Category Archives: Budget ballyhoo

Just keep cutting till we tell you to stop

Posted on March 22, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

I have two things to say about this. Looking to get an early start on shaping budget discussions for the 2013 legislative session, the Texans for a Conservative Budget Coalition recommended Tuesday that lawmakers plan to reduce welfare spending, increase … Continue reading →

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More cuts, fewer teachers

Posted on March 20, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

We knew this was what had happened, and now we have the numbers. New data from the Texas Education Agency illustrate what school officials have decried for months: Their staffs are stretched thin following the unprecedented state budget cuts that … Continue reading →

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Comptroller Combs’ slush fund

Posted on March 15, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

It took me longer than usual to read this story because I kept having to stop to say “Seriously? Seriously?” When lawmakers gave Comptroller Susan Combs more power to spend tax money to attract sporting events and conventions to the … Continue reading →

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Still more dedicated funds not being dedicated

Posted on March 8, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

I keep wondering when we’re going to discover the last dedicated fund that is not being used for its original purpose but for general revenue. All I know is that we keep finding more of them, in this case fees … Continue reading →

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How you can help support policies and funding for public schools

Posted on February 28, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

From the inbox, sent by Sue Dimenn Deigaard: Over the past week I have heard several legislators make the misleading claim that they increased funding for public education this past session.  As a parent with a child that is in … Continue reading →

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No, there won’t be a special session to help the public schools

Posted on February 23, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Someone managed to catch Rick Perry during the few minutes he was in the office this week to ask about about having a special session to appropriate some of the extra Rainy Day funds to mitigate the cuts to public … Continue reading →

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Let’s party like it’s 2007!

Posted on February 23, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Good news: The improving economy and steadily increasing sales tax receipts may mean that we won’t have another budget apocalypse in 2013. Bad news: The Republicans in the Lege will use this as an excuse to avoid fixing the state’s … Continue reading →

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Calling for a special session

Posted on February 17, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

It started with the Texas State Teachers Association. The Texas State Teachers Association today urged Gov. Rick Perry to call the Legislature into special session now to appropriate $2.5 billion from the Rainy Day Fund and head off another round … Continue reading →

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As always, the hole is bigger than we thought

Posted on February 7, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Remember how the Republicans in the Lege underfunded Medicaid by $4.5 billion, which they will have to tap the Rainy Day Fund in 2013 to deal with, in order to make the budget for this biennium appear to be “balanced”? … Continue reading →

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Don’t go counting school finance lawsuit money yet

Posted on February 2, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

The state of Texas is very likely to have to do something about school finance soon, but “soon” is not the same as “right now”. Houston ISD counsel David Thompson was exuding confidence Saturday that Texas school districts will prevail … Continue reading →

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State not appropriating red light camera funds to trauma centers

Posted on January 17, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Stop me if you’ve heard this one before. Sandy Greyson drove away from an Arlington meeting eight years ago, and 2 tons of irony wiped her off the road. A red-light runner struck her passenger side, pushing the Dallas City … Continue reading →

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Valero will not appeal tax break decision

Posted on January 17, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Good. Valero Energy Corp. has decided not to appeal the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality’s rejection of its request for a controversial property tax exemption. […] Valero spokesman Bill Day said the company no longer would seek the exemption because … Continue reading →

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TCEQ denies Valero tax break

Posted on December 23, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Good. Texas environmental regulators have rejected Valero Energy Corp.’s request for a tax break that cities, counties and school districts feared would lead to devastating cuts to their budgets. The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality denied the request because the … Continue reading →

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Make sure you measure everything

Posted on December 18, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

A lot of groups are measuring a lot of things related to the state’s cuts to public education funding, but there’s one big thing not mentioned in this story that needs to be accurately tracked as well. In March, the … Continue reading →

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State revenues inching up

Posted on December 15, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

A little bit of good news. State coffers will be bit plumper than previously expected, Comptroller Susan Combs announced Monday, but her outlook for the Texas economy is less optimistic. Texas is estimated to collect $1.6 billion more than was … Continue reading →

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Second school finance lawsuit filed

Posted on December 12, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

We’re just getting warmed up. A coalition of property wealthy school districts jumped into the school funding fray Friday, filing a separate lawsuit claiming the current system has created another illegal statewide property tax and does not provide children with … Continue reading →

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Supreme Court upholds margins tax

Posted on November 30, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

The days of the much-unloved business margins tax may be numbered, but it won’t be the Supreme Court that is responsible for its demise. The Texas Supreme Court turned back a challenge to the state’s primary business tax, saying it … Continue reading →

