With the legislative session in full swing, Texans will soon face a barrage of political propaganda disguised with “conservative-sounding” messaging designed to sell them on anti-taxpayer policies. One of the most prominent will be the effort by state and local...
Local Debt
The Conservative Approach to Limiting Government Growth
While the grassroots may disagree on the means from time to time, the end goal of the conservative movement remains the same: put government in its proper size and role in order to ensure that individual liberty is maximized. That includes our state government, where...
HISD Comes Up Short Again
At a Special Meeting on January 22nd, Houston ISD Board Members were delivered an unpromising update from the bond department on the status of their 2012 bond program and ongoing projects. The report notified board members that after asking Houston voters to approve...
School Districts Lobby for Unlimited Government
In response to state-imposed debt limits, school districts and their corporate sponsors have created the Fast Growth School Coalition (FGSC)—a lobbyist group pushing for more debt and higher property taxes. To further their aims, the coalition is poised to lobby...
Conservative Think Tank Charts a New Way Forward for Tax and Expenditure Limits
Building on their successful research of the Real Texas Budget and the Conservative Texas Budget, the Texas Public Policy Foundation released a paper today detailing the need for tax and expenditure limits to secure economic freedom for the future of Texas. In a...
Harris County Cities Taking on Millions in Debt
Two Harris County cities have published notices that their councils will authorize millions of dollars in Certificates of Obligation without approval from their respective taxpayers, and it’s all legal according to the Texas Local Government Code. The first to make...
Why Not Number One?
Texans take pride in our state’s frequent “Best in America” characterization when it comes to job creation. It should come as a surprise then that we are not rated the number one tax climate for business. According to the 2015 State Business Tax Climate Index,...
Katy ISD’s Information Sharing Indicative of Objectives
In a letter sent September 25th, Katy Independent School District apologized to parents for releasing their email addresses via Public Information requests to PACs participating on both sides of the November bond election. The release resulted in parents receiving...
Houston Property Taxes On The Rise
In a swift proceeding on Thursday, Houston ISD’s trustees voted on a 1-cent tax hike for property owners. This comes on top of a 3-cent increase in 2013. These tax hikes are in response to the $1.89 billion voter-approved bond two years ago. According to Trustee...
Leander ISD Proves Why “Interest” Matters
Texas taxpayers deserve to know the whole truth about their local debt.