Taxes & Spending

SPEAKING FREELY: Quintero- Don’t Point Your Finger at the Texas Legislature for Public School Failures

Over the weekend, James Quintero, director of the Center for Local Governance, wrote about the false narrative emerging in Austin “that public schools are underfunded and the state is to blame.” Many today, in alignment with various education associations, assert that public education suffers from a lack of resources. But the data tells a different...

April 3, 2018

Property Rights

Legislature should prohibit forced annexation anywhere in Texas

  Ronald Reagan said, “Freedom is never more than one generation from extinction. We didn’t pass it on to our children in the bloodstream. It must be fought for, protected, and handed on for them to do the same, or one day we will spend our sunset years telling our children and our children’s children...

March 26, 2018

Taxes & Spending

ICYMI: Quintero on Property Taxes in the Austin American-Statesman

Sick of sky-high property tax bills? So is Governor Abbott. Speaking at a news conference last month, the governor captured the frustration well: “Texans are fed up with property taxes being raised with impunity. They are tired of endless government spending while honest, hard-working people struggle just to keep up with paying their tax bills....

February 20, 2018

Economy

Time for Texas to End Involuntary Annexation

There may be another opportunity to right this terrible wrong soon, and if the opportunity arises, you can bet that there’ll be plenty of Texans there to insist that it’s time to end forced annexation.

May 31, 2017

Property Rights

Time to Defend Our Property Rights

In response to the creeping “Californiazation of Texas,” Governor Abbott called for a “broad-based ban on regulations at the local level.” This week, the House Land & Resource Management Committee responded to that call by voting House Bill 3787 out of committee. The bill, as filed by Representative Cecil Bell, would prohibit cities and counties...

April 28, 2017

Taxes & Spending

Houston’s Pension Plan Changes Make Real Reform Less Likely

The City of Houston’s pension rescue plan is winding its way through the Senate, and state legislators are attempting to respond to a dizzying array of concerns, including fears that the bill is too complex, too experimental, and doesn’t quite go far enough to create a sustainable system. According to its own estimate, Houston has...

April 24, 2017

Economy

When you drive out ride-sharing, you drive out freedom and innovation

Public safety regulations should be based on evidence, not fear-mongering rhetoric. It’s time to send a message to cities that stifle innovation and strangle economic opportunity: don’t drive out ride-sharing.

April 7, 2017

Economy

HB 100: Cutting the Ridesharing Red Tape

Bryan Mathew, Center for Local Governance, testimony before the House Committee on Transportation 

March 16, 2017

Taxes & Spending

Invisible Governments: Tax Increment Reinvestment Zones

Bryan Mathew, Center for Local Governance, testified before the House Committee on Special Purpose Districts. 

March 2, 2017

Property Rights

Why We’re Taking a Stand Against Austin’s STR Ordinance

We are all guaranteed certain basic rights by the U.S. and Texas Constitutions. Among these are the freedoms of assembly and movement, the right to privacy, economic liberty, equal protection under the law, and protection from unreasonable search and seizure. 

September 29, 2016