From one day of news this week, democrat Bill White became a clearer picture as a political candidate. Read More»

In the April 13th run-off for the Texas Supreme Court, Place 3, the Empower Texans PAC is pleased to announce the endorsement of Rick Green. Read More»

Democratic gubernatorial candidate apparently knows as little about world history as about good economics. He's taking Texas Gov. Rick Perry to task for "Soviet-style" budget techniques. What technique is that? Well, budget cuts, of course. Read More»

Year after year school board elections are canceled because no local citizens choose to run against incumbents.

Some may argue that few run because overall the public is satisfied with the status quo but, that ignores the consistent complaints rendered often under the umbrella of “local control”. Read More»

Austin's new "commuter" train is starting two years late and way over budget, but promoters of bad public policy hope no one notices. That's the only explanation for the possible call of a $1 billion bond issue in November to fund another choo-choo train. Read More»

When times are tough, taxpayers are usually forced to take it on the chin (or wallet) while bureaucrats and government employees see their paychecks continue to grow. Not so in El Paso County, if Commissioner Dan Haggerty has his way. He's proposed a 5-percent across-the-board cut in salaries to fill a $10 million budget hole. Read More»

All across Texas citizens are calling for a renewed commitment to the 10th amendment and a reinvigorated adherence to the principle of Federalism and the doctrine of enumerated powers. Read More»

Most newspaper editorial boards have long attempted to take an above-it-all attitude to their opinion columns mostly out of a Read More»

I find it amusing that national, and some state, media members are playing the primary victory of Governor Rick Perry over Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison as a result of voter anger at Washington D.C. Read More»

Tuesday's primary elections went generally very well for conservatives. I'll touch on the key legislative races below, but it is worth noting that Gov. Rick Perry decisively won re-election by standing strongly for the right. His victory is a win for all Texans. Read More»

Check here all night for our updated analysis on the election returns. The polls close at 7 p.m. and reports won't begin until 15 to 30 minutes later. Read More»

Taxpayers won a big political victory this year. Thanks to tens of thousands of Texans, the chief advocate for irresponsible transportation policy in the Texas House was forced to go silent this election season on her own plan to hike taxes and fees -- despite her claim last year to make it a centerpiece of her re-election. (Update at end of piece.) Read More»

On March 2, 1836, sixty Texas leaders gathered at Washington-on-the-Brazos. There they crafted the Texas Declaration of Independence, separating from Mexico and creating an independent nation. Read More»

As the healthcare reform world turns we see another rendition to the ever evolving proposals from Washington. This time it comes from the White House in the form of the regulation of premium levels. Although premium levels are certainly a concern, addressing high premiums by regulating them is akin to telling a patient to stop bleeding instead of addressing the gash in his leg. Read More»

What to make of a GOP candidate who openly supported Barack Obama for president in 2008? Now, several Republican candidates this cycle admit to having voted in the 2008 Democratic Primary. They were engaging in the Rush Limbaugh-inspired "Operation Chaos" -- supporting Hillary Clinton to oppose Barack Obama and disrupt the Democratic Party. Read More»

As of last week Texans can take pride in a new select committee. Speaker Straus created the House Select Committee on Transportation to highlight the need for increased transparency and accountability in Texas transportation and to analyze current and future transportation funding requirements.

I dare say that Texas does not need a select committee to be reminded of the need for greater transparency and accountability in our transportation. Read More»

In the Liberty Institute candidate survey, HD84 candidate Mark Griffin separated himself from every Republican Party house candidate Read More»

On Feb. 24, 1836, after 24 hours of cannon bombardment, William Travis penned a letter from inside the Alamo addressed to all Texans and Americans. In it he, pledged to "never surrender or retreat." The Alamo fell to Santa Anna's forces on March 6, with Travis remaining true to his word. We re-print today his letter. Read More»

Democrat operatives continue to have high hopes for winning in House District 105. While contributors to the Texas Tribune and party insiders respectively speculate and fantasize about HD 105 slipping from the grasp of the GOP they avoid addressing the failed attempt in 2008 and the implications of that failure. Read More»

Despite the assertions of a liberal Austin American Statesman columnist, what has killed California has been their excessive spending, over-regulation and oppressive tax structure. Letting voters keep big spenders out of their wallets is what Texas needs to avoid following in the Golden State's downward economic spiral. Read More»

Attention Dallas area thieves, drug dealers and murderers: now through Sunday you will have ample opportunity to perform your crime of choice. Law enforcement officials in Dallas will be undergoing another revenue enhancement, i.e. Read More»

Earlier today Texas Gov. Rick Perry was on a radio show in Lubbock where he listed "raising the gas tax" as among the options lawmakers might consider when it comes to building roads. That's a very bad option, as Perry himself has said in recent months. What's more, it's an option that shouldn't be allowed in the room, let alone at the table. Read More»

Talk about putting your wallet where your mouth is. The city council of Grandview (pop. 1358) has turned down a half-million-dollar federal earmark secured by Democratic Rep. Chet Edwards, saying such earmarks represent ""irresponsible pork-barrel politics." Read More»

Some embattled Republicans are being labeled "too senior to fail" by the Austin Chronicle. In an article written about the power of seniority in the legislature the Chronicle muses over whether the party is best served by incumbents losing in the March primaries to challengers or if voters should ignore voting records and bail out the senior officials. Read More»

If there’s ever been a body willing to stand up for traditional Texas conservative values in the face of massive criticism, it’s been conservatives on the State Board of Education (SBOE). Sometimes they've not acted in the most clever or smooth manner but, stand up for traditional values they have. Read More»

So what does Republican gubernatorial candidate Debra Medina believe? We previously noted the unfortunate flap over the "truther" comments. More directly troubling to the job she is seeking is her campaign noting strong support for massive, unaccountable tax hikes and fee increases designed to fund more government boondoggle spending. Read More»

Our friends at TexasWatchdog.com note that two years ago Houston Independent School District voters approved a $90 million bond package to improve security. It shouldn't be a surprise in public education spending anymore, but apparently the people aren't getting what they voted for. Read More»

State Sen. Ogden’s re-election was endorsed today by the political action arm of Texans for Fiscal Responsibility, the Empower Texans PAC. Read More»

Polling indicates that Bill White, former Houston mayor and former deputy secretary of energy under Clinton, is leading the field for the Democratic nomination for governor. Republicans, conservatives, Tea Party activists, etc., listen up. Whatever happens in our own primary, it is vital that we remember who it is we're really fighting. Read More»

Texans have become increasingly sensitive to and concerned about government spending. Tracking and reporting frivolous expenditures is a void currently being filled by concerned citizens. Such a watchdog exists in Richardson where a small business owner has taken matters into his own hands writing on Just My Two Cents blog.

JMTC requests information from the city of Richardson and other entities subject to FOIA inquires and then relays his findings. In a recent post he highlights the spending of his city council on meals. Read More»

Beginning today, Texans can exercise their vote in the Republican and Democratic primaries -- voting early in person in advance of the March 2 election. While the headlines have been consumed by the important gubernatorial election, let us not neglect the equally important races further down our ballots. Read More»

Those seeking to impose higher gas taxes and fees have been dealt another blow. The Fort Worth Star Telegram and four other Texas dailies asked voters how the state should pay for more highway construction. TLOTA and raising the the gas tax, measures championed by Sen. John Carona and Rep. Vicki Truitt, received the lowest support. Read More»

On February 15, 1876, the people of Texas ratified our state constitution by a three to one margin. While considered cumbersome and over-amended, it has well-served the people of Texas. Read More»

An interesting story line some have tried to create in Texas’ gubernatorial race has been that Debra Medina is the “tea party” candidate, while Governor Rick Perry and U.S. Sen. Kay Hutchison are not, or worse. Certainly many have wanted that line to be true, and shouted it loudly. Read More»

In late January, the U.S. Senate voted to raise the United States’ debt ceiling to $14.3 trillion, or $45,000 for every man, woman, and child living in America. Our massive federal deficit levels should send up warning flares to all who are interested in the short- and long-term health of our nation’s economy. Read More»

You have to give State Rep. Todd Smith credit for saying what too many incumbents believe: some voters are just "too stupid to realize it" when doing what he knows is best for them. In this case, Smith was delaying to death legislation dealing with Voter ID. Worse, he refused to sign on to stronger legislation supported by 71 of 76 Republican House members. And his voters weren't happy about it. Read More»

Throughout the last session, State Rep. Vicki Truitt kept repeating the same line when confronted about her fiscally irresponsible bill to hike gas taxes and impose new fees, "I will fall on my sword over this." Well that must have been a blunt sword or she has recovered quickly from her wound because Truitt is backing away from her own legislation. Read More»

You know an election must be close when politicians start telling voters not to look at their records. Some incumbents hate it when voters get uppity and start getting educated and acting empowered. Earlier this week, the campaign consultant of choice for moderates and RINOs, called Empower Texans and Texans for Fiscal Responsibility “demonic” in an interview with the Fort Worth Star Telegram. Read More»

Railroad Commission Chairman Victor Carrillo was endorsed today by the state’s leading taxpayer advocacy organization’s political action arm for his ongoing work in driving agency efficiency and promoting sound energy policy. Read More»

Before you get carried away, I am not talking about the 2011 event that will determine how our state's electoral lines are drawn, though I am glad to have hooked some readers. No, I am issuing a cheer for the actions of the University Interscholastic League (UIL).

