The Texas Public Policy Foundation recently hosted a panel on charter schools entitled “Innovation, Educational Excellence, and the Role of Charters.” Panelists included Senator Florence Shapiro, Chair of the Senate Education Committee; Linda Bridges, President of the Texas Chapter of the American Federation of Teachers; Tom Torkelson; CEO and Founder of IDEA public schools; and Paul Vallas; Superintendent of the Louisiana Recovery School District. This document lists the main points of each panelist.
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