indeed Texas is bigger, but it is nothing to celebrate.