STAAR Report Card

Mexico’s Regime in the United States

Mexico’s Regime in the United States By: Alejandrina Elms and Melissa Ford Download the full paper here. Executive Summary Under the Sheinbaum Administration, MORENA has continued and expanded an organized U.S. political presence, including a nationwide organization strategy, political education efforts, public political activity, and documented interaction between its “foreign relations” apparatus and Mexico’s consular...

Texas City Eliminates Their Property Taxes

On September 10, the City of Von Ormy cut its already low property tax rate from $.12 to zero. Von Ormy has had a history of dedication to low, or no taxes, with 2024 being the first time they even adopted a tax rate since 2014. The city approved a zero-property tax rate even as...

Temporary Assistance for Two-Parent Families in Texas: Reorienting TANF Toward Integral Human Development and Flourishing

Temporary Assistance for Two-Parent Families in Texas: Reorienting TANF Toward Integral Human Development and Flourishing   Key points: TANF was designed to promote two-parent family stability, but current implementation in Texas diverts funds away from this core purpose. Strong empirical evidence shows that children in two-parent households experience better educational, economic, and behavioral outcomes. Texas TANF...