The UIL has just redrawn school district competition lines and the changes made will affect the most important line, the bottom line. Read More»

If these last few months have shown us anything, its that people are shouting out across the nation for servant leadership, not political management. Why? What's the difference? Read More»

Despite legislative efforts to allow for the creation of new sources of transportation financing, it is not at all clear that there is currently a lack of transportation funding in Texas. 
  Read More»

Proponents of higher taxes, less government accountability and no transparency gathered in Austin yesterday at the behest of their ally State Sen. John Carona. The cheerleading for bad policy and reckless economics lasted all day. Read More»

While I agree with Michael Sullivan that it was nice to hear Kay Bailey Hutchison on Friday push against the proposed gasoline tax hikes and other revenue grabs proposed by the proponents of boondoggles like light-rail. But her new oppositions to such porkbarrel spending stands in contrast to her senatorial record of pushing the grossly wasteful Amtrak on American taxpayers. Read More»

Today the Empower Texans PAC announced another round of legislative primary endorsements, adding to the 61 legislative races announced last week. Read More»

Clearly, everyone is convinced their candidate won the Friday night Belo debate of Republican gubernatorial candidates. Sure, whatever. In reality, there was one clear loser: the gas-tax lobby. Read More»

While State Rep. Todd Smith (R-Euless) has said it was Republicans who killed the recent legislative effort to require photo identification when voting, he is getting it partially right. He's a Republican (sort of), and he made sure it died. We offer here a timeline of his inaction. Read More»

Texas Workforce Commission Chairman Tom Pauken today released figures showing that Texas created more private sector jobs than any other state in the nation over the last 10 years and has the lowest unemployment rate among the 10 largest states in the nation.  Pauken cited the U.S. Read More»

The Empower Texans PAC is pleased to announce our first round of endorsements for primary elections. The PAC does not necessarily endorse in every race. This is not a final list of endorsements; other races are still being considered. Read More»

Texas has obviously not been immune from the effects of the global recession -- brought on in no small part by the sheer fiscal irresponsibility of Congress. But as Ray Perryman, the Waco economist noted recently, Texas is the "last in, first out" of the recession. Pretty good place to be in general, as Fortune, Forbes, the Economist and the Wall Street Journal all keep reporting. But that doesn't mean it's great for everyone, which is the bad news. Read More»

LUBBOCK – Candidate for the Republican nomination for Texas governor Debra Medina, in a Thursday appearance on radio show Pratt on Texas, refused to commit to support the Republican nominee for Texas governor if she is not the Party’s nominee. Medina hinted at there being other candidates on the November ballot she might support. Read More»

While the average voter may not remember the redistricting fights every 10 years, political insiders know what is at stake this next election: drawing the lines that will lead to a majority of one party or another in the state house. Read More»

In 2008 Democrat Carol Kent picked off incumbent Republican Tony Goolsby to win House District 102. This year there are two Republicans vying to retake that seat Geoff Bailey and Stefani Carter. On the campaign trail you can recognize Bailey pretty easily; he is the sporting a “I want to raise your gas tax!” bumper sticker -- and is proud of it. Read More»

In the third major political contest since Barak Obama took the oath of office, the people of Virginia, New Jersey and Massachusetts have rebuked the President. Two of the three states -- MA & NJ -- are blue, if not deep blue. Virginia, while electing a Democrat as US Senator (Webb) and Governor (Kaine) in recent elections, remains a culturally and politically conservative state. Read More»

Elected on the vacuous slogans of “hope” and “change,” the first year of Barack Obama’s presidency has proven to be one of broken promises, failed leadership and blame shifting. While he works to satisfy the most strident elements of his political base, the rest of America is reminded that it takes more than tele-prompted rhetoric to serve in the highest office of the land. Read More»

In the latest Rasmussen Poll, the Texas Republican Primary gubernatorial race is getting hotter than Laredo in the summer. The poll shows Gov. Rick Perry at 43%, Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison at 33%, and Debra Medina at 12%. Read More»

What is the concept of citizenship? And based on that, how do we understand immigration and the awful mess we've made of it? Read More»

This week Speaker Joe Straus created four select committees. All of these committees will to varying degrees be dealing with fiscal policy but two of the committees are chiefly focused on taxing, spending, and accountability. Read More»

Pratt on Texas listener David sends this today:

Pratt,

Heard KBH in last night’s debate negatively comparing Texas’ employment performance vs. its neighboring states. I updated the spreadsheet I sent earlier. Look at sheet 2 for a comparison of Texas to its neighbors (AR, LA, NM, OK). I used historical data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Read More»

While he hasn't been good on conservative issues in recent years, State Sen. Kip Averitt (R-Waco) is a gentleman who honorably served the people of Texas. His decision yesterday to end his re-election bid, citing unspecified health concerns, came as a surprise. All of us at Empower Texans wish him well, even while looking forward to his probable Republican successor, Darren Yancy of Burleson. Read More»

Earlier today Texas Governor Rick Perry announced his decision to refuse to apply for the federal “Race to the Top” grant program. The president of Texans for Fiscal Responsibility, Michael Quinn Sullivan, praised the course of action, saying it protects Texas’ children and taxpayers. Read More»

Why did Texas House Speaker Joe Straus hold up efforts to ask state agencies to control their spending and find ways to reduce outlays? Read More»

Looks like 2010 is shaping up to be a really bad year for Dallas State Rep. Terri Hodge, a rather typical Texas Democrat. Not the least of her problems is a March 8th trial on charges of bribery and corruption. Just six days earlier she faces a primary election. Oh, and the state's humane society is really ticked that she derailed legislation strengthening laws against cock fighting. Oh, and she's accused of falsifying documents when filing for office this month. Read More»

Three budget proposals promoted this week by Texas Gov. Rick Perry would substantially ensure a strong state economy for generations to come. Two of the three aren't new, either to Perry or voters, but Texans deserve to have the package implemented in the next legislative session. Read More»

For his responsible leadership in Collin County, Keith Self is being attacked for being too fiscally conservative. In these troubling economic times, it’s hard to imagine that that’s an effective criticism. Self is running for a second term at the helm of a county which is one of the most prosperous and growing in the nation, thanks in part to his even-handed leadership. His Republican primary challenger, meanwhile, apparently believes residents are not taxed enough. Read More»

Once again, the Kay Bailey Hutchison campaign has been called out by its own hometown newspaper for playing fast and loose with facts. Read More»

Austin restaurateur Marc Katz was finally able to toss his hat in the ring for lieutenant governor as a Democrat after being stymied months back by a complete lack of understanding about Texas election laws. He says his campaign "millions" from out-of-state relatives. We can only hope! Read More»

Austin Police Officers will have to abide by the "Texting While Driving" ban but not really. Police officers will be allowed to email (notice they use email not text) using semantics to avoid a law everyone else will be ticketed for come Friday.

