Tag Archives: Tom Pauken

Susan Criss to file in HD23

Posted on December 7, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Some excellent news from the inbox, via Carl Whitmarsh: For fifteen years I was honored to wear a black robe for the people of Galveston County. Four times I raised my hand and swore, so help me God, to faithfully … Continue reading →

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UT/TT poll has Davis trailing Abbott by five

Posted on November 5, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

I know today is Election Day 2013, but for better or worse much of the attention lately has been about the 2014 elections. Filing season begins later this week, and we now have a new poll result suggesting that the … Continue reading →

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Abbott’s mushy launch

Posted on July 16, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

For a guy who’s supposed to be The Chosen One to succeed Rick Perry, Greg Abbott’s formal campaign launch has been remarkably substance-free. With his wife and daughter standing near, Republican Attorney General Greg Abbott kicked off his campaign for … Continue reading →

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No “divine right of succession”

Posted on July 12, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

I wish you well with that argument, Tom. For those who are already declaring that Attorney General Greg Abbott will be Gov. Rick Perry’s successor, former Texas Workforce Commissioner Tom Pauken has a clear message. “This idea that there’s a … Continue reading →

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Perry will not run for re-election

Posted on July 9, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

There’s your big announcement. Gov. Rick Perry announced Monday that he will not run for re-election next year, creating the first open race for Texas governor since 1990 and making Attorney General Greg Abbott the instant favorite to replace him. … Continue reading →

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The politics of refusing Medicaid expansion

Posted on March 27, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Ron Brownstein posits that by his stubborn and increasingly isolated resistance to Medicaid expansion, including via the Arkansas option, Rick Perry is putting Republicans in electoral danger in Texas. Brownstein runs through the economic arguments and touches on the legislative … Continue reading →

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Pauken for Governor

Posted on March 22, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

We have our first official non-fringe candidate for Governor next year. Saying he hoped to reunite the “Reagan coalition of social and economic conservatives,” former Texas Workforce Commissioner Tom Pauken confirmed to the Tribune that he will file to run … Continue reading →

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Pauken responds to Hammond

Posted on September 30, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Tom Pauken responds to Bill Hammond on the subject of school accountability. Hammond encourages us to “stay the course” of the existing high-stakes testing system and “4×4” curriculum that have come to dominate public education in Texas. Implicit in this … Continue reading →

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Hammond pushes back on Pauken

Posted on September 21, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

After I read Patti Hart’s column about Tom Pauken and his anti-standardized testing quest, I noted the absence of a mention of uber-testing advocate Bill Hammond. Hammond has no trouble talking about Pauken, however. Tom Pauken, former chairman of the … Continue reading →

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Pauken on testing

Posted on September 19, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Patricia Kilday Hart has a conversation with Texas Workforce Commission Chair Tom Pauken about testing and accountability in public schools. As a Texas Workforce Commissioner, Pauken has spent a lot of time studying whether our public school system prepares an … Continue reading →

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TAB takes a hostage

Posted on July 1, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Can’t say I’m surprised by this tactic. Leaders in the business community said Wednesday that they would not stand for increased funding for education if it came with any rollback of accountability standards in Texas public schools. “If we are … Continue reading →

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How to really put the unemployed to work

Posted on July 2, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Texas Workforce Commissioner Tom Pauken has the germ of a good idea here. Unfortunately, he’s incapable of seeing what it is, and so goes off a cliff with it. “Even in good economic times, there were people in Texas who … Continue reading →

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Just a reminder about Perry’s unemployment tax increase

Posted on May 3, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Lisa Falkenberg watches some video of Texas Workforce Commission Executive Director Larry Temple testifying before the Senate and reiterates something we knew. Temple acknowledged Thursday to the Senate Committee on Economic Development that Texas’ decision not to take $556 million … 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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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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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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Watson on unemployment

Posted on July 22, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

State Sen. Kirk Watson reviews the bidding on how the state of Texas has handled its unemployment issues. As was noted during this past legislative session by Workforce Commission Chairman Tom Pauken (who was appointed by the Governor and once … 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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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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Lege versus Gov on unemployment funds

Posted on March 12, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

Showdown time. The House committee charged with recommending how to use the federal stimulus money does not see eye to eye with Gov. Rick Perry on the $555 million for unemployment insurance. In a 5 to 1 vote, the committee … Continue reading →

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Will we or won’t we fix unemployment insurance?

Posted on February 26, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

There’s a lot of money riding on the answer to that question. The lure of $555 million in federal stimulus money for additional unemployment insurance has Texas legislators mulling whether to expand unemployment benefits to more workers. To get that … Continue reading →

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When you look up “short-sighted” in the dictionary, this will be cited as an example

Posted on January 22, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

That’s our Governor, for whom the expression “penny-wise and pound-foolish” is a way of life. Nearly a year ago, Gov. Rick Perry trumpeted $90 million in savings to businesses by temporarily suspending some of the burden of paying unemployment insurance … Continue reading →

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