It’s one thing to hear the gun-grabbing rhetoric coming out of Washington. But Texas? We knew that President Biden’s administration would be far less Second Amendment-friendly than the previous administration. At one point, Biden even promised to put Beto “Hell, yes, we’re going to take your AR-15” O’Rourke in charge of his administration’s gun policies....
As Texans are dealing with the aftermath of a harrowing week of blackouts, boil-water notices, and frigid temperatures, the finger-pointing has begun. Many of us, my colleagues in the Legislature included, are looking for someone, or something, to blame — understandably so. But we must move on from searching for a convenient scapegoat to understanding the truth of what happened and finding a solution for the systemic problems that led...
See the second page of ERCOT’s latest reliability assessment. Under the top table describing the reserve margins, they have a table labelled “Range of Potential Risks.” Something between the 4th and 5th columns is what happened this week. Add 2,000 MW of demand above ERCOT’s adjustment here (they assumed a record of 67,200 MW) and 10,000...
The story of how Texas was brought to its knees by crippling cold weather leaving millions without power is a complex one, yet entirely predictable and avoidable. The details matter, so it is important to know the long story, but let’s start with the short version: For years, Texas’ grid operator (ERCOT) has overestimated the...
Editor’s note: TPPF’s Chuck DeVore breaks down for us exactly what went wrong with the Texas power grid—and why so many of us have been without power in this week’s epic winter storm. There were two problems, one short term and one long term—which exacerbated the short-term one. The short-term failure came at about 1...
The pandemic and subsequent government-induced shutdown has taken a tremendous toll on all Texans, not just with the health challenges but also the massive disruption to the social, educational, and economic welfare of our state.
For example, in Texas it is a crime to thrash a pecan tree, and the state has an indeterminable number of felonies relating to harvesting oysters.
Almost every Texan agrees: It’s wrong to force taxpayers to fund lobbyists whose only job is to advocate for higher taxes, more spending, and bigger government at the Texas Capitol.
Chances are you wouldn’t torch your cash. Oddly enough, that’s exactly what happens when local governments pay high-priced lobbyists to advocate for higher taxes, more spending, and greater regulatory authority. It’s wrong to ask taxpayers to fund lobbying activities that go against their interests and it needs to stop. Sign the petition to ban taxpayer-funded...
Governor Abbott announced a rollback of the statewide mask mandate on Texas Independence Day. What that means for our daily lives, some examples of the most egregious overreach by local governments in the last year, and more in today’s episode of The Chase.
What’s happening in the #TXLege, the TPPF take on the Lieutenant Governor’s policy priorities, and how Career and Technical Education (CTE) is filling the trades gap while empowering young Texans to forge their own path. On this episode of The Foundation Podcast, Derek Cohen is joined by TPPF’s Erin Valdez who’s research covers career and...
Given the economic situation with many unemployed Texans struggling from business closures due to the COVID-19 pandemic and government restrictions and following recent power outages, the Legislature should consider less spending, taxing, and regulating so Texans have more opportunities to prosper. Invited testimony submitted to the Texas House Committee on Ways & Means
Given the economic situation with many unemployed Texans struggling from business closures in response to the COVID-19 pandemic and government restrictions and following recent power outages, the Legislature should consider less spending, taxing, and regulating so Texans have more opportunities to prosper. Invited testimony submitted to the Texas House Committee on Appropriations – S/C on...
The COVID-19 pandemic has changed our routines, but it doesn’t change the laws of economics. Yet it seems government is in the business of doing something when it really should do nothing, such as the recent proposals by President Biden and Congress to spend more and raise the federal minimum wage in the name of...
U.S. Economic Situation—February 2021 Many Americans are recovering from the economic destruction that started in March 2020 due to shutdowns by state and local governments in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The economy has improved, but the pace has slowed because of increased restrictions by many state governors making it more difficult to regain the...