This issue of Veritas, the quarterly publication of the Texas Public Policy Foundation, features the Foundation's efforts to inform the public of the human cost of subsidizing wind energy, abolishing the "Robin Hood" school property tax, combating our growing civic illiteracy, and our part in the ACA lawsuit.
Trust needs guardrails. The SAVE Act promotes straightforward verification that most voters already support. President Donald Trump last Friday night took to Truth Social to reiterate his support for voter ID and proof of citizenship for voting. His message was simple and direct: Elections should be decided by eligible American citizens. That position aligns with what most...
Does history suggest that property taxes are too high in the city of Austin? And, if so, have local decision-makers actively helped or hurt the situation? To help answer these questions, let’s review the city’s 2024 Annual Comprehensive Financial Report (ACFR) and gather four types of data—i.e., tax levies, local population, total tax rates, and taxable values—over a 10-year time horizon. Using these audited estimates, we can gauge the growth of government (i.e., tax levy trends), assess its reasonability...