The shakeup in the world of the Texas House has continued over the last few weeks, as Speaker Phelan hires a new Chief of Staff, the Speaker’s race has now expanded to three challengers, and more. 

New Staff 

With Dade Phelan’s Chief of Staff, Enrique Marquez, stepping down from his position, the Texas House Speaker has hired former State Rep. Mike Toomey as a replacement for the upcoming legislative session.

Having worked in Texas politics for decades, and having served as Chief of Staff for former Governors Rick Perry and Bill Clements, Toomey undoubtedly holds a keen understanding of the inner workings of the state capital (which is not necessarily a great sign). Given the lackluster performances of many so-called “conservative” state lawmakers, a long-time player gaining such a position does not automatically reassure taxpayers. 

In his professional life, aside from serving as a representative and managing their staffs, Toomey stayed close to Austin. For years, he spent his days lobbying the Texas legislature on behalf of numerous varying entities, and made quite a significant fortune while doing so. 

In the last legislative session alone, Toomey earned millions of dollars as a career lobbyist, with one of his most prominent clients being the Las Vegas Sands Corporation. On behalf of the company, he vied with elected officials to legalize casino gambling in the Lone Star State.

Mike Toomey also made a living off of taxpayer dollars by serving as a lobbyist for the city of San Antonio. San Antonio isn’t the only public entity that employed Toomey. The Port of Houston Authority, as well as the Harris County Commissioners hired Toomey to fulfill a similar position.

With a former taxpayer-funded lobbyist as the chief of staff for the Speaker’s office, it would appear that the mission to ban taxpayer-funded lobbying has an uphill battle, should Dade Phelan remain speaker in the next session. 

During Phelan’s tenure as House Speaker, bills to ban the practice have failed to even make it to the floor. 

Speaking of Rick Perry, the former governor has also joined the Speaker’s team, after campaigning for him in the primary and runoff races. The Speaker’s office announced this week that Perry would be joining as a “Senior Advisor.”

New Goals?

Soon after the announcement of the new chief of Staff, the Speaker’s office released notes from a staff meeting in which policy goals and direction were discussed. 

One of the goals caught the attention of TFR: “Fiscal Conservatism and Budget Scrutiny.”

The goal stated, “Emphasis on reducing the size and scope of government, prioritizing spending and cutting waste, and focusing resources on the Texans most in need.”

It appears that the speaker’s office might be listening to Texans for Fiscal Responsibility! 

TFR has long championed the need for reducing the size and scope of government. If the government is already bigger than it should be, why do we continue to grow it? Reducing spending and cutting waste are essential to reigning in the oppressive power of the government, and are also essential to expanding the revenue that is available for property tax relief – relief that Texas families desperately need. 

While TFR welcomes any effort to reign in government growth and spending, it remains to be seen if these new goals outlined in the Speaker’s office will translate into real action. Unfortunately, the track record of Speaker Phelan and his new chief of staff do not give taxpayers much hope. 

New Candidates 

Finally, the race to remove Dade Phelan as Speaker in the upcoming session is heating up, with the list of challengers now growing to three. 

This week, State Representative David Cook (R–Mansfield), announced that he would be running for the Speaker’s position. 

“It’s time to ensure that leadership better reflects the will of the majority party. This includes a shift to a Republican committee chair model,” Cook said in his announcement. 

Cook joins already announced candidates, Representatives Shelby Slawson (R–Stephenville) and Tom Oliverson (R–Cypress), both of whom are also challenging the status quo in the Texas House. 

Taxpayers are encouraged to research the candidates and reach out to their respective Representatives and encourage them to vote for a speaker that will empower taxpayers, support limited government and champion pro-taxpayer reforms. 

Texans for Fiscal Responsibility will continue the important work of progressing policies that benefit Texas taxpayers and their families, like eliminating property taxes, ending corporate welfare, and outlawing taxpayer-funded lobbying. Visit texastaxpayers.com to learn more!

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