Category Archives: Budget ballyhoo

New flash: Dropping Medicaid would be bad

Posted on December 4, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Don’t take my word for it, take the Texas Department of Health and Human Services’ word for it. Opting out of federal Medicaid, something Republican leaders have been considering as a method to wipe out Texas’ estimated $25 billion budget … Continue reading →

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Hobby and Ellis on Medicaid

Posted on December 3, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

State Sen. Rodney Ellis and former Lt. Gov. Bill Hobby lay out the reasons why quitting Medicaid would be a disaster for the state. Texas already has the unfortunate distinction of having the highest uninsured population in the country. It … Continue reading →

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The marriage tax is working

Posted on December 2, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Back in 2007, the Lege passed a bill authored by Speaker-wannabe Rep. Warren Chisum that doubled the cost of a marriage license for any couple that did not take a state-approved marriage class. The idea, according to Chisum, was that … Continue reading →

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Do we or do we not have a structural deficit?

Posted on December 1, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

In this corner, State Rep. Mike Villarreal: In a kerfuffle involving two House members who really like to engage in detailed discussions of Texas’ tax system, Rep. Mike Villarreal, D-San Antonio, sent reporters a letter in which he told Rep. … Continue reading →

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Because that’s who he is

Posted on November 29, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Before Thanksgiving, Ezra Klein asked “Why does Gov. Rick Perry want more uninsured Texans?” Consider the case of Texas, which with 25 percent uninsured, leads the nation in not providing for its residents. If the state pulls out of Medicaid, … Continue reading →

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There’s no such thing as a rainy day

Posted on November 24, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Rainy Day Fund? What Rainy Day Fund? State budget writers will propose eliminating agencies, cutting others to a quarter of their current size and laying off state employees to balance the budget without raising taxes or using the state’s Rainy … Continue reading →

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We can learn from Indiana’s example

Posted on November 23, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

The state of Indiana decided a couple of years ago that it was paying too much for Medicaid, so they created to create a program called Healthy Indiana that provided vouchers for low income people to use to purchase private … Continue reading →

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From the “Be careful what you wish for” department

Posted on November 22, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

The state wants to reduce its workforce as part of the cost savings needed to balance the budget. But what it saves now it may pay for later. Ann Fuelberg, executive director of the Employees Retirement System of Texas, warned … Continue reading →

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First they came for Medicaid

Posted on November 21, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Then they came for public education. School districts are being told they should expect to get an estimated $3 billion to $5 billion less in the next two-year budget as lawmakers begin wrestling with a $24 billion revenue shortfall in … Continue reading →

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Gambling proponents still optimistic for some reason

Posted on November 20, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

The conventional wisdom, to which I subscribe, says that the results on this election are bad news for proponents of expanded gambling. One reason for this is that the Republican wave means more socially conservative members. Gambling proponents are doing … Continue reading →

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More pushback from the medical community on Medicaid

Posted on November 18, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Doctors and medical associations had a big effect on public opinion during the fight over the Affordable Care Act. We’ll see whether that is true during the fight over Medicaid. “Unless our state leaders can come up with a financing … Continue reading →

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Medicaid: Ideologues versus experts

Posted on November 16, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

The fascinating thing in this story about the Republican plan to kill Medicaid is just how half-baked the idea is. GOP Gov. Rick Perry, fresh off a big re-election win and touting his new book on states’ rights, is among … Continue reading →

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Who’s your nanny?

Posted on November 15, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Everything you need to know about the potential Republican effort to opt out of Medicaid can be taken from this quote: “If people are in superbad poverty, that’s one thing,” says state Rep. Warren Chisum, R-Pampa, the state’s most vocal … Continue reading →

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More on Medicaid

Posted on November 8, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Mike Tomasky on the question of Texas ditching Medicaid: The states’ share of Medicaid costs has been an immense burden for two decades, there’s no denying it. I remember Mario Cuomo complaining about it when he was governor, when I … Continue reading →

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Who needs Medicaid?

Posted on November 8, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Here’s an early peek at what we have to look forward to next year. Some Republican lawmakers — still reveling in Tuesday’s statewide election sweep — are proposing an unprecedented solution to the state’s estimated $25 billion budget shortfall: dropping … Continue reading →

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Amazon was just the beginning

Posted on November 7, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

I agree with this. By telling retail giant Amazon.com that it owes $269 million in uncollected sales taxes, the State of Texas has waded into the national debate over taxing Internet sales. The state comptroller’s office said it has sent … Continue reading →

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The impending budget cuts will affect you in ways you don’t realize

Posted on November 6, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Here’s a bit from that big Chron story last weekend about Houston’s ongoing battle against sexually oriented businesses that masquerade as massage parlors and how the budget debacle will make that battle a little harder for the city. Regulating massage … Continue reading →

