Ken King: Failing Texas Taxpayers for over a Decade
Texas State Representative Ken King, a Republican from Canadian, Texas, has represented House District 88 since 2013. Over seven regular legislative sessions, King has positioned himself as a conservative representing Panhandle and South Plains values. However, a...
A Decade of Government Growth: State Budget Surpluses
Over the last decade, the state of Texas has experienced unprecedented budget surpluses. These budget surpluses are state tax revenue that exceeds the normal needs of the state. Put another way, the people were “over-taxed.” Covering six legislative sessions since...
A Decade of Government Growth: Corporate Welfare
In a previous paper1 examining the growth of Texas government over the last 10 years, we’ve seen that appropriations of Texas taxpayer funds increased by $110 billion, or 78%, during that time. Have you ever wondered what the Legislature did with all that money it...
A Decade of Government Growth: Public School Spending
One of the most persistent lies in Texas politics is that Texas schools are “underfunded.”1 This lie takes many different forms. We’ll examine some of those below. First, though, let’s take a look at the growth in Texas spending on public schools over the last...
Bray Campaigning on Lower Property Taxes, But Voted to Raise Them Six Months Ago
In the communities of Northeast Texas, political races often hinge on promises of fiscal responsibility, limited government and conservative values. Enter Josh Bray, a candidate vying for the open Texas State House seat in District 1, which covers communities from...
Texas’ Broken Bond Election System
New Data Shows Billions of Dollars in New Debt is Being Approved By a Tiny Fraction of the Population Executive Summary New data from the Texas Bond Review Board1 (BRB), required by HB 3526 passed by the Texas Legislature this year, shows disturbing trends in Texas...
A Decade of Government Growth: Legislative Appropriations
One saying that circulates around the Texas Capitol when the Legislature convenes every two years is that the legislators have only one job they are required to do: adopt a budget. Every legislative session the legislators manage to do this. In fact, the...
Another College Sports Betting Scandal
A massive point-shaving scheme involving dozens of college players, and the Chinese Basketball Association, shows how fast corruption spreads when gambling takes over. The recent federal indictment1 announced on January 15th by the U.S. Attorney's Office for the...
Texas Government Keeps Getting Bigger
Over 20 Years of State Spending Growth In 2003, Republicans achieved an historic milestone by gaining control of the Texas state government, the executive and both chambers of the Legislature, for the first time in decades. Since then, Republicans have...