KLBJ radio Austin reported yesterday that in 2009, there were 129 serious crashes in Austin that had cell phone usage as a factor. Interestingly some of the collisions involved Austin police officers. Read More»

In a devastating blow to proponents of higher local gasoline taxes and fees, U.S. Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison said yesterday that if elected governor in 2010 she won't consider those schemes until after transportation spending is fully audited. Her comments were made in Dallas, the epicenter of the big-gas-tax movement. Read More»

The year is winding down and the enemies of Liberty are winding up. I’m quite sad to report that in many parts of Texas, some of those enemies, knowing they are unlikely Read More»

Early this morning the United States’ Senate took a sad step in taking the nation down a dangerous and ruinous path. At stake is nothing less than the very health of our Republic and the security of our economy. Read More»

Big story out in the San Antonio Express-News reports: “If you play the lottery, you might not think it's a gamble to ask a store clerk to check your ticket. You might want to think again.” Read More»

Take cover! Borris Miles wants to be in the Texas House, again. The former, one-term Houston Democratic lawmaker is seeking to unseat State Rep. Al Edwards in the primary. The same Al Edwards who Miles beat in 2006, and was then beaten by in 2008. Let's hope Mr. Miles leaves his weapons at home. Read More»

The Texas Municipal League – a tax-financed lobby group that regularly seeks powers to expand the role and size of government – is finding that maybe they’ve stepped too far, as the Tyler Morning Telegraph and other papers beat them about the head and shoulders. TML recently came out against the state’s long-standing open meetings laws, which assign criminal penalties to those that would conduct government business behind closed doors. Read More»

Responding to news reports today that State Rep. Carl Isett of Lubbock will not be seeking re-election, the president of Empower Texans / Texans for Fiscal Responsibility said the state's taxpayers are losing a true champion in the Legislature.
  Read More»

I heard on the radio this morning that three unnamed Republicans voted with the Democrats in the Senate to end a filibuster on the Defense Appropriations bill which had 1,719 earmarks worth $7.6 billion. I automatically assumed that the two 'Republican' Senators from Maine, Snowe and Collins, voted to end the filibuster, but I was curious as to who the third one was. Read More»

Carole Strayhon wants to be Comptroller again, this time as a Democrat. But to say her political history is complicated is something of an understatement. She has run for everything from school board to governor, operating under three different political labels. Read More»

Don't get me wrong, I like Debra Medina. I want her to do well. But this whole "conspiracy against me" angle is getting old fast, especially since her campaign doesn't have any facts to substantiate the claims. For those who haven't been paying attention, dark-horse Republican candidate Medina has so far not been invited to the KERA-TV gubernatorial debate in Dallas; incumbent Rick Perry and prime challenger Kay Bailey Hutchison have been. Read More»

Despite the Dallas Morning News innuendo, everyone acknowledges congestion and mobility are serious issues confronting the state's long-term economic viability. The difference is found in how to solve it. The DMN and their friends in the pro-tax-and-waste crowd would have us believe higher taxes are the only way to go. To their chagrin, Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst is holding up a big stop sign. Read More»

Several news stories this week demonstrate that Farouk The-Quaker Shami is right at home with Democrats even though he’s a successful business entrepreneur. Read More»

The City of Austin is ending a rebate program subsidizing the installation of water efficient toilets in apartments and businesses. Similar to the city's push for solar panel installation, this potty initiative has overflowed the budget. Read More»

Get ready for Big Brother to ride with you wherever you go in your car. According to the Waco Tribune Herald, the Texas Transportation Commission is tasking the Highway User Fee Exploratory Commette to examine the possibility of taxing us Texans not by how much gas we use, but by how many miles we drive. Read More»

Houston haircare billionaire Farouk Shami is focusing on one issue at this early point in his Democrat gubernatorial bid; jobs. This focus is fine, Texas does need more jobs, but the path Shami wants to take will not lead to job creation but job destruction.
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While Texas remains one of the few bright spots in an otherwise bleak national economy, our federal government is on an unfettered march toward attempting to solve the problems our nation faces -- real or perceived -- by evoking the failed socialist policies of the past.
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A story in the Austin American-Statesman began with these words: “There are beauty procedures about which Texas law is perfectly clear. People must be licensed by the state Read More»

So the tax-hike proponents at the Dallas Morning News are once again pushing the false choice between higher taxes or no new roads, after word hit their newsroom that only 15 percent of American voters support higher gasoline taxes. Read More»

The Lubbock newspaper has reported that democrat state rep. Joe Heflin is going to have a Republican opponent. This is hardly news since David Andrews of Jones County has openly been running for some time. What may be news is who else gets in the GOP race for the seat long occupied by Pete “Pay-in-Cash” Laney. Read More»

A new national poll from Rasmussen finds what many of us have known instinctively and seen anecdotally: Republicans won’t win by running to the center-left, as liberal media pundits often suggest.

Doing so is the fastest way to lose. Read More»

With an abundance of transportation contractors and the poor overall health of the global economy, Texas is in a good position to pick up some needed infrastructure on the cheap. Read More»

With the world's busybodies meeting in Copenhagen, it's apparent they are a band of ideologues with a solution looking for a problem to which it can be applied. Establishment "science" is a tool of their brand of religion, facts contorted and distorted to fit the outcome which best demands their solution. Read More»

It’s not enough that Republican lawmakers Vicki Truitt of Southlake and John Carona of Dallas want to hike gasoline taxes and vehicle fees. Now the Obama Administration’s token Republican, Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood, wants the federal gasoline tax raised, too. Ready to pay up? Read More»

Voters: Election A Win-Win For Texas

AUSTIN, Texas – In a poll conducted by Wilson Research Strategies on behalf of Empower Texans, 65 percent of Republican primary voters say they consider re-electing Rick Perry as governor a double-win: Perry keeps working successful in Austin and Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison continues her fight in Washington. Read More»

Today the Empower Texans PAC, the political action committee affiliated with Empower Texans / Texans for Fiscal Responsibility, announced that Gov. Rick Perry has earned its endorsement in the Republican primary gubernatorial race. Read More»

That Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison is blanketing Texas with advertisements to convince GOP voters that she is a conservative, says more than do her commercials. Read More»

AUSTIN, Texas – A poll conducted by Wilson Research Strategies on behalf of Empower Texans finds 69 percent of Republican primary voters want U.S. Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison to stay in the Senate and fight the policies and programs being advocated by President Obama and the congressional leadership. Read More»

While we celebrate recent data showing that Texas’ unemployment number is two-points lower than the national average and that Texas lead the nation in job creation last month, we must be aware that our better-than-others performance is not simply happenstance. Read More»

With the national unemployment average now at a 26-year-high of 10.2 percent, Texas is doing much, much better. Not only is the state’s unemployment two-points lower (8.3 percent), but lead the nation in job creation last month. Read More»

John Carona and Hank Gilbert hail from different political parties, but they have the same view on transportation: raise those taxes. They want more of our money. Read More»

Whether you like it or not, your local tax dollars are subsidizing an effort to effectively gut the state's open meetings laws. The Texas Municipal League, which is funded by local governments using the taxpayers' dollars, is working vigorously to gut laws that have given Texans access to local government. Read More»

Friday, we were finally witness to an actual decision from Senator Hutchison in which she said that she would not resign from the Senate until after the Republican Primary election. The announcement immediately followed this headline: In Texas GOP Showdown, Perry Leads Hutchison 46% to 35% - that from a new Rasmussen poll. Read More»

Governor Perry's speech in Midland yesterday is being widely reported with some of the stories focused on the Governor's comments pertaining to illegal immigrantion. The real import of the speech is the Governor's use of the "S" word to describe the Obama Administration. Read More»

A hot topic of discussion on Empower Texans lately has been the potential threat of rising state gasoline taxes. Clearly there have been revenue shortfalls due to the recession, but is this the only reason? Read More»

A Dallas Morning News story about the GOP race for Texas governor included this: “…Rep. Mike Conaway, R-Midland, isn't taking sides in the governor's race but he's unhappy about the way Perry has indiscriminately bashed Washington insiders.” Read More»

Texas Tribune is reporting that the education commissioner has found a way to increase the number of charter schools. That's great news for kids, even if the teacher unions and state Democratic party are up in arms. Read More»

When State Rep. Chuck Hopson switched from the Democratic to Republican party, the partisan balance for the GOP in the Texas House has improved. But does his switch mean an improved voting record? Apparently not. Indeed, it seems centered more on his own political convenience than any sense of conservative conscience. Read More»

Some may wonder if oft-heard criticism of the education establishment, and its tendency to almost universally lean left-wing liberal, is new. Read More»

After failing to push a gas tax and fee increase through last legislative session Tarrant County officials are foolishly pushing for an even larger tax and fee package. Read More»

Less than 12 hours after posting "Et Tu, Straus?" the aforementioned Republican House Speaker Straus' office called to say that he didn't mean what he said -- or what the news media reported he said -- about being open to the indexing of gasoline taxes. He's just open to it being on the table. Read More»

Texas' Republican House Speaker Joe Straus has said he is "open" to raising gasoline taxes. While everyone is concerned about the problems with transportation in Texas, it seems Mr. Straus (R-San Antonio) can only envision them being addressed first with higher taxes. Read More»

Oh, now, come on, people! Read More»

The results of Texas’ constitutional election yesterday indicate Texans are tired of business as usual when it comes to our property tax system. Read More»

Only 8% of the state's 12.9 million registered voters took part in the constitutional ballot election. That's not a healthy sign, given how important those amendments are. It's shocking that 92% of the registered voters didn't have an opinion on property tax reform, eminent domain abuse or new funding schemes for public universities. Read More»

As Republicans are taking over the State governments of Virginia and New Jersey, many Texas Democrats are leaving their party and joining the Republican Party. Read More»

Less than a year ago, President Obama's "hope and change" refrain train hit Washington to fanfare probably not experienced since VE-Day. There's no point parsing every word, analyzing every speech, and interpreting every nuance that lead to his overwhelming victory. Read More»

