Category Archives: Budget ballyhoo

State sales tax revenues plummet

Posted on November 11, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

No surprise here. Sales tax and natural gas tax collections fell more than $1 billion short of projections in the 2009 fiscal year, according to a state comptroller’s report, fueling questions about the financial heartburn that may be ahead for … Continue reading →

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A slow solution is bad but no solution is worse

Posted on November 4, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

Same song, yet another verse: The food stamp situation in Texas is truly terrible. As Texas begins hiring hundreds of food stamp workers to help erase an application backlog that has left families waiting months for aid, no one expects … Continue reading →

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Dewhurst fibs about the budget and the stimulus

Posted on October 22, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

What Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst says: Given recent comments about our state’s budget, I feel it is time to separate fact from political fiction. The fact is, in stark contrast to the U. S. Congress, the Texas Constitution requires the … Continue reading →

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Perry meddles again

Posted on October 14, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

All of his shenanigans with the Texas Forensic Science Commission have kept Governor Perry busy lately, but not so busy that he can’t mess with other things, too. Gov. Rick Perry plans to reshuffle the board leadership of the state’s … Continue reading →

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The DMN on the food stamp situation

Posted on October 14, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

It’s depressing reading these articles, but it’s important to do so, to really understand why we’re so screwed up. First and foremost, it’s an attitude problem. As in, the people who have the most power over it have the least … Continue reading →

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Monitoring the food stamps problem

Posted on October 13, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

State Sens. Judith Zaffirini and Tommy Williams will be keeping an eye on the food stamps situation. Zaffirini said in an interview that she and Williams will work with Health and Human Services Executive Commissioner Tom Suehs on hiring more … Continue reading →

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Playing politics: Not just for the Forensic Science commission

Posted on October 13, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

Hey, you know that two billion dollars of federal funds we need to borrow to shore up the unemployment insurance trust fund? I’m sure you’ll be shocked to hear that Rick Perry’s appointees on the Texas Workforce Commission are thinking … Continue reading →

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Feds to Texas: Fix food stamps!

Posted on October 7, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

Yet another (bad) way in which our state has distinguished itself. Federal officials say Texas should appoint a food stamp czar to take charge of fixing the application backlogs and high error rates plaguing the program. “All states are feeling … Continue reading →

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State to grudgingly hire a few more food stamps workers

Posted on October 4, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

Don’t strain yourselves, fellas. State leaders announced late Friday that more employees will be hired to help process food stamp applications. […] “In these tough economic times, the state of Texas must do everything in its power to ensure Texas … Continue reading →

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Food stamps fail

Posted on September 28, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

News item: Budget board denies request for more food stamps workers. The Legislative Budget Board has denied a request from the Health and Human Services Commission to hire about 650 state workers to relieve the state’s food stamp enrollment system, … Continue reading →

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Governor Perry loves the stimulus

Posted on September 9, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

That Governor Perry loves the stimulus shouldn’t be a surprise, despite his high-profile bleatings. He loves anything he can use to his political advantage. Gov. Rick Perry rallied opposition to federal stimulus spending, but he now is the manager of … Continue reading →

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The continuing HHSC saga

Posted on September 7, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

Most of what’s in this Chron story about the problems with the Health and Human Services Commission and its problems processing food stamp applications is stuff we’ve seen before. Just a couple of things to highlight: Some welcome a recent … Continue reading →

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Always go to the source

Posted on August 29, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

If you find yourself in the position of needing to file for unemployment insurance from the state of Texas, be sure you go to the Texas Workforce Commission page to do it. Do not go anywhere else. As if it’s … Continue reading →

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It’s hard to be unemployed in Texas

Posted on August 18, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

I’m sure this comes as no surprise. If you lose your job in Texas, you may be out of luck in more ways than one. The Texas Workforce Commission rejected about a third of jobless claims last year and 27 … Continue reading →

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You can pay me now, or you can pay me later

Posted on August 14, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

Odds are, we’ll opt for later to deal with the large deficit we’re facing with the unemployment insurance trust fund. Texas’ jobless-benefits fund is empty, and the state will probably borrow $1.5 billion from the federal government to pay benefits … Continue reading →

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More on food stamps lawsuit

Posted on August 13, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

The Chron now has a story about the lawsuit that has been filed over Texas’ inability to process food stamp applications in the federally-required 30 day time period. There’s not much in the story that we don’t already know, but … Continue reading →

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Burka on the politics of unemployment insurance

Posted on August 10, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

Burka takes a look at how Rick Perry’s rejection of the stimulus funds for unemployment insurance might play out in his eventual battle with Kay Bailey Hutchison for the GOP nomination for Governor. Be sure to also read this comment … Continue reading →

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HHSC sued over food stamp delays

