Texans believe in government transparency and accountability. For this reason, we have some of the most advanced open-government initiatives in the nation. Yet one policy area remains outside the view of the general public: economic development.
While the Senate’s version of local pension control takes a slightly different tack than the House version, HB 2608, both measures promise to break down bureaucratic barriers to local control and, in many instances, give community stakeholders a seat at the table.
The Honorable Talmadge Heflin testified before the State Finance Committee in support of Senate Joint Resolution 2 and Senate Bill 9.
The Foundation’s research shows that Texas’ tax and expenditure limit doesn’t effectively restrain the total budget over time and calls for fundamental reform to support more opportunity for Texans to prosper.
Yes, the number of earthquakes in Texas and globally has increased. Yes, the numbers of fracking wells and wastewater injection wells being used in Texas has increased. Are the two related? Frankly, no one knows and those who say definitely one way or the other are being disingenuous or deceptive.
If SB 1254 passes, the Texas Open Meetings Act and the Public Information Act will once again matter to an entire realm of government policy that spends millions upon millions of our tax dollars. There is no reason why Texans should be kept in the dark about something so important.
This issue and the need to restore community oversight was explored more in-depth today in a Houston Chronicle article by TPPF Board Member Windi Grimes. The piece calls on lawmakers to “restore local control of these state-governed pension plans with sweetheart deals.”
Intentional or not, the net effect of freezing these local systems in state statute has been to shut out community leaders and city officials who don't have the right political connections in the Legislature. It has become almost irrelevant that affected communities work and pay taxes to support the retirement systems or that fewer services are available as officials shift scarce city resources from potholes to pensions.
Average electricity prices for companies spiked across the EU — 54% in Germany, for instance, over the five years 2009-2013 because of costs passed along as part of government renewable energy mandates.
School choice is good for teachers. According to testimony in the recent school finance trial, teacher salaries would increase in a system of competition. Right now 93% of school teachers are employed by state schools. In a system of competition, schools would have to allocate resources to the place where they can get the most bang for their buck—to the place that matters most to student achievement—to the classroom.
By working diligently to write quality papers to educate others and acting on those ideals, the Foundation will continue helping Texans in future decades to break the chains of poverty and open the doors of prosperity.
Solitary has become drastically overused by the Texas system. In other states, inmates in solitary confinement account for 1 or 2 percent of the incarcerated population. In Texas they account for 4.4 percent, many of them with mental disorders.