The Obama Administration is touting the jobs "saved or created" because of the $787 billion stimulus plan passed earlier this year. One independent assessment of the total is 650,000; the White House puts the number closer to one million. Read More»

The Congressional Budget Office has tagged the recently-announced Pelosi health care nationalization plan at a little over $1 trillion. Given the history of inaccurate scoring of the long-term government health care costs, the Pelosi Plan (if passed) could be closer to $2 trillion over the next ten years, according to the Wall Street Journal. Read More»

Texas commissioner of higher education, Raymund Parades, wrote a commentary published by the Austin American Statesman in which he extolled President Obama’s speech at Texas A&M and its focus upon “community service” Read More»

There is a fair amount of angst regarding Prop 11, designed to address the very real problems presented by the U.S. Supreme Court's Kelo v New London decision. In that case, the Supreme Court eviscerated our property rights by allowing local government to take one person's property and give it to another in the name of economic development or tax revenue growth. The only exception is if the particular state where the action occurs prohibits such takings. Texas currently does not. Read More»

The story begins with: “Texas is one of several states that have set a low bar for determining whether their students are proficient in math and reading, according to a new study from the federal government’s National Center for Education Statistics.”
Read More»

Today, two news reports should -- but won't -- give proponents of the health care nationalization plan serious pause about what they are intent on doing. Read More»

Potter County officials may have spent too much time researching the object of their latest desire. Exposure to heavy fumes is the only way one can reasonably explain the purchase of $450 per gallon paint. Read More»

It is one thing for legislators to get an award they've earned -- such as the Taxpayer Champion and Advocate Awards we present to those working to protect our economy. But it's more than a little unseemly when a group created, and funded, by government is handing out awards to a legislator who seemed to buy the honors with our money. Read More»

The news in the past 24 hours highlights the contradictions unfolding in the debate over the nationalization of health care. Read More»

Just how out of touch must one be to advocate a 50-percent hike in gasoline taxes in the midst of the worst recession in 60 years? And just how ridiculous is it to suggest that a tax hike is "the only near-term answer" to solving a government problem? One might ask State Sen. John Carona of Dallas, who is making those cases. Read More»

One of the loudest arguments we're hearing in favor of Proposition 4 is that if the state of Texas has more Tier One research universities, the quality of higher education will improve. Read More»

"A Houston Chronicle review of the federal government's distribution of $787 billion in economic stimulus money approved by Congress found that the highly touted Web site designed to let the public know how much of their tax money is going to their home congressional districts is misleading and statistically unreliable," reports the Houston Chronicle. Read More»

In a recent op-ed (Statesman, October 14, 2009), Senator John Cornyn pointed to the most egregious subterfuge in the debate over the nationalization of health care. Sen. Cornyn wrote: "The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office said it will cost $829 billion, but when it's fully implemented, the Senate Budget Committee estimates the real cost to be $1.8 trillion." Read More»

Just received the new "Fiscal Notes" from the Texas Comptroller, which is this month highlighting the growth of small business in Texas. The number of self-employed Texans rose 2 percent last year, while self-employed Americans overall dropped 2 percent. Read More»

Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst went on the offensive today, defending in the Austin American Statesman the budget crafted by lawmakers this year from attacks that it was balanced only with the help of federal stimulus dollars. Read More»

It’s Texas constitutional amendment election time and there has been much talk about all but the most objectionable amendment: Proposition 1, which reads: Read More»

Lots of emails are popping up around the state making ludicrous charges about the propositions on the Texas constitutional amendment election. Apparently some hope it's easier to peddle irrational fear than be bothered with reality. Facts are pesky things, and the facts are that taxpayers have a lot to gain by three of the amendments -- which might explain who is behind the misinformation campaign. Read More»

An Austin American-Statesman story documented an interesting lawsuit being filed by Texas local government officials against Attorney General Greg Abbott and the state. The suit will allege that the state open meetings law violates elected officials' free speech rights by prohibiting them from having discussions when they are not in session. Read More»

The Austin American Statesman endorsed the Baucus health care plan passed out the Senate Finance Committee earlier this week by a 14-9 vote. No news there. However, the Statesman leans on the rickety sawhorse that a federally-mandated health plan will fix the "broken and financially unsustainable [system] for consumers and businesses." This cannot be. Read More»

We encourage all Texans to participate in the constitutional election of November 3. Early voting beings Monday, with 11 propositions for voters to consider. Read More»

The purpose of Proposition 7 is simply to conform the Texas Constitution to the current structure of the Texas Military Forces: the Texas Army National Guard, the Texas Air National Guard and the Texas State Guard. Read More»

A headline in the Beaumont Enterprise caused my Liberty alarm bells to ring and clearly it was the word “order” that immediately drew my attention. It read: Jefferson County orders rural addresses displayed. Read More»

There has been a lot of misleading information going around via email on Props 2 and 3, which deal with property taxes, and that information is extremely damaging to the efforts to fix our property appraisal system in the state of Texas.


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Not surprisingly, the Fort Worth Star Telegram editorial board is offering poor advice to taxpayers.

We at Texans for Fiscal Responsibility are going to be recommending that voters support propositions 2, 3 and 5 while keeping in mind they are temporary and incomplete solutions to the ultimate problem, our property tax system. Texas’ property tax system is a complex and costly taxing mechanism and we would all be well served to move away from it as a source of funding. Read More»

There have been dozens of stories over the past two weeks about Governor Perry’s decision to shake up the state forensic science commission right before it was to begin an investigation into arson evidence used in a trial in which a man was convicted, and eventually put to death. Read More»

A column by Leo McKinstry in the in the Daily Express begins with this paragraph: “Britain continues its descent into a socialist hell, devoid of any justice or morality. We now live in a sub-Marxist world where the ultra-politicised institutions of the State wield arbitrary power, bullying the decent members of the public while dangerous criminals walk free.” Read More»

Lots of questions, and a slew of liberal-media-powered rumors, have revived the "what will KBH do and when?" meme that enjoys far too much attention these days. Read More»

Proposition 2 on Texas' Nov. 3 constitutional amendment election requires that a home be appraised as a home, and not whatever else it could be. While it doesn't solve all of our property tax problems, it does provide taxpayers with a little more, much needed, protection. Read More»

It’s not good enough to this Democrat administration that Texas administers generous welfare programs. No, Obama’s agriculture department is on the attack against Texas because we don’t put people on the food stamp dole fast enough. Read More»

In an appearance in San Marcos Friday, former U.S. Transportation Secretary Mary Peters said that she favors a VMT, or vehicle miles tax to replace the gasoline tax. “The technology exists for it,” Peters said. Read More»

Our friends over at the Texas Association of Business this week released their scorecard for the legislative session. It's interesting to compare the best and the worst between their business-oriented list to TFR's Fiscal Responsibility Index. It shouldn't come as any surprise that those who are bad on economic policy tend to be really bad for business. Read More»

Texans will soon be asked to transfer money from Texas’ Permanent Higher Education Fund to a new National Research University Fund. But voters should reject this constitutional amendment, Proposition 4, and reject the transfer of money. If anything, we should demand that lawmakers instead transfer a fair share of these funds to other colleges and universities throughout Texas. Read More»

Dr. Rosemary Edwards, chairman of the Travis County Republican Party, has an op-ed in today's Austin American-Statesman that you might find interesting, concerning the city's recent mandate on GreenChoice energy. Read More»

Because of a backlog on processing foodstamp applications, the Legislative Budget Board (LBB) recently "approved hiring up to 250 of the 650 workers and directed the commission to immediately fill 400 vacant jobs." Well enough. It's too much for now to go into whys and hows the Health and Human Services Commission inched its way into this problem. Read More»

I've held back on this because I wanted to give readers a chance to read the initial analysis of Proposition 4. There are a lot of arguments out there in favor of it (the Fort Worth Star-Telegram has their endorsement here). Read More»

There are 11 state constitutional amendments on the November 3 ballot. Early voting begins on Monday, October 19. If you are voting by mail (absentee voting), the last day to submit your mail-in ballot is Tuesday, October 27. Read More»

It's hard to believe just how out-of-control the federal "International Boundary and Water Commission" is, if whistle-blower accounts and media reports are to believed. It's apparent the commission had very little oversight and too much power. Read More»

Regarding the ruling by a Dallas judge that Texas’ definition of marriage is unconstitutional, a listener wrote, “I must say that civil unions between two consenting adults (male or female, whatever combination as long as the number is two) SHOULD be legal in Texas. That IS equal protection. Our country, Texas included, needs to get away from this "marriage" thing - that should be up to churches to decide, marriage is a religious thing. I thought we had separation of church and state?” Read More»

It was 174 years ago, on Oct. 2, 1835, that the first battle in Texas’ war of independence was fought in Gonzales, appropriately over the possession of a cannon. Read More»

