Good Neighbors
What to know: Empowering parents with universal school choice is just “what a good neighbor does,” according to former Democratic state Sen. Eddie Lucio Jr.
The TPPF take: A strong majority of Texans—including Democrats—supports universal school choice.
“The issue here is freedom,” says TPPF’s Mandy Drogin. “All parents, regardless of their financial ability, should have the freedom to select the best school for their child—not just the parents with the financial means to move to a great public school district or afford to write a tuition check.”
For more on universal school choice, click here.
Crony Capitalism
What to know: Some Texas lawmakers want to bring back Chapter 313 of the Texas Tax Code, which was used to grant massive tax abatements to renewable energy companies and other businesses.
The TPPF take: Why bring back a bad program?
“How is it good policy to give big school tax breaks to some companies, while others are forced to carry an even heavier tax burden in the same jurisdictions to make up for the lost revenue to local school districts?” asks radio host Robert Pratt, writing for The Cannon Online. “That seems a case of robbing Peter to pay Paul. And worse, it punishes proven, existing taxpayers and their businesses to benefit speculative new entrants to their local markets.”
For more on chapter 313, click here.