When it comes to the affordability crisis gripping Austin, local government officials are renowned for saying one thing and doing the opposite. Consider Mayor Steve Adler’s campaign website which reads: “Too many of our long-time residents are being priced out of their homes. It wasn’t that long ago that Austin was one of the most...
An Austin ISD elementary teacher has stirred fresh controversy after she bragged online about showing her fourth-grade students a video “to teach them about drag which also encourages kids to be drag performers.” In the short video, which begins with the teacher saying she doesn’t care if others disagree with the degeneracy, kids in the...
Tarrant County taxpayers may soon be paying more for local government. On Monday, the Tarrant County Commissioners Court held a public meeting to discuss its proposed budget for fiscal year 2023, which totals $916 million, less capital expenditures. That represents about a $120 million increase from the prior year’s budget total ($797.2 million). To help...
The Harris County Commissioners Court has green lit the exploration of a lawsuit, in a 3-2 vote along partisan lines, over the county’s inclusion in the next round of election audits. Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo attacked the selection as “politically motivated” and “a distraction.” Other county officials disputed (without evidence) the randomness of the...
We all hate feeling jetlagged. That groggy, tired feeling is the unpleasant result of long-distance travel. The concept of social jetlag works in a very similar manner. The term refers to the reactions observed in people’s bodies that are similar to travel-related jetlag, which stems from a person’s circadian rhythm (or internal clock) being thrown...
Back-to-school is right around the corner, meaning that parents and guardians are beginning to buy backpacks, supplies, and new clothes for the kids. However, as many are coming to find out, this year’s shopping experience is a little more costly than in years past. Thanks to inflation and supply chain snags, the cost of getting...
On Thursday, the Bureau of Economic Analysis released its second-quarter GDP estimates revealing that the American economy shrank again. The revelation means that U.S. has officially entered recession territory and thoughtful policy prescriptions are needed to mitigate the economic pain and minimize the period’s duration. With that in mind, here are five things that Texas’...
Austin is in throes of a pronounced affordability crisis, with the area recently ranked as “one of the least affordable cities in U.S. for minimum-wage renters.” Even still, the crisis isn’t stopping Austin-area governments from raising taxes. Last week, Austin’s city manager unveiled a new budget $5 billion budget that includes “a $500 million increase...
Austin ISD’s student enrollment has been hemorrhaging for years. But that hasn’t stopped the uber-progressive district from spending every dollar it can gets its hands on nor does it appear to be standing in the way of a borrowing binge. Earlier this week, Austin ISD announced that it was eyeing a big, new bond package...
Several days ago, Texas Governor Greg Abbott pledged that “a very large property tax cut” is coming next session. Today, the public got a sense of what is possible. According to Texas Comptroller Glenn Hegar’s newly-updated Certification Revenue Estimate (CRE), the Texas Legislature is expected to have as much as a $27 billion budget surplus...
El Pasoans are bracing for a big-time tax increase. Earlier this month, the El Paso city council took up the matter of the city’s proposed tax rate which, if adopted, would hike tax bills as “it doesn’t offset a sharp rise in property valuations.” Here’s more from the nonprofit news organization El Paso Matters Under...
Comal ISD, a mid-sized school district located on the I-35 corridor between Austin and San Antonio, raised eyebrows recently with the adoption of its 2022-23 budget. Compared to the previous year, CISD’s newest All Funds budget (which includes spending out of the General Fund, the Child Nutrition Fund, and the Debt Service Fund) increased by...