Texting while driving is an issue that has been in the spotlight over the last half-year and increasingly state legislatures, including Texas', are planing on doing what they do best: try and legislate the problem away. In this case that may not be necessary and in fact detrimental. Read More»

One year ago today the U.S. Senate passed the $700 billion bank bail-out. Nearly a trillion dollars, snatched essentially from pockets of future generations, gave the federal government unprecedented access into the marketplace. Read More»

On whichever side of the Rick vs. Kay (or is it Kay vs. Rick?) divide you stand, it's Texas' taxpayers who may benefit most from the jousting. Both have strongly endorsed, indeed made centerpieces of, taxpayer protection and relief. Read More»

There are many who still believe U.S. Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison will again bailout of the race for Texas governor as she did four years ago. The question has been: How does she do so while saving face, or more importantly, while maintaining a big political ego? Read More»

Monday, Sept. 28, is the last day in which U.S. Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison can resign her seat and the special election to fill the vacancy be held in conjunction with the Nov. 3 constitutional amendment election. Should she resign today? Take The Survey And Read More»

The righteous perish, and no one ponders it in his heart; devout men are taken away, and no one understands that the righteous are taken away to be spared from evil. Those who walk uprightly enter into peace; they find rest as they lie in death. - Isaiah 57:1-2 Read More»

Texas Politics, from the Houston Chronicle, reported that ultra-lib state senator Eliot Shapleigh of El Paso has authored a paperback book in which he points out “what he sees as dire consequences facing Texans.” Read More»

A true fiscal conservative protects the taxpayers even when it will raise the ire of those around them. Comptroller Susan Combs inherited a structurally-flawed college program known as the Texas Tomorrow Fund. Read More»

In an effort to keep up with city improvements without growing Austin's budget city manager Marc Ott is employing a new cost sharing technique.  Ott is hoping to match willing residents, non-profit groups and businesses with the city to fund tasks like putting in speed humps and repainting bike lane stripes. Read More»

As Chairman of the Texas Workforce Commission, I deal on a weekly and monthly basis with state and national unemployment figures. The national jobless rate of 9.7 percent is the highest since 1983, and the current economic environment has a more worrisome feel to it than the recession back then. Read More»

Two points on maintaining credibility with the public. First, let's turn to Texas self-anointed conservative commentator Gary Polland of Houston. Read More»

While it seems like these tough fiscal times aren't news anymore, how taxing entities deal with them should be. The Metroplex suburb of Carrollton's city council recently demonstrated fiscal responsibility by attacking revenue shortfalls through spending restraint instead of tax hikes. Read More»

Real action in 2010 might not be the gubernatorial race, but control of the Texas House. At stake: who draws the maps after the 2010 census, when Texas is expected to pick-up 3 or more congressional seats. Read More»

Plano Independent School District is taking taxpayers for a ride with a decked-out Winnebago. Administrators are calling it a mobile "how to be a better parent" classroom. For the rest of us, it is emblematic of the wasteful spending and mission distraction so common in public education. Read More»

According to economic forecasting firm IHS Global Insight, Texas will likely lead the nation's economic recovery. The firm predicts that by 2010 Austin and San Antonio will be back at their pre-recession job levels and by 2011 Dallas/Ft. Worth and Houston will be back to their pre-recession job levels. Read More»

Have you noticed the fact that when new overpasses are constructed today that they are painted? Read More»

New Video: Before a crowd of a thousand voters in Frisco, Collin County, Texas, the president of Texans for Fiscal Responsibility awarded State Reps. Ken Paxton and Jodie Laubenberg the Taxpayer Champion Awards. Read More»

In exchange for higher taxes and worse budget pressures, Texas could expect to continue to find high numbers of uninsured people, if President Obama gets his health care "reform." My friend Arlene Wohlgemuth, an expert in health care policy and a former state representative, reports that the proposal would cost every Texan a staggering $4,265 per year. Read More»

Last week Governor Perry announced the deployment of special teams of Texas Rangers to our border with Mexico to deal with increasing violence. Perry said it was necessary, in part, because the federal government has failed to address growing problems there, the AP reported. Read More»

A special election to replace incumbent U.S. Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison could cost Texas taxpayers up to $30 million, the Secretary of State’s office estimates in an informational letter requested by Texans for Fiscal Responsibility. The organization’s president called on Hutchison to factor this cost into her decision to resign. Read More»

Last night Barak Obama gave yet another speech outlining a broad health care reform package. Although he promised to give details and provide insights into his plan he did not.

To contrast such a lack of clear leadership one need look no further than the conservative leaders of our Texas legislature. Read More»

For us Texans the recent phenomenon of selling our major highways to the highest bidders has caused an unsettling effect. We've seen the ectasy of significant funds coming to the State Treasury with "little or no" downside? Read More»

The Fort Worth City Council is looking for ways to save money because of projected revenue shrinkage caused by the current recession. Read More»

Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst has announced his desire to seek a third term as lieutenant governor. It's way too early to engage in such endorsements. After all, he might just want to be a senator. But that, of course, hinges on what our state's senior senator does, or doesn't do, in the weeks ahead. Read More»

There was a big story this weekend in the Houston Chronicle and San Antonio Express-News about how food stamp applications are overwhelming state workers. The lead sentence claimed that state employees are “frustrated and stressed out with inadequate staffing.” Read More»

Just got back from an interesting and educational gathering of the Collin County Tea Party. I'm no good at estimating crowds but it was substantial and people were still arriving as we were leaving. I was impressed with the organization of the morning and despite the summer-like heat, the attentiviness of the crowd. Read More»

According to the Fort Worth Star Telegram, the City of Arlington is facing a $13 million budget shortfall due to falling property and sales tax revenue caused by the recession. The City, however, is expected to balance its budget this year by withdrawing $1.5 million from its reserves and maintaining $3 million in job vacancies. Read More»

The city of Denton has unveiled its 2009-2010 budget, which while not raises taxes does cut back services while contuining to spend big on taxpayer-funded lobbyists. Read More»

There was a story last week in the state press about how school districts are now competing over who has the fanciest video scoreboards at athletic facilities. I know, we’re supposed to believe that public schools are really hurting for the money they need to provide such basics as teachers. Read More»

As the City of Dallas finalizes their budget, they should listen to their paper’s editorial board, or look to their neighbors. The Dallas Morning News is telling the city council “this is no time for a tax increase.” Meanwhile, Collin County, just north of Dallas, is dealing with the bad economy by offering a tax decrease. Read More»

Last week we pointed out how despite massive increases in public education funding over the last decade, academic results have remained flat. Joining in the chorus of voices questioning extravagant school spending is the Fort Worth Star Telegram. Their editorial board today stated that despite cries of fiscal starvation from schools, “they still look fat and happy.” Read More»

Don't think election's matter? Try this next one on for your current tax burden. Because of the stimulus dollars handed down from Washington earlier in the year dealing with the federally-mandated Medicaid program, Texas will be facing a multi-billion dollar hole in the 2012-13 budget. How it is solved with depend upon whom we elect to office in 2010. Read More»

Just how tone-deaf city employees are has been revealed in Lubbock. The city manager is trying to get across-the-board pay raises. With unemployment higher than any time since the depression, everyone struggling, and the economy in the dumps, the sheer hubris of such an effort is beyond belief. Read More»

A group called Texans Care for Children is out with typical claims of how Texas children are suffering due to now high unemployment. (I seem to remember the same claim when Texas was at full employment the past few years in regard to CHIP.) Read More»

Texas' public education spending continues to inspire little confidence, with reports today that the SAT scores remain flat to declining even though fewer kids took the test in 2009. The Fort Worth Star Telegram reports Texas' kids scored just one point better on the math portion of the test, while the reading and writing sections dropped by as much as five points. For this we have increased the amount of money flowing to the bureaucracy by 113 percent since 1998? Read More»

Taxpayer-funded lobbying is perhaps the most egregious activity in which local governments engage. The City of Denton, for example, is paying a lobby firm $80,000 a year to keep fighting against their taxpayers' interests. Read More»

Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison took a direct aim at the state's business tax today in Dallas as part of her gubernatorial campaign announcement tour. That's welcome news to those of us who fought against it from the beginning. She described it as "a tragic mistake." Read More»

With the city of San Antonio facing declines in revenue due to both faltering home valuations and lower sales tax collection city manager Sheryl Sculley is making key decisions to bring her budget into balance. Read More»

These difficult economic times have inspired serious soul searching on the part of policy makers. In the quest for the right formula for economic prosperity, analysts have been increasingly drawn to a comparison between two of the largest American states: Texas and California. While these two states share much in common, their policies could not be more different. After thirty years of divergent views, the analysts agree: Texas has chosen the better path. Read More»

It's almost impossible to read the national news without seeing the economic calamity befalling our sister states. They just cannot seem to get it right. Read More»

In a story commemorating the death of former Texas congressman Mickey Leland in a 1989 plane crash, the Houston Chronicle reporter demonstrates the brainwashed mentality of many in the press.

