Spending

News

Election Results: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

Tuesday was election day, and Texans across the State went to the polls to cast their votes on fourteen constitutional amendments, various local propositions, and a scattering of elections for office.  Let’s briefly look at the election day results and…

NewsFederal

Federal Budget Deficit Has Nearly Doubled Under President Biden

The federal budget deficit has doubled from one year to the next a few times before. Usually, those occurrences happen in conjunction with economic bad news, something the current administration consistently says does not exist. The Numbers Game First off,…

Commentary

$18.3 Billion Surplus Proves Texas Can Cut Property Taxes More

This commentary was originally published at The Center Square here. It is being republished with permission from the author. The Texas Legislature just found out it has a huge opportunity to correct its profligate spending failures made earlier this year. But instead,…

News

The Ginn Economic Brief: Texas Economic Situation – October 2023

Texas has been a leader in job creation. But Texas faces major headwinds as this year’s 88th Legislature has looked more like California than what Texans expect. There is a better way. Free-market capitalism is the best path to let…

NewsState

Understanding Texas’ Financial Health: Takeaways from a 2023 State Report

Recently, Truth in Accounting (TIA), a fiscal watchdog organization, published a report titled “Financial State of the States 2023” shedding light on the perceived fiscal health of all 50 states in the United States based on key factors. According to…

Commentary

A Brief Examination of a Texas House Hopeful’s Record

The race to fill the vacant seat for Texas House District 2 is underway, with the special election now less than a month out.  One candidate, Jill Dutton, has thrown her hat into the ring, hoping that Voters in HD-2…

News

Comptroller Says Texas is Taking Too Much of Your Money

The State’s metaphorical piggy bank continues to fill up with surplus dollars from your wallet, says the Texas Comptroller.  Last Friday, Texas Comptroller Glenn Hegar released the Certification Revenue Estimate(CRE) for the fiscal 2024-25 biennium. The CRE revises estimates from…

Commentary

Last Call for School Choice: Third Special Session in Texas

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R) is again promoting what could be universal school choice during the third special session in Texas that starts on Oct. 9th. That would be among the best actions Texas can make, the other being eliminating…

NewsFederal

Stopgap Passage Results In Vacating McCarthy’s Speakership

In recent developments, the budgetary decisions and the political maneuvering in the U.S. Congress have taken an unforeseen turn, spotlighting the fiscal discourse that underpins our nation’s governance. The passage of the stopgap resolution, a temporary measure to prevent a…

Commentary

Texans Can Downsize Texas Government in November

Texas politicians had a choice to make this spring. With a record $80 billion of new revenue available, they could either spend the money or give it back to Texas taxpayers in the form of property tax relief. Unfortunately for…

Statements

TFR Calls for Third Special Session to “Ax the Tax”

Today, Texans for Fiscal Responsibility sent a letter to Texas Governor Greg Abbott (R) requesting that he immediately call a third special legislative session, to address a host of pressing issues affecting all Texas taxpayers and families.  It is already…

News88th TXLege

Dan Patrick Demands Audit on Failed House Impeachment Attempt

After this exciting weekend, there is no doubt that you have heard that the Texas House Board of Managers’ attempt to impeach Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has failed. On Saturday Paxton was acquitted on all charges and able to…

NewsFederal

Stop the Spending Spree: US Freedom Caucus Opposes Status Quo as Possible Shutdown Looms

With the Federal Government’s fiscal year rapidly coming to an end on September 30th, Congress must pass a “continuing resolution,” on spending, or once again face a partial government shutdown. This continuing resolution is essentially a temporary spending bill, using…

Commentary

Another Year, Another Debt Milestone

$33 trillion. Written another way, $33,000,000,000,000. The U.S. National Debt is estimated to surpass $33 trillion in a matter of days. Sadly, milestones like these seem to have become all too regular. Just one year ago I wrote a similar…

NewsLocal

Last Call for Texas Taxpayers: Final Chance to Challenge Rising Taxes and Local Spending

Every year in August and September, Local Governments across the Lone Star State set about the task of proposing and then adopting their tax rates and budgets for the next year. Last month, TFR reminded Texas taxpayers about the impending…