Presented before the House Select Committee on State Health Care Expenditures, this is an outline of the testimony offered by the Foundation’s director of research on the issue of government-subsidized insurance (in this case, the Children’s Health Insurance Program) competing with private sector coverage.
Local Government
When Government Lobbies Itself: Why Texas Should Ban Taxpayer-Funded Lobbying
Texas local governments use taxpayer dollars to hire lobbyists to influence state legislation—creating conflicts of interest, distorting democratic accountability, and undermining the interests of Texas taxpayers. Key points: Taxpayer-funded lobbying expenditures more than doubled from the 85th to the 89th Legislature, now reaching as high as $111.5 million. Taxpayer-funded lobbyists consistently opposed legislation involving property...
April 6, 2026