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The hole is deeper than we thought, the continuing story

Posted on November 5, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

You have to admire the timing on this. Texas collected $2.5 billion less in taxes in the 2010 fiscal year that ended Aug. 31, than the previous year, state Comptroller Susan Combs said in a new cash report. The tax … Continue reading →

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Reinventing higher education

Posted on November 4, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

More stuff from last week to catch up on: Good luck with that. The state’s higher education agency called Thursday for sweeping changes in policy, including a revised method of funding community colleges and public universities, a greater emphasis on … Continue reading →

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Texas tells Amazon to pay up

Posted on October 29, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Well, that’s one way to attack the budget deficit. Texas has sent Amazon.com Inc. a $269 million bill for uncollected sales taxes on purchases made by state residents from the Seattle-based Internet superstore over a four-year period. […] R.J. DeSilva, … Continue reading →

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The deficit debacle

Posted on October 27, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Think things are bad now? Just you wait. Texas faces a budget crisis of truly daunting proportions, with lawmakers likely to cut sacrosanct programs such as education for the first time in memory and to lay off hundreds if not … Continue reading →

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No federal sex ed money for Texas

Posted on October 10, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Stay ignorant, kids. It’s what the state of Texas wants you to do. At the end of the summer, Texas quietly opted to forgo yet another pot of federal money — specifically, $4.4 million that would have gone toward educating … Continue reading →

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It’s cronies all the way down

Posted on October 4, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Is there anything Rick Perry does that isn’t for the benefit of himself and his cronies? When Gov. Rick Perry announces that a company will get money from the Texas Emerging Technology Fund, he often describes it as an important … Continue reading →

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Cutting the budget means cutting education

Posted on September 30, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

No two ways around it. As the single biggest consumer of state money, the Texas public education system stands to lose millions of dollars as the state grapples with a looming budget shortfall. Education Commissioner Robert Scott has suggested more … Continue reading →

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Rick Perry loves the stimulus

Posted on September 25, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

He just hates to admit it. When 47 state and territorial governors sent a letter on Feb. 22 asking for more federal matching dollars for Medicaid, Perry refused to sign. He likes to talk about how he thinks the American … Continue reading →

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State sues over education stimulus funds

Posted on September 24, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

So much for a peaceful resolution. Texas went to federal court [Thursday] to pry loose $830 million in federal aid intended to help avert teacher layoffs. The funds — Texas’ share of a $10 billion jobs package Congress approved last … Continue reading →

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Scrap it and start over

Posted on September 21, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Good to hear. Texas needs to scrap its school funding system and start all over, Senate Education Chair Florence Shapiro, R-Plano, said Thursday, as other members of a special school finance committee agreed that the existing system is hopelessly broken. … Continue reading →

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The hole keeps growing

Posted on September 18, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Do I hear $21 billion? $21 billion, anybody? The working estimate of the looming state budget shortfall has grown to about $21 billion in the face of smaller-than-expected tax revenues and projected higher costs for education and health care, legislative … Continue reading →

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Progress on food stamps

Posted on September 17, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Good news. With hundreds of new workers on board, Texas has dramatically improved its speed and accuracy processing food stamp applications, Health and Human Services Executive Commissioner Tom Suehs [told] state lawmakers [last week]. But he’ll also tell the joint … Continue reading →

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Feds reject Texas’ application for education funds

Posted on September 13, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Oops. The U.S. Department of Education has rejected Texas’ application for $830 million in federal money for schools and asked the state to resubmit its request without conditions. The rejection was based on a line in the state’s application that … Continue reading →

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Yes, let’s enroll more kids in CHIP

Posted on September 12, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

What a great idea. The Obama administration today ballyhooed a new Urban Institute report that suggests a path to enrolling 5 million kids in government-sponsored health insurance who are eligible but not signed up. The report says increasing the number … Continue reading →

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Cutting TEXAS grants

Posted on September 11, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Paying for college keeps getting harder for a lot of people in Texas. Each year since 2003, the TEXAS grant program has had more applicants than it’s been able to help. In 2009, lawmakers added $110 million to the program. … Continue reading →

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How big is the hole, Susan?

Posted on September 10, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

You’d think with all of the talk about the budget and the projected shortfall, we’d have heard an opinion from our State Comptroller, Susan Combs, as to just how things look right now. Especially given that Governor Perry has publicly … Continue reading →

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Retama Park

Posted on September 8, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Here’s another story about another horse racing track – Retama Park, which is northeast of San Antonio in Selma – hoping to hit the jackpot (as it were) with slot machines. The bit that interests me is this: If slots … Continue reading →

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