Legislation to ban taxpayer-funded lobbying has once again been filed in the Texas House.
House Bill 117 by State Rep. Mike Olcott (R-Aledo) would restrict the “use of public funds by political subdivisions for lobbying activities.”
The legislation specifies that public funds cannot be used by a political subdivision “to hire or contract with an individual required to register as a lobbyist” or “to pay a nonprofit association or organization” that largely represents political subdivisions and hires or contracts with “an individual required to register as a lobbyist.”
For years, both Democrat and Republican voters have called on elected officials to outlaw the use of tax dollars for lobbying, often against taxpayers’ interests, but lawmakers in both parties resisted, siding with local government officials over citizens.
Banning taxpayer-funded lobbying has been a longtime priority for the Republican Party of Texas. Although similar legislation has cleared the Texas Senate on multiple occasions, it has never passed the Texas House.
“I filed HB 117 because every year taxpayers are unwittingly paying contract lobbyists to lobby against the interests of the taxpayer,” Olcott told Texas Scorecard. “In 2023, taxpayer-funded lobbying cost Texans nearly $100 million. Those dollars were spent to influence the legislature’s policy-making process.”
“Too often this process prioritizes the interests of taxing entities over the interests of regular Texans paying those taxes,” Olcott added.
The legislation now faces an uphill battle in the upcoming 90th Legislative Session after Democrats took control of the Texas House.
Opposition to taxpayer-funded lobbying, however, crosses party lines. A Texas Public Policy Foundation poll found that more than 80 percent of Texas voters oppose the practice, including broad support for a ban among Republicans, Democrats, and independents.
When asked how a Democrat majority in the House would affect the legislation’s chances, Olcott said, “If Democrats are genuinely interested in addressing affordability and helping the average taxpayer, they should embrace my bill.”
The 90th Legislative Session begins January 12, 2027.
