Author Archives: Andrew Kerr

At the conclusion of the 82nd Legislative Session three Republican House members found themselves with voting records that abjectly failed Texas taxpayers. Reps. John Davis, Allan Ritter, and Dee Margo were the bottom of the barrel – all scoring a failing “F” on the Fiscal Responsibility Index.

With a hefty number of new faces added to the ranks of Texas’ legislative body politic this session in the wake of what could be described as a “conservative landslide” in November 2010, many folks want to know, “How did the freshmen do?”

Here’s the breakdown of how Rep. Larry Gonzales (R-Round Rock) has voted throughout the course of the latest debate on auto-spending the Economic Stabilization Fund. It’s a case of legislative votes not meshing with political words.

Health Care Compact legislation championed by Rep. Lois Kolkhorst and Sen. Jane Nelson has been called many things, but perhaps the best way to describe the Compact is the difference between the one-size-fits-all approach to health care policy of the Federal Government and the states’ need for health care solutions that are tailored for them that actually work.

Despite garnering 79 votes to eliminate a provision that would automatically spend money from the state’s Rainy Day Fund in the future, State Rep. Phil King (R-Weatherford) was unable to eliminate this reckless addition to SB2.

Today, the Texas House added a provision to the must-pass “Fiscal Matters” bill that would automatically withdraw money from the Rainy Day Fund as new dollars become available.

This special session of the Texas legislature provides opportunities for commonsense spending reforms that were shunned during the regular session. State Rep. Kelly Hancock (R – Fort Worth) plans to offer an amendment to SB1 that would improve the state’s spending cap.

For government, transparency is an effective path to efficiency – especially when said transparency involves detailing how government is spending your money. That’s why State Rep Bill Zedler has filed legislation this special session to compel Texas school districts to post key financial information online.

Recently, Texhoma ISD passed a bond to build homes in an effort to game the system for more tax dollars.

Earlier this week Texas Gov. Rick Perry vetoed tax legislation for the right reason: it simply hasn’t been studied enough.