The reporter wrote: Read More»

An editorial from the Austin American-Statesman, posits the idea that we should pay children a wage to study for school. The proponent of this idea is one Bruce Todd, a former mayor of Austin, who is running a project called the Tuition Incentive Program. Read More»

Congressman Lloyd Doggett will be holding an event on Saturday morning August 8th at the Rundberg Health Center, 825 E. Rundberg Lane at 11:15 AM to talk about Obamacare. Maybe this time the event will actually be organized. Hopefully he'll have a microphone so he can't accuse his constituents (the mob) of shouting him down. Read More»

This afternoon I received a letter from Sen. Jeff Wentworth regarding his bill, SB 690, to raise the signature requirements from 5% to 10% for Texas Home-Rule City Charter Amendments.

Sen. Wentworth introduced SB 690 because the real estate developer community wants to preserve the billions of dollars in taxpayer subsidies it is currently leaching off of taxpayers in cities around Texas. Read More»

On Sunday August 9th there will be a pro-Obamacare event at the South steps of the Texas Capitol sponsored by President Obama's "Astroturf" arm, Organizing for America. All Texans in the Austin area who care about fiscal responsibility and freedom should show up to respectfully and politely counter protest. Read More»

The Austin American Statesman is reporting today that Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison will vote against providing more funds for the "cash for clunkers" program. Senator Hutchison said that, "we don’t even have a report on how much has been spent on this program, nor reliable estimates of future requirements. Read More»

If you wonder if your new dentist is a quack, don't count on information from the Texas State Board of Dental Examiners to know. Which begs the question: if government can't handle the portions of health care it already oversees, why do we want them to do more. Read More»

Was it financial gimmicks or sound thinking that helped the 81st Legislature balance the state's budget in a strenuous economic climate? A little of the first, a dash of the second, with a generous helping of previously made correct decisions to control the size of state government. But changes need to be made to protect Texas' designated funds from flowing into general revenue. Read More»

After posting a rebuttal to Sen. Hutchison’s claim Texas should have taken mandate-heavy stimulus money, her campaign asked if we’d post a response, designed to expound on her points and explain her position. I happily agreed. What was submitted follows here; you’ll see that her camp continues to avoid actually explaining her position. Read More»

The Houston Community College proposes a maximum of $2,000,000 worth of benefit to the Spring Branch Independent School Dsistrict, while at the same time taxing the residence of SBISD $15,000,000 each year. Read More»

Regardless of the rewrites attempted by Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison's unannounced gubernatorial campaign, Texas Gov. Rick Perry and the conservatives in the Legislature were right to stop the string-laden "stimulus" dollars from entering Texas' unemployment fund. After having voted against the stimulus package in DC, Hutchison now says Texas should have taken those costly dollars. Read More»

Why is it even a question as to whether or not illegal aliens (or undocumented immigrants or whatever we're supposed to call them) should get in-state tuition? They aren't in the state legally, so why should taxpayers subsidize tuition? And federal law says the states cannot provide illegals with in-state tuition. Read More»

How much does your transit authority cost you? Rail may seem affordable to the citizens of a transit district until they read about transit's annual cost per household. Read More»

As a percentage of Texas population, the Census Bureau is reporting this week that voter turnout dropped in '08 from '04. Contrary to popular belief, the youth vote went down the "senior citizen" vote went up. Not reported in the press, but clearly visible, are the missing conservative voters. Read More»

In an address on reforming public education at the National Conference for State Legislatures in Philadelphia this morning, Microsoft billionaire Bill Gates said the nation has been in an "education crisis for decades." Read More»

New Video: With $1.4 million in the bank, State Sen. Kirk watson is clearly is hoping someone will ask him to run statewide, but it's hard to think of what he's actually done besides raise money. Read More»

Every county in Texas should have a Keith Self. He's the county judge, the chief administrator, for Collin County -- and he is a leading advocate for budget transparency, fiscal responsibility and taxpayer protection.

Judge Self announced today that he is taking transparency to a new level in county politics by publishing all campaign donations on his web site. Read More»

The strangle-hold monopoly public schools have on kids becomes a death-grip when failing institutions are allowed to continue performing academic malpractice. It's disgusting. Read More»

When considering the top legislators working to protect taxpayers and promote conservative principles, every list inevitably includes Jodie Laubenberg of Parker. Since arriving in the Texas House in January 2003, she has consistently worked to advance free market principles. Read More»

Talk about gaining the big mo. We see the new University of Texas poll shows Governor Rick Perry leading Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison by 12 points. Just a few months ago, Hutchison had a poll bragging about her double-digit lead. Read More»

Texas' economic position keeps getting better, if for no other reason than the antics of the other 49 states. Perhaps one of the best economic development tools Texas has right now is the phrase, "We're not California." Read More»

One state legislator wants to force some companies to let some Texans skip out on their bills, but I wonder if he’d let us skip out on our taxes as well?

Having a roof over my family's head is a necessity, so should there be a moratorium on paying property taxes? After all, if I don't pay my property taxes, local government can have us kicked out! Read More»

Each Independence Day I think of my ancestor Benjamin Rush, a signer of the Declaration of Independence. Two centuries and numerous generations later, I take great inspiration from what he and his colleagues committed to in the summer of 1776.

Just imagine how different the world would be had they not approached independence with a passionate commitment to liberty! Read More»

Falling on her sword, Vicki Truitt is calling it quits…for the time being. At the conclusion of the Legislative session three weeks ago State Rep. Vicki Truitt left Austin vowing to come back pushing for higher taxes in the form of increased gas taxes and vehicle fees. Read More»

Congress is set to vote on "Cap and Trade" legislation that many Texas officials are rightly speaking out against. It will cap Texas' growth and trade away our prosperity. Read More»

New Video: Texas' best lawmakers based on rating from the 2009 Fiscal Responsibility Index. Read More»

The president of Texans for Fiscal Responsibility said Gov. Rick Perry correctly wielded his pen this legislative session on the state budget. The governor used his line-item veto authority to cut $288.9 million from the budget, of which $97.2 million came from general revenue spending.
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Popular wit has us believe there usually isn't much difference between candidates. It's sometimes true, but not too often. That became apparent this week as we took at look at the voting records of freshmen legislators compared to the lawmakers they replaced. The impact is striking. Read More»

In the case of legislation pending before Gov. Rick Perry, too many friends seem to be fighting a proxy battle on the wrong turf. At issue is whether local schools should be allowed to use dollars allocated for textbooks to purchase electronic texts. Not required, just allowed. The legislation is HB 4294 by State Rep. Dan Branch and some want it vetoed. That's just not productive. Read More»

Well, that didn't take long. The pro-tax team and their media shills at the Dallas Morning News to lay fault for defeat of their tax-and-fee at the feet of pesky taxpayers who didn't line-up in support. Read More»

The Texas Monthly Best & Worst lists are little more than a front for a left-wing ideological agendas. Remember who chooses the Best and Worst: liberal reporters anchored by editor Paul Burka. One of his lead writers, Patricia Kilday Hart, even wrote that the ten-best slots were open for anyone pushing liberal causes. Read More»

Texans for Fiscal Responsibility released its final ratings today for members of the 81st Texas Legislature. TFR President Michael Quinn Sullivan says that while the partisan gap narrowed, the ratings of individual House and Senate members show a more fiscally conservative direction. Read More»

Hide your wallet, change the locks on the doors and make sure you know where your kids are; the Legislature will be meeting in a special session this summer. What's so special about it? Looks like just another opportunity for mischief. Read More»

Arguing that the Metroplex and other high volume traffic areas do not need answers, and quickly, to major transportation quandaries is an untenable position. Equally untenable is simply hiking taxes and fees on families to fund the same bureaucracies already wasting much of every dollar they are given. Read More»

Fort Worth and Dallas are just 30 miles apart, but the attitudes on the opinion pages of the two daily papers might as well be from different planets. Both papers strongly supported the gas tax hike and fee increase plans pushed by government-financed lobbyists. TFR and other groups successfully defeating the measure on the merits, so today's editorial pages are very revealing. Read More»

Ever notice political "courage" is defined only as raising taxes and padding the pockets of special interests? It's apparently cowardice to actually demand responsibility and integrity, to make hard choices rather than pave problems with patronage. That's how Republican State Sen. John Carona of Dallas is defining things. Read More»

New Video: With the end of 81st legislative session, we asked conservative legislators what questions voters should be asking. Read More»

