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Will Texas DOGE more spending?
State needs a similar effort to Musk’s federal crusade. This commentary was originally published at The Dallas Morning News here. It is being republished with permission from the author. One of the most amazing political phenomena Americans have seen in ages is…
Real Options for Eliminating Property Taxes in Texas
Property taxes are a financial burden that Texans can no longer afford to endure. Over the past 26 years, Figure 1 illustrates how property taxes have increased by an unsustainable 330%, far outpacing population and inflation growth of 136%. Figure…
Foreign Land Ownership and the American Dream
The American Dream Land ownership has always been deeply intertwined with the American identity. From the earliest days of settlement, land was seen as foundational to liberty, independence, self-determination, and economic opportunity. Colonists and immigrants from all over the world…
News and Commentary
Vote Notice 4.15.2025
Texans for Fiscal Responsibility has issued the following vote notice for April 15th, 2025 Texas House of Representatives Subject: House Bill 20 (HB 20) – Skilled trades high school certification Subject: House Bill 100 (HB 100) – Bans use of…
$51 Billion in Property Tax Relief? How the Texas Budget Betrays Fiscal Conservatism
“This week, I helped pass the most conservative Texas House budget in history.” Texas Republican Rep. Jared Patterson posted that message after the Republican-led Texas House recently passed its 2026–27 budget version CSSB 1. He and other Republicans also claimed…
Vote Notice 4.14.2025
Texans for Fiscal Responsibility has issued the following vote notice for April 14th, 2025 Texas House of Representatives Subject: House Joint resolution 5 (HJR 5) – Permanent fund for technical college Texas Senate Subject: Senate Bill 34 (SB 34) –…
Texas House Passes Record-Breaking Budget That Grows Government, Sidelines Tax Relief
In the early hours of Friday morning, the Texas House of Representatives passed SB 1, the proposed state budget for the 2026–27 biennium, after over 14 hours of debate that stretched from noon on April 10 into 3 a.m. on…
Vote Notice 4.10.2025
Texans for Fiscal Responsibility has issued the following vote notice for April 10th, 2025 Texas House of Representatives Subject: Senate Bill 1 (SB 1) – General Appropriations Act Subject: Senate Bill 1 (SB 1) – General Appropriations Act – Specific…
Vote Notice 4.9.2025
Texans for Fiscal Responsibility has issued the following vote notice for April 9th, 2025 Texas House of Representatives None Texas Senate Subject: Senate Joint Resolution 4 (SJR 4) – Expands Rainy Day Fund Subject: Senate Joint Resolution 40 (SJR 40)…
The Texas Budget: A Progressive California Blueprint, Not the Texas We Deserve
Introduction The 2026–27 Texas proposed biennial budget should be rejected this week when brought to the House floor on Thursday, April 10th. This budget, and many before it over the last two decades since Republicans gained a trifecta in 2003,…
Why Texas’ 2026-27 Budget is Not Conservative
Taking a look at the budget and Texas’ $80 billion budget surplus Executive Summary Texas Comptroller Glenn Hegar’s Biennial Revenue Estimate (BRE) biennium projects a budget surplus of $23.76 billion in state funds for the current 2024-25 fiscal biennium. But…
Vote Notice 4.8.2025
Texans for Fiscal Responsibility has issued the following vote notice for April 8th, 2025 Texas House of Representatives Subject: House Joint Resolution 99 (HJR 99) – Animal feed tax exemption Subject: House Bill 1399 (HB 1399) – Animal feed tax…
Democrat Deal in the Texas House Takes a New Turn
The saga of Housing Finance Corporations (HFCs) in Texas, a system ripe with cronyism, tax exemptions, and insider deals, has taken another troubling turn. Following our last report, the legislative maneuvering has continued with new developments exposing the entrenched interests…
Vote Notice 4.7.2025
Texans for Fiscal Responsibility has issued the following vote notice for April 7th, 2025 Texas House of Representatives Subject: House Bill 10 (HB 10) – Regulatory Reform and Efficiency Subject: House Bill 12 (HB 12) – Sunset review transparency and…
The Machinery of Government: SB 2330 and Taxpayers
The machinery of government should not be used to facilitate the financial operations of private organizations—regardless of their mission or membership. While state and local governments exist to serve the people of Texas, they were never intended to act as…
Ending Renewables, Not Adding New Regulations, Will Restore Grid Reliability
This headline in last week’s Houston Chronicle captured all that is wrong with the Texas electricity market: Since 2013, when the Operating Reserve Demand Curve was approved, the Texas Legislature has sought to deal with the grid reliability problems caused…
Vote Notice 4.3.2025
Texans for Fiscal Responsibility has issued the following vote notice for April 3rd, 2025 Texas House of Representatives NONE Texas Senate Subject: Senate Bill 414 (SB 414) – Transparency on Bonds Subject: Senate Bill 609 (SB 609) – Closes education…
Vote Notice 4.2.2025
Texans for Fiscal Responsibility has issued the following vote notice for April 2nd, 2025 Texas House of Representatives Subject: House Joint Resolution 1 (HJR 1) – Tax cut for small businesses Subject: House Joint Resolution 2 (HJR 2) – Ban…