This article originally appeared in the Austin American-Statesman on 3/24/2013. Ten years ago, Texas was known as a “judicial hell hole,” thanks to a torts system that was out of control — and the people who paid the price were the ordinary men, women, and children of the Lone Star State. The story of how that was...
A publication of the Texas Public Policy Foundation
The year 2014 was a discouraging one for American higher education. Over the last twelve months, too many universities have been squandering what has been up until now their greatest source of support—the public’s respect and loyalty. This drop in consumer confidence has been some time in coming. A 2012 national Pew survey finds...
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the last two years have seen a substantive decrease (930,000) in the number of college enrollments nationally. Aside from the rebounding economy — when jobs are scarce, some high-school grads and adult students see college as a more attractive option — at least two factors account for this decline:...
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics released the Regional and State Employment and Unemployment Summary report today for November 2014 providing more evidence of the Texas model’s success of creating more jobs compared with other large states and national averages. The following figures tell the story:
In 2009, Allen ISD proposed and passed a bond authorization for a $60 million football stadium that seats 18,000 and is as nice as many university football facilities. Among other features, it has an indoor golf practice area, a large wrestling facility, and a 75-foot-long high definition video scoreboard. The stadium opened in time for...
When the Food and Drug Administration approved the first antipsychotic, Thorazine, in 1954, mental health service providers hoped this drug would revolutionize mental health care. Finally, scientists had created a pharmaceutical that would cure the mentally ill. But as researchers have studied psychosis, they have learned that antipsychotics do not address the root causes...
In Texas, everything is big – but that’s not always something to boast about. For example, the Harris County Jail, which houses about 9,000 inmates daily, is the third-largest jail system in the nation. Prisons and jails are different. Prisons are state-level facilities for felony offenders who have been convicted. Jails are county-level facilities...
On Thursday, the San Antonio City Councilwill consider a restrictive ridesharing ordinance that could shutdown Uber and Lyft in the city. Government-protected taxicab companies, eager to shut out the new competition, are strongly supportive of the new rules. But if the council wants to put the safety and best interests of its citizens ahead of...
Having been a Rotarian for 30 years I am dismayed to see the Rotary Club’s Four Way Test being used for political purposes in various editorials circulated around the state recently. Rotary is a non-political civic club and its four way test signifies the club’s values: truth; fairness; good will and better friendships; and beneficial...
When conservatives and liberals talk about Texas, they are talking about two different things. Conservatives think Texas is important because its booming economy shows how limited government, low taxes and light regulation can create prosperity. Liberals, by contrast, see Texas as the poster child for conservatives’ refusal to provide a sufficient safety net for...
‘Inversion” is a word increasingly heard these days in Washington, D.C. In this case, instead of referring to a meteorological condition, inversion applies to tax law. It occurs when U.S. corporations lower their taxes by buying an overseas company, then transferring their headquarters to the newly purchased foreign firm. Recent moves in the pharmaceutical industry...