The Skills Development program funds specific training needs of certain businesses through public community or technical colleges or the Texas A&M Engineering Service (TEEX). In 2015, 87.4 percent of the businesses that benefited from the program were large businesses (500 or more employees). HB 108 would increase the focus of the fund on out-of-state applicants, possibly using Texan taxpayer money to fund the training needs of Texas businesses’ out-of-state competitors. Taxpayers should not be forced to shoulder the cost of private businesses’ training investments.
Who Were Austin’s Highest Paid Public Employees in 2025?
Last month, the Austin American-Statesman launched an interesting new city salary database that shines a light on the “top-paid city of Austin employees of 2025.” The new details are quite interesting, especially given the city’s own recent admission that “Austin is experiencing a housing affordability crisis”—which is, of course, chiefly driven by government action. Using this tool, it’s obvious that city workers have become numerous and well-compensated. As the Statesman itself notes: “The city of Austin employed 13,567 full-time workers...