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Tax reform on the menu

Posted on November 14, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

The Lege, which was too busy slashing public school funding to address the structural deficit caused by the underperforming business tax and the too-big property tax cut, will try to address the issue in 2013. “I believe that next session … Continue reading →

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Margins tax lawsuit goes to Supreme Court

Posted on October 25, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Oral arguments for the lawsuit that claims the business margins tax is an unconstitutional income tax are being heard by the State Supreme Court this week. In a lawsuit filed in July, Allcat Claims Service LP , a Boerne insurance … Continue reading →

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Don’t expect the next budget to be any better than this one

Posted on October 1, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Continuing a theme I’ve harped on here, if state legislators thought that they solved Texas’ budget issues this year they are sadly mistaken. Some experts say Texas tax revenues must zoom far above forecasts, if we’re to escape another miserable … Continue reading →

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Giving tax breaks to those that don’t need them

Posted on September 30, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

You can add this to the list of things schools might have to pay for that they don’t have the money to pay for. Three environmental commissioners appointed by Gov. Rick Perry are considering whether to grant some of the … Continue reading →

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It’s news but it’s not new

Posted on September 10, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Before the Labor Day weekend, Sen. Dan Patrick said something that was considered to be newsworthy even though he and others have been saying it for years. A Republican state senator calling for a tax increase is clearly in the … Continue reading →

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On targeting public pension plans

Posted on August 31, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

I have three things to say about this. Texas could be gearing up for its own Wisconsin-style grudge match over public employee benefits. A group of high-powered Houston business leaders is starting a statewide campaign to overhaul retirement for future … Continue reading →

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Thanks for helping us balance the budget, fishermen

Posted on August 23, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

The Chron’s Shannon Tompkins explains how budgetary shenanigans have an adverse effect on Texas’ hunters and fishers. Every year, tens of millions of dollars in hunting and fishing license fees are left sitting in the state account used to fund … Continue reading →

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Please place the blame where it belongs

Posted on August 18, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Stories like this concern me. Public opinion of the Houston Independent School District plummeted this year amid severe state budget cuts, while support of the superintendent also dropped, according to a new survey. Among parents surveyed this spring, 54 percent … Continue reading →

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Noted for 2013

Posted on August 14, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

When the next Texas Legislature gets gaveled in and hears the bad news about the ten-figure budget shortfall it will have to deal with, remember that at least one Republican involved in the budget-writing process this year says we won’t … Continue reading →

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Lawsuit filed against business margins tax

Posted on August 10, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Allstate Claims Service, L.P., which is based in Boerne, has filed a lawsuit alleging that the business margins tax is an illegally-passed income tax in Texas. Oh, boy. Nikki Laing, a CPA and third-year Baylor law student, studied the structure … Continue reading →

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Don’t forget Texas’ debt

Posted on August 9, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Now that Perry’s Prayerpalooza is behind us and we breathlessly await his Presidential decision, keep this op-ed by former State Rep. Jim Dunnam in mind whenever you hear Perry pontificate about the national debt. Before Rick Perry became governor, Texas … Continue reading →

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Austin ISD rehiring some teachers

Posted on August 7, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

A little bit of good news. The Austin school board voted Monday to abandon plans to expand class sizes to save money, reverting to the ideal student-teacher ratio of 22-to-1 for classes in kindergarten through the fourth grade and prompting … Continue reading →

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You get the policies you voted for

Posted on August 5, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

I hate to sound like a broken record, but these people need to quit complaining about getting what they voted for. Midland County officials are appealing to the state for reconsideration after it stripped $1.2 million in funding from the … Continue reading →

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Tough times for teaching hospitals

Posted on July 30, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Oh, who needs doctors, anyway? Texas teaching hospitals are bracing for a big hit in the federal deficit-reduction plans under consideration, just a few weeks after the state Legislature slashed funding to the same doctor-training programs. The cuts will exacerbate … Continue reading →

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Talking about the T word

Posted on July 28, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Scott McCown brings up the subject of taxes but leaves it short of where to go from here. If a stronger economy, honest budgeting and pitting priorities against each other aren’t the answer, what is? Texas must modestly increase taxes. … Continue reading →

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Does Perry get any credit?

Posted on July 18, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

What credit, if any, should Rick Perry get for Texas’ relatively good economic condition? This Statesman story aims to find out. As Gov. Rick Perry’s flirtation with running for president puts the Texas economy under a microscope, there’s no question … Continue reading →

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Our debt is good, your debt is bad

Posted on July 14, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Oh, the humanity! For all the controversy over the national debt ceiling, here’s a surprise: Since 2001, the debt load in conservative Texas has grown faster than the federal debt. Texas has been borrowing more than most other states, too. … Continue reading →

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