Because school facilities taxes are part of many taxpayers’ total school property tax bill, the way that facilities are funded should be a fundamental part of comprehensive school finance reform. The growing investment of state tax dollars to help local school districts pay off facilities debt lends particular urgency to the need for state policymakers to establish standards, accountability, and controls for the debt that local school districts elect to incur and pass along to every taxpayer in the state.
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