The Texas Legislature's 81st Session was one of missed opportunities; so much was simply not done that should have been. Not only did lawmakers fail to provide much-needed additional property tax relief, they didn't provide substantial reforms to the property tax appraisal system and failed to permanently address the shortcomings in the business tax.

While state government growth was held at bay, that was thanks as much to the global economic situation as it was to any series of proactive decisions. 
 
What Is The Index?
The Fiscal Responsibility Index is a measurement of how lawmakers perform on size and role of government issues. We use exemplar  votes on core budget and free enterprise issues. We look for clean votes that go to governing philosophy. In the Texas House, there are dozens of additional votes that might have been used in the measure, but without substantially affecting the ratings or the rankings.

Lawmakers and their offices knew in advance of TFR’s position on the issues rated. Lawmakers also received extra weighting (positive or negative) on their rating for sponsoring targeted legislation.
 
Coin-Flip Representation?
In considering issues affecting the pocketbooks and livelihoods of Texans, taxpayers would have had similar odds with the flip of a coin as in relying on the performance of their elected officials.
 
It must be noted that the legislature did improve on average. Lawmakers scored an average 52.2% in voting for Texas' taxpayers, though this was an improvement over the 46.13% scored by lawmakers in the 2007 Index.
  
Fewer Republicans, But More Conservatives
There may be fewer House Republicans (now just 76 of them), but they more philosophically grounded than those last Session. The House GOP average score rise from a 75 in 2007 to an 82.25 in 2009.  House Democrats saw no real change, a 31.7 in 2007 and a 30.9 in 2009. 
 
The House overall average was a 56.7.

Meanwhile, legislators endorsed by Empower Texans PAC rated an 88.2. 
 
The Senate's average score rose from 38.8 in 2007 to 47.6 in 2009. Republicans in the upper chamber had an average 59.1 in 2009, compared to 48.4 in 2007. Meanwhile, the Democrats score in 2009 was a 29.6, compared to 21.4 in 2007.

Top Lawmakers
The highest-scoring member of the Texas Senate was Jane Nelson (R-Flower Mound). The top score in the House was shared by four member: Charles "Doc" Anderson (R-Waco), Wayne Christian (R-Center), Jodie Laubenberg (R-Rockwall) and Ken Paxton (R-McKinney).

There were 50 House members and four senators rating a "B" (80%) or better.

Failing Republicans?
Given the emphasis of the rating on limited government and low taxes, the most commonly asked question is, "Which Republicans rated below 70 percent?"

Only nine had that distinction in the Texas House. They are: Jim Jackson (R-Carrollton), Will Hartnett (R-Dallas), Todd Smith (R-Bedford), Vicki Truitt (R-Southlake), Dwayne Bohac (R-Houston), Tommy Merritt (R-Longview), Brian McCall (R-Plano), Susan King (R-Abilene) and Jim Pitts (R-Waxahachie).

Meanwhile, there were 13 Senate Republicans who rated less than 70%: Craig Estes (R-Wichita Falls), Robert Nichols (R-Jacksonville), Tommy Williams (R-The Woodlands), Steve Ogden (R-Bryan), Florence Shapiro (R-Plano), Chris Harris (R-Arlington), Bob Deuell (R-Greenville), Kel Seliger (R-Amarillo), John Carona (R-Dallas), Bob Duncan (R-Lubbock), Kevin Eltife (R-Tyler), Kip Averitt (R-Waco), and Jeff Wentworth (R-San Antonio).

Death By Committee
A very notable difference was in the rating changes in the Texas House leadership. State Rep. Joe Straus (R-San Antonio) took over the speakership earlier this year; his committee chairs scored below the House average overall. The House had a 56.8, but the Straus-appointed committee chairs had an average 54.1. In 2007, the House committee chairs had a 66.2 while the body overall had a 53.4.

A Note About The Senate
Rating the Texas Senate continues to be a difficult proposition. The rules and traditions of the Senate tend to obfuscate the members' views. The most famous of these is the "rose bush" rule, requiring two-thirds of the Senate to agree to an item moving to the floor for debate.

A disproportionate number of votes are taken by voice-vote, with all members deemed to have voted for it unless they register an opposing opinion. Texans should demand that their Senators remove the "blocker" rule and take more recorded votes.

For his part, Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst, president of the Senate, appointed committee chairs roughly in line with the philosophic bent of the body. The Senate average was a 47.69, while the committee chairs rate a 47.72.