It appears that the members of the Legislature have heard will of the overwhelming number of Texans who understand that now is not the time to impose new taxes and fees on Texas' economy. Texans clearly want the Legislature to address Texas' transportation woes by ending diversions and better prioritization. Read More»

What does it cost to get legislators to betray their taxpayers and hike taxes in an economic downturn? Just ask the lobbyists at HillCo, who seem to have made about $17,800 per legislator voting against Texans. Read More»

In a blog posting this afternoon, Dallas Morning News editorial writer Rodger Jones admits his position in support of heavy increases on gasoline and new motor vehicle fees isn't friendly to taxpayers. His admission came in a posting cheering on the pro-tax rally (no doubted funded by taxpayer dollars) that will be attended by Dallas' mayor at the Capitol on Friday. Read More»

Most conservatives have in recent years come to suspect that Texas Monthly’s “Ten Best” legislators list is little more than a compilation of the biggest shills for big government. Now comes proof. In a May 26 posting on the “BurkaBlog,” Texas Monthly writer Patricia Kilday Hart unabashedly advocated for the expansion of the “Children's Health Insurance Program” and other far-left causes, then suggested supporting such measures would get legislators on the ten-best list. Read More»

While House Democrats have been busily chubbing up the Calendar, the Texas Senate was preparing a sneak-attack on the taxpayers' wallets. State Sen. John Carona (R-Dallas) has tacked his Senate Bill 855 -- allowing the imposition of new gas taxes and fees -- onto the TxDOT re-authorization bill, House Bill 300. The bill, including the new taxes and fees, passed the Senate Monday night. Read More»

Conservatives tend to think local government is better because it is, well, local. But is that a reasonable assumption, if the Local spending is hidden from view and bureaucrats don't accurately report results? Read More»

Anyone who thinks lawmakers don't move to fix unintended problems in legislative initiatives should see what State Rep. Jerry Madden of Plano did. He took what could have accidentially been a joke on the taxpayers, and fixed it to become a cost-saving initiative good for everyone. Read More»

If the Austin American-Statesman is to be believed, "votes are not there in the House" to push the 125% tax hike. That's a direct result of the effective pressure folks have been applying! But don't get too cocky: the measure lives... Read More»

Leading the push for higher gas taxes is State Rep. Vicki Truitt (R-Southlake). Last fall she wrote her constituents decrying "electricity rates and high fuel prices. (We are all feeling the pinch.) ... my office is already working on legislation to introduce, which could improve the situation for consumers." Read More»

New Video: What other constitutional rights will the Legislature abridge? State Rep. Todd Smith, five other Republicans and all the Democrats voted to limit political speech last week. Read More»

Dallas city council members are facing a $190 million deficit, and much hand-wringing is going on about which services to cut. One expense that should, but won’t, be touched is the half-million in taxpayer dollars being used to lobby for more taxes and fewer limits on government. Read More»

Everyone knew this was going to be a less conservative Texas House. After all, Republicans had lost seats. In this 81st Session, economically sound legislation has been killed in committee, while big-tax/big-government bills are flying. The cause? Read More»

In these final weeks of the session, the Texas Legislature is poised to adopt an approach that could permit the gas tax to skyrocket from 20 cents to 45 cents per gallon. Read More»

For all the whining Democrats do about unfunded mandates on public education, they sure don't mind implementing them. The Texas House voted last night on legislation mandating that every public and private high school principle designate four people as deputy voter registrars. Every Republican, except RINOs Todd Smith and Tommy Merritt, voted against this mandate. Every Democrat, except Tracy King, voted for it. Read More»

We now know who is, and isn't, serious about weaning Texas from oppressive property taxes. The Texas House narrowly stopped a constitutional amendment that would have allowed more entities to claim a piece of your property, and your wallet. According to the uncertified vote total, this land-grab was stopped by 44 Republicans -- of the 76 currently serving as the nominal majority. Read More»

During last night's debate over the future of the Texas Department of Transportation, the Texas House approved an amendment that would change the Transportation Commission from five appointed members to 15 elected members. What a mess that would be.

State Rep. David Leibowitz put forward the amendment. Read More»

We've begun putting together the Fiscal Responsibility Index for this 81st Session. Obviously four weeks are left and a lot of legislation remains unheard, but the picture we're seeing isn't a good one. (Updated May 11.) Read More»

Small business owners will get a little breathing room with passage of House Bill 4765, authored by taxpayer champions Ken Paxton of McKinney, Bill Callegari of Katy and Brandon Creighton of Conroe. The measure raises the margins tax exemption from $300,000 to $1 million -- but only for the 2010-2011 biennium. Read More»

U.S. Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison has introduced legislation that would allow Texas and other states to leave the ponzi scheme known as the federal highway system. In the current arrangement, Texas is a "donor" state, meaning we give the feds a lot more in taxes than we get back in spending. Read More»

New Video: Republican officeholders have soured the brand for conservative voters. Read More»

Even as the Republican-led Texas House and Senate work furiously to unravel our unemployment rules to make them more appealing to Barack Obama, Florida’s legislature rejected such efforts. My friend Adam Hasner, the Florida House Majority leader, said, “The strings attached to the $444 million are going to potentially make a bad problem worse.” Wonder if I can convince him to move to Texas? Read More»

Under legislation adopted by the Texas House yesterday, you'll soon be paying state employees not work at their tax-funded jobs; no, you'll be paying them to volunteer their time! Read More»

On May 9th Dallas taxpayers will decide the fate of the City’s involvement in the construction of a convention center hotel. The Dallas Morning News reports that opponents of the Dallas Convention Center hotel are winning but there are several grow government organizations trying to change that and burden taxpayers with another boondoggle. Read More»

A $4.3 million helicopter will have to be purchased by the Department of Public Safety and based in Longview under an amendment added, without a vote, to the House version of the state budget by Rep. Tommy Merritt (R-Longview). But it's a bird that won't take flight: no money for pilots or maintenance. This flightless bird isn't just a taxpayer turkey, it's an earth-bound porker. Read More»

Who wants to be the ruling couple of earmarks in Texas? What first family of waste would build a Texas-size bridge to nowhere? Behold the heftiest of the special-interest spenders: State Rep. Dawnna Dukes (D-Austin) and State Rep. Pete Gallego (D-Alpine). She wants to spend your money big, while he spreads it thick. Read More»

According to Forbes Magazine, the top 5 places to live in terms of looking for job are all in Texas. According to a statement from Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst, the top big-cities are in order: Austin, Houston, San Antonio, Ft. Worth and Dallas. Read More»

We knew it was coming. The John Carona tax beast, SB855, is now getting heard in the Texas House, thanks to Rep. Vicki Truitt. That'll happen tomorrow. Every conservative taxpayer group has taken a stand against these bills. Read More»

On the one hand, the Texas House adopted a budget $4 billion lower than the Senate. Overall government growth has been kept below population and inflation. So why does it feel so meaningless? Perhaps because Republicans absolutely failed to provide the conservative leadership on the core issues voters expect. Read More»

House members will begin debating the state budget today, and while we offered strong praise for the version adopted by the Appropriations Committee, liberal lawmakers are ready to unravel that work with a series of amendments that will spend more and grow government. And some weak-kneed Republicans are more than happy to go along for the ride. Read More»

The removal of a witness yesterday during a senate committee hearing was startling but not without cause. The man was making physical threats and disturbing the day-to-day operations of the Senate.

A similar situation played out on the 9th at a Duncanville city council meeting. Only the threat made there was not one of physical violence, but the limiting of government spending. That scared Mayor David Green who had council member Paul Ford removed. Read More»

What a day! The tea parties were simply amazing. So now what? You and I have to make sure our neighbors and friends who were passionately waving signs and cheering speakers on Wednesday will be actively participating in the political and policy process on Monday. Read More»

Don't be surprised if your doctor starts prescribing tobacco products. Should State Rep. Warren Chisum of Pampa have his way, doctors will soon have a direct financial incentive to get everyone dippin' and chewin'. Chisum is, of course, a low-tax Republican who believes in the free market. Read More»

Recently governors rejecting UI stimulus funds have come under fire for not doing "right" by their respective states. Of course, those condemning these actions have been clamoring for the expansion of UI benefits for years and are doing their best to push this grow government agenda before Americans get wise to their scheme. Read More»

State senators decided on Wednesday that rather than control waste, end diversions and promote transparency, they'd just let taxes and fees rise. That's the only message the Senate's vote on John Carona's disasterous SB 855 can send. Read More»

Done your taxes yet? Unless action is taken soon in the U.S. Congress, Texans will lose the federal deductibility of our sales taxes. Fortunately, U.S. Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison last week introduced a measure to make the deductibility a permanent fixture in the federal tax code. Read More»

While we've been critical in the past of State Rep. Jim Pitts, his do-over term as chairman of the House Appropriations Committee is looking good for taxpayers. The committee this morning approved the House version of the budget, coming in about $4 billion smaller than the Senate version -- and 2.5 percent lower than the last biennium. It also makes important changes to the state's business tax for small businesses. Read More»

The free money now flowing from your great-grand-children's credit cards into the coffers of state government will cost the state 131,400 jobs -- or so says a report issued yesterday by the Texas Public Policy Foundation. Experience shows increased government spending reduces private sector output. Read More»

While not to be confused with a conservative position, the Fort Worth Star-Telegram very sensible is very sensibly opposing the creation of yet another law school in Texas. Let's face it: There isn't a shortage of ambulance chasers.