Posted on August 5, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

This will definitely bear watching. Legal services lawyers for the poor have filed a class-action lawsuit demanding immediate repair of Texas’ much-criticized eligibility screening system for health and welfare programs. The suit was filed in U.S. District Court in Austin … Continue reading →

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You don’t get what you don’t pay for

Posted on August 5, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

School buses. Who needs ’em? Homeowners in the Cypress-Fairbanks school district are able to keep their special tax break this year, but now thousands of students are left without school bus rides. To make a dent in a $14 million … Continue reading →

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The biennial budget shuffle

Posted on August 4, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

In addition to billions of stimulus dollars, the budget this year relied on some old tricks to get certified as balanced. Nearly $3.7 billion in levies collected for everything from fighting air pollution to helping low-income people with their electric … Continue reading →

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A&M and the Emerging Technology fund

Posted on August 3, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

Loren Steffy tells us about politics infecting research at Texas A&M. And Rick Perry is involved. Shocking, I know. In January, the state awarded A&M $50 million from the Emerging Technology Fund, which purports to benefit private-sector technology startups, for … Continue reading →

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Dems attack Perry over stimulus funds

Posted on August 2, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

Good to see. Texas Democratic lawmakers Thursday defended President Barack Obama’s stimulus package against criticism from Republican leaders, saying Texas is making economic progress with the help of recovery funds. Texas state Sen. Leticia Van de Putte, D-San Antonio, said … Continue reading →

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Two billion dollars

Posted on July 31, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

Governor Perry’s grandstanding rejection of the federal stimulus money for unemployment insurance is going to cost us all more and more. Texas is preparing to borrow as much as $2-billion to pay for unemployment insurance benefits. That’s what the chairman … Continue reading →

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As goes Cy-Fair, so goes Texas

Posted on July 28, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

Earlier this month, I noted that the Cy-Fair ISD was considering the repeal of an optional homestead exemption so it could pay for salaries and services it needed for the schools. They backed off after residents protested, choosing instead of … Continue reading →

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Education stimulus money for Texas approved

Posted on July 28, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

Good news. The U.S. Department of Education has approved Texas’ application for using $3.2 billion in federal stimulus money, Rep. Lloyd Doggett, D-Austin, said. That money will be used to pay for textbooks and a $1.9 billion increase in school … Continue reading →

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Our friend the stimulus package

Posted on July 24, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

Jason Embry tells us just how much Texas relied on the stimulus package this year. A new report from the National Conference of State Legislatures shows that federal stimulus dollars played a large role in allowing Texas lawmakers to balance … Continue reading →

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More unemployed, fewer benefits

Posted on July 15, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

Boy, no one could have predicted this. In a sign of lingering hardship, more than 15,000 Texans will lose their unemployment checks at the end of the month because they have exhausted their benefits after 59 weeks without a job. … Continue reading →

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Sales tax revenues drop

Posted on July 15, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

The 2011 legislative session is going to be so much fun. Texas’ sales tax collections could fall $550 million short of budget projections for the current fiscal year, figures released Friday by Comptroller Susan Combs show. The $1.6 billion collected … Continue reading →

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Texas to get stimulus funds for education

Posted on July 7, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

Two weeks ago I wondered if there might be an issue with Texas receiving stimulus funds for education because of the way these funds had been appropriated in the state budget. I’m pleased to see that the answer is no, … Continue reading →

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Is there a problem with the stimulus funds?

Posted on June 22, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

I hope not. The debate over whether Texas lawmakers can use federal stimulus money to boost education spending, including funding a raise for teachers, is heating up. The Obama administration warned states Thursday it may withhold millions of dollars if … Continue reading →

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Unemployment insurance taxes set to rise

Posted on June 13, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

Good news, business owners! You’re going to see a tax increase soon. Most Texas employers should plan for their unemployment insurance taxes to increase significantly next year, Texas Workforce Commission Chairman Tom Pauken of Dallas said Tuesday. While tax rates … Continue reading →

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More Tier One schools

Posted on June 2, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

Here’s some genuine good news from Sunday night’s chaos. Legislation intended to lift some of the state’s public universities to top-tier status has passed the House and Senate and now goes to Gov. Rick Perry, who is expected to sign … Continue reading →

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TxDOT lives, Lege adjourns

Posted on June 1, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

The threat of a special session has been averted…we think. The House just voted to work the Legislature out of a jam by keeping open the Texas Department of Transportation and other state agencies at risk of closing. Members needed … Continue reading →

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Budget heads to the Governor

Posted on May 30, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

In the end, thanks in large part to the stimulus package and its infusion of funds that prevented the need to dip into the Rainy Day Fund, the budget process was relatively uncontroversial. Yesterday, it was passed by the House, … Continue reading → Continue reading →

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