Public Education Elites
What to know: Austin ISD’s highest paid employees make more than $200,000 per year and also receive cell phone stipends, travel stipends, retirement benefits, and subsidized healthcare. “The combined total pay for all top 30 employees was about $5.9 million” for the 2025-26 school year.
The TPPF take: Education elites complain about inadequate funding even while raking in huge salaries and benefits.
“An elite few at Austin ISD are reaping a taxpayer-funded windfall, despite widespread academic disappointment, a threatened state takeover, and failing finances. Curiously, this same faction is quick to complain that public education is not fully-funded,” says TPPF’s James Quintero. “Austin ISD is not an anomaly. This same situation is taking root all around the state.”
For more on local education spending, click here.
Dangerous DAs
The TPPF take: Texas lawmakers must act to ensure consistent enforcement of laws, strengthen oversight, and restore faith in the justice system.
“When local prosecutors are not enforcing laws passed by our elected state officials, public safety is jeopardized, the rule of law is undermined, and public faith in our institutions is eroded,” says TPPF’s Ross Jackson. “Research has shown that when prosecutors have higher conviction rates, mortality rates decline.”
For more on rogue DA’s, click here.
Renters and Tax Hikes
What to know: Why do renters not protest higher property taxes? It’s because the link between higher taxes and rising rents isn’t always clear.
The TPPF take: We must tell renters the truth about property taxes.
“Renters may not know it, but they pay a substantial amount in local property taxes. In fact, some estimates suggest that as much as 20% of the average rent payment is on account of property taxes,” says TPPF’s Jacob Nemit. “This is the type of information that renters ought to know, especially prior to participating in public elections. Without it, renters may have incomplete information with which to make decisions about bonds, taxes, and candidates.”
For more on property taxes, click here.