Spending
Episode 2: Session Begins & Fiscal Update with Vance Ginn, Ph.D.
Episode Description π° In this episode of π§ππ«π£ππ¬ππ₯ π§ππππ¦, we discuss what occurred in the first week of the 88th Legislative Session, as well as the details of the fiscal update we received from Texas Comptroller Glenn Hegar with guest…
Legislature Votes to Raise Office Budgets at Taxpayers’ Expense
Only two days into the 88th Legislative Session, both legislative chambers made a mad dash to give their offices as much money as they could squeeze out of Texas taxpayers. Growing Government As expected, they used the usual excuses: to…
TFR Statement on the Growing Budget Surplus
On Monday, Texas Comptroller Glenn Hegar released his long-awaited Biennial Revenue Estimate (BRE) ahead of the 88th Legislative Session, which begins Tuesday. One key takeaway from Hegarβs announcement, outside of the estimate lawmakers can spend, was that the historic budget…
Episode 1: Session Preview & Congressional Chaos
Episode Description π° In this episode of π§ππ«π£ππ¬ππ₯ π§ππππ¦, we preview what is ahead as the 88th Texas Legislative Session begins next week. We also discuss the ongoing U.S. Congressional chaos related to the selection of a Speaker of the…
Festivus: Airing of Grievances
What is Festivus? Finding its origins in the hit ’90s sitcomΒ Seinfeld from an episode entitled “The Strike”, the character George Costanza’s family celebrates a holiday called Festivus as an alternative to Christmas, and a tongue-in-cheek protest to the commercialism surrounding…
Episode 23: Preparing for the Texas 88th Legislative Session
Episode Description π° In this episode of π§ππ«π£ππ¬ππ₯ π§ππππ¦, we briefly discuss recent polling that suggests taxpayers continue to want the Texas state lawmakers to prioritize property tax relief over any other spending in the upcoming legislative session as well…
Episode 18: BONUS EPISODE: Vance Ginn, Ph.D.
Episode Description π° In this bonus episode of π§ππ«π£ππ¬ππ₯ π§ππππ¦, we talk with Dr. Vance Ginn, former Chief Economist at the Texas Public Policy Foundation and Associate Director for Economic Policy of the Office of Management and Budget under the…
The Biggest Loser in the Wake of 2022 Midterms in Texas: Fiscal Sanity
Much to the chagrin of fiscal conservatives, perhaps the most significant thing to come out of the 2022 midterm elections was the overwhelming success of many bond propositions and tax rate increases on the ballot. In a country where we…
Episode 17: Red Ripples in Midterm Elections & Implications
Episode Description π° In this episode of π§ππ«π£ππ¬ππ₯ π§ππππ¦, we briefly discuss the 2022 midterm election results and what they mean in our estimation for fiscal conservatives and Texas taxpayers. We also preview our recent interview with Vance Ginn, Ph.D.,…
Recent Report Shows Texas’ Abysmal Record on Property Taxes
Recently, the Huffines Liberty Foundation released a report entitled “Texas Property Taxes: A State-to-State Comparison.” As the first in a three-part series, the report itself claims to be a road map to abolish property taxes in Texas, something the majority…
Episode 16: BONUS EPISODE: Thomas McNutt
Episode Description π° In this bonus episode of π§ππ«π£ππ¬ππ₯ π§ππππ¦, we talk with a business owner, conservative activist, and former candidate for the Texas House of Representatives, Thomas McNutt on seeking fiscal sanity at the local government level among several…
Texas Given a ‘D’ Rating on Fiscal Health
Recently, Truth in Accounting released its 2022 Financial State of the States Report analyzing the financial health of all 50 states in the United States. They have released this annual report for the past 13 years. According to the report,…
Episode 14: BONUS EPISODE: State Representative Kyle Biedermann
Episode Description π° In this bonus episode of π§ππ«π£ππ¬ππ₯ π§ππππ¦, we talk with outgoing Republican Texas State Representative Kyle Biedermann about fiscal issues facing Texas including the property tax and the appetite in the Texas Legislature to address them, the…
Episode 12: BONUS EPISODE: Texas State Representative Jeff Cason
Episode Description π° In this bonus episode of π§ππ«π£ππ¬ππ₯ π§ππππ¦, we talk with outgoing Republican Texas State Representative Jeff Cason about fiscal issues facing Texas including the property tax and the appetite in the Texas Legislature to address them, his…
Episode 11: Jeff Cason, Quid Pro Joe and a Political Culture of Spending
Episode Description π° In this episode of π§ππ«π£ππ¬ππ₯ π§ππππ¦, we highlight some of the more interesting points to come out of our recent interview with Texas Republican State Representative Jeff Cason, the recent “Quid pro-Joe” scandal regarding Saudi Arabian oil,…