The Star-Telegram piece notes says the effort is "not essential." Read More»

One of the leading lights in Texas’ conservative movement is Collin County Judge Keith Self, who has led the fight for tax relief, transparent government and responsible spending. His reward? The typical response from the liberal establishmentarians: vicious personal attacks and smear campaigns. Read More»

Dallas County commissioners voted Tuesday to grant an exception to the county’s $125 per night lodging reimbursement rate.

The exception was given to Judge Jim Foster, who did not bust the cap by tens or even a hundred dollars but spent 3 times the per night reimbursement amount. Read More»

Any thought this new Texas House would be promoting public debate and open participation, as promised by Speaker Joe Straus on taking the gavel, was dashed on Wednesday. The chairman of the House Business & Industry Committee, Joe Deshotel, engaged in the worst kind of heavy-handed, undemocratic behavior imaginable by ramming partisan legislation through in his committee in a manner that shut-out debate and discourse. Read More»

The Texas Senate today passed a $182-billion, 2-year budget. The president of Texans for Fiscal Responsibility praised the Senate for protecting the "Rainy Day Fund." Read More»

It’s bad enough that the Obama Administration and its sycophants in Congress are trying to hobble Texas’ economy. Now we have the Texas House Business & Industry Committee working to hang a “closed” sign around the state’s neck. Read More»

In American history and government classes across this country, we still teach our children that our founding fathers demonstrated genius both in articulating the inalienable rights belonging to each person in our Declaration of Independence, and then in preserving those rights in our Constitution. Read More»

When the Senate Finance Committee adopted their version of the state budget last week, it included two small but powerful provisions giving Texans some protection against burdensome federal mandates hidden in the stimulus package. This prudent action should be replicated by the House. Read More»

Property taxes? Apparently not a concern. Relief for small businesses struggling under the Gross Margins Tax? Who cares! Providing public transparency for our education dollars? Maybe some other time. So what was the first bill to be considered by the Texas House? Subsidies and "incentives" for Hollywood. Read More»

It is time for someone to pull the covers back on the number one tactic liberals have used to stymie conservatives for decades. It is known mostly by its common name “The Process” (TP), but political scientists know it by its scientific term; "liberalus muckus upus legislates". Read More»

With free money (your great-grandchildren’s) dangling in front of them, the Texas Senate Finance Committee voted 13-to-1 to spend federal stimulus dollars. The lone dissenter was North Texas Republican Jane Nelson. She's worried about enlarging the base of entitlement with temporary federal dollars that will go away in a matter of months, leaving Texans with higher taxes and bigger government. Read More»

If you’re a smugly liberal city located in central Texas, then you want to make sure you exude an infatuation with big-government incompetency at every turn. And no one does big-government incompetency like the French. So it was only natural Austin Capitol Metro would hire a French consulting firm. Sadly, it seems the French have met their match. Read More»

You may recall last month there was a big stink about the University of Texas Investment Management Company awarding bonuses even though performance was lacking in 2008. Read More»

States are taking a closer look at the stimulus package, sifting through the provisions and stipulations that it contains and rejecting funds.

The likely culprits are among those sending the money back; Bobby Jindal Governor of Louisiana, Mark Sanford Governor of South Carolina and Rick Perry to name a few but there are other states that might surprise you. Read More»

Well, that didn't take long. State Sen. John Carona's effort to hike taxes and fees in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex region now includes the Austin and San Antonio areas. One can only imagine how soon the rest of the state will be ensnared in the scheme.

When people talk about Republican elected officials betraying conservative principles and the trust of their voters, one need look no further than State Sen. John Carona of Dallas. Just a week ago he was promising to include taxpayer protections and transparency in the massive tax-hike and fee-grab bill he was carrying for government spenders. As he presents the legislation to his transportation committee, those protections are gone. Read More»

Some west Texas kids are getting snowmobile trips, vacations to Hawaii, California, LA and elsewhere -- all courtesy of the schopol district. Actually, thanks to the state's Robin Hood funding scheme, courtesy of taxpayers elsewhere in the state. Read More»

Oh, what a surprise -- the liberal-dominated Texas House Select Committee on Federal Porkulus invited only big-spending grow-government shills to speak. How could that have happened? Oh, because Chairman Jim Dunnam is using his committee as a cheerleading ground for far-left activism, rather than good public policy. Speaker Straus should end this charade now. Read More»

Two months ago I posted a blog about the stimulus package and how it would affect unemployment insurance (UI) in Texas. Yesterday Gov. Perry rightly rejected the stimulus funds allocated to unemployment insurance saying there were too many strings attached. It would be nice if that was the final word on the issue but sadly it’s not. Read More»

If you can't beat 'em, join 'em. That's the educational philosophy in Plano where the school district is looking to implement rules letting kids cheat on papers and turn in homework whenever they like. Read More»

Governor Perry has done the right thing for employers and employees, and Texas’ economy, by rejecting the mandate-heavy UI portion of the federal stimulus package. Read More»

So, taxpayers, you bought $40,000 to send Houston Independent School District administrators to the rodeo. Bet you didn't a thank you note, did you? As one might expect, the superintendent of HISD described the entertainment package "a relatively small investment." Read More»

If a local government wants to impose heavy new taxes and fees on its people to fund light-rail under a scheme being crafted in the Legislature, they will have to do it with at least 20 percent of the voters turning out. State Sen. John Carona of Dallas is inserting this important taxpayer protection in legislation being crafted in Austin. Read More»

So much for personal responsibility. The bi-partisan smarter-and-healthier than thou crowd at the Texas Capitol is working non-stop to do our thinking for us by eliminating choices. Wouldn't be easier if they just told us what we can do? Read More»

At this moment, everyone in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex are the target of a massive tax increase effort in the Legislature. For example, they could be on the hook for an $8,700 “parking fee” just for having a car! And gas taxes will be set to rise faster than inflation. Today it's Dallas, tomorrow everywhere. Read More»

In their rush to spend more money, the Texas Department of Transportation may have ended up losing out on a $1 billion in federal money. I hate the porkulus bill, and think TXDOT is out of control. Hard to know who to cheer for in this match. Read More»

Real journalists hate being called out for their partisan shilling, and many try to walk the line. But the publisher of the Dallas Morning News recently used the resources of his company to advance a big-government political cause in a letter to lawmakers. We'll never be able to read the Morning News the same way again; every story must now be viewed explicitly as a tool for his partisan agenda. Click here to read the full commentary I co-authored with John Colyandro of the Texas Conservative Coalition.

A group of Democratic legislators just concluded a press conference calling on Texas Gov. Rick Perry to accept and use more of the federal stimulus money. But the president of Texans for Fiscal Responsibility says this "California-based prescription" will make things worse by straddling the economy with bigger government. He called on the Legislature to make immediate cuts to property taxes the business tax as a way to effectively free the economy and help all Texans. Read More»

It's hard to disagree with the notion that some lawmakers just don't operate on the same planet as the rest of us. Consider House Bill 1867, filed by State Rep. Rafael Anchia (D-Dallas). This remarkable example of government micromanagement would regulate the bagging choices of customers, by requiring check-out clerks to "ask the customer if the customer would like to purchase a reusable bag... at reasonable price." Is he kidding? Read More»

Happy Independence Day! Texas Independence Day, that is. We should pause to consider not only the blessings of our great state, but the dedication of those who declared our freedom on March 2, 1836. Read More»

According to State Sen. Dan Patrick of Houston, there are 2.9 million registered businesses in Texas. Of those, 2.3 million have revenues between $25k-$100K.

What started as a reporter’s unscripted rant on a cable news channel is turning into a movement. In cities across the nation, informal “tea parties” are being planned for Friday, Feb. 27, to protest the stimulus packages and out-of-control spending. Such gatherings will be taking place in Texas starting at 11 a.m. There will be a party in Austin at the state Capitol. Read More»

Just as legislators are being asked to allow casino gambling and slot machines as a way to raise more tax revenues, word comes out that the Texas Racing Commission has a $700,000 budget shortfall and is asking taxpayers to cough up the money. I thought gambling was supposed to be the mighty savior that brings in free money that will solve our financial woes? Read More»