Taxes & Spending

NEW: Report Pegs U.S. Pension Debt at $6 Trillion+

Yesterday, the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) published a startling new report on the deteriorating condition of U.S. public pension systems and warned that: “Absent significant reforms, unfunded liabilities of state-administered pension plans will continue to grow and threaten the financial security of state retirees and taxpayers alike. The fiscal calamity could be far deeper...

December 19, 2017

Economy

This was the year Texas bucked restrictive local policies

  Over the past 12 months, Texas’ public policy landscape has undergone some big changes, especially when it comes to local governance. Take the issue of local control, for example. For years, powerful special interest groups representing cities, counties, and school districts at the Capitol have advanced their interests by arguing that local control is...

December 11, 2017

Economy

Time for action on health care

  Texas, like much of the country, is halfway through the fifth enrollment period for the Affordable Care Act — and as in years past, the occasion serves as a reminder that the law is in critical condition. That the ACA is ailing is uncontestable. Insurers are fleeing the exchanges, enrollment is shrinking, and premiums...

November 12, 2017

Taxes & Spending

Harvey presents a chance to re-examine role of government

  Hurricane Harvey is sure to test the mettle of incoming Texas legislators. When lawmakers reconvene in January 2019, the state’s revenue picture is likely to be a little gloomier than usual, given that total losses from the storm could reach $190 billion. Even if the economic impact doesn’t hit revenues hard, Harvey will force...

October 30, 2017

Taxes & Spending

Speaking Freely: Visit Austin

The hotel occupancy tax (HOT) is sometimes called a “waste tax” because it can’t be spent on much more than fluff. Here’s another example of that. KXAN launched an investigation recently into money spent by Visit Austin, a private 501(c)6 that markets the city internationally and “receives a substantial portion of its revenue from the...

October 16, 2017

Economy

Stop development deals. Get Amazon with the ‘Texas Model’

  Austin is vying for Amazon’s impressive new “HQ2” — a second company headquarters that could supercharge the local economy with $5 billion in capital investment and 50,000 new, good-paying jobs. Landing the state-of-the-art campus would be nothing short of blockbuster. While Austin has much to offer and much to gain, it shouldn’t fall into...

October 15, 2017

Taxes & Spending

Speaking Freely: Audit Finds Austin Has Nicer Stuff Than You

Do you have a custom pecan wood table in your house that costs as much as a car? If not, then the city has nicer stuff than you. A new city audit found that, during recent renovations at City Hall, the previous city manager submitted a Purchase Order for “a custom pecan wood table” costing...

October 12, 2017

Taxes & Spending

Speaking Freely Audit: City of Austin Stinks at Estimating Project Costs

A new report from the Austin city auditor confirms what many of us knew already—that construction costs often balloon far beyond their original estimates. The auditor’s review of the Public Works Department, the branch of city government that “designs, manages, and inspects major capital improvement projects,” identified a slew of problems with the city’s construction...

October 12, 2017

Property Rights

Two Views: Special session’s impact seen in policy, paradigm shift

This commentary was originally featured in the Austin American-Statesman on August 27, 2017.  The Texas Legislature’s special session may be over, but what happened over the last 30 days will have lasting effects. Perhaps the biggest thing to take place under the pink dome this summer wasn’t the passage of a new law, but rather...

August 29, 2017

Taxes & Spending

The Next 48 Hours Could Be Historic

The Texas House of Representatives is set to take up and debate two major local government reforms that, if done right, will positively impact the lives of millions of Texans. For conservative policy wonks, the next 48 hours promise to be nothing short of historic. First up today in the House is Senate Bill 6,...

August 11, 2017

Taxes & Spending

Priorities Matter: Austin’s $126 Million Library

Texas has a property tax problem. The Lone Star State currently imposes the sixth highest effective property tax rate in the nation, and in 2015 alone, more than 4,100 local taxing entities soaked taxpayers for $52.2 billion in property taxes. That’s enough to take $1,900 from every man, woman, and child in Texas or about $8,000 from...

August 9, 2017

Taxes & Spending

Austin’s Proposed Budget Contributing to Affordability Problems

This commentary was originally featured in Breitbart on August 9, 2017. Though the new budget hasn’t been finalized yet, an early draft recommends raising taxes and fees by almost five percent, meaning many could soon find themselves paying a lot more for city services. Already, city government costs the average Austinite $3,865 annually. Under the...

August 9, 2017