HB 9 would increase contributions by taxpayers collected at the state level from 6.8 percent to 7.8 percent in 2020 (and progressively higher to 8.8 percent in 2026) to decrease the funding period from 87 years to 30 years, respectively. This increase in contributions would cost taxpayers $684 million in the 2020-21 biennium and more thereafter. While this improves the financial soundness of TRS if the assumed rate of return is met, HB 9 does not solve the structural problems of TRS and adds additional costs to taxpayers of $658 million for a 13th payment to retirees in 2020.
Too Close for Comfort
The last decade of homeless policy has been an abject failure. Currently the United States is facing the highest levels of homelessness and encounters with the mentally ill are increasing in Texas’ large cities. The blame can be squarely fixed on ‘Housing First’ which has prioritized a ‘one size fits all’ approach while ignoring the underlying causes of chronic homelessness. When...