The Texas Public Policy Foundation is a 501(c)3 non-profit, non-partisan research institute. The Foundation’s mission is to promote and defend liberty, personal responsibility, and free enterprise in Texas by educating and affecting policymakers and the Texas public policy debate with academically sound research and outreach.
New litigation under the Endangered Species Act endangers traditional state authority over surface water allocations, risks extinguishing existing property rights, and could cut off a vital source of water to communities in central Texas.
What Texans want is more, less expensive electricity, not less, more expensive electricity. If Texas wants to reduce energy costs and save money for Texas consumers, it needs to go back to the drawing board and make significant changes to the energy efficiency program and eliminate the Renewable Portfolio Standard.
Testimony before the House Select Committee on Fiscal Stability outlining the Foundation's recommendations on how to address the fiscal and economic challenges facing Texas.
As new crimes and sentencing enhancements mount, more offenders fill probation rolls and prisons, and many return after being discharged without being reformed. To break the cycle, policymakers must align incentives and goals by rewarding results through tying a portion of corrections funding to outcomes such as recidivism, cost effectiveness, restitution to victims, and the employment of ex-offenders.
Although the investigations into what caused the Deepwater Horizon accident are still ongoing, and the presidential commission on the oil spill has only begun its work, Congress has been busy with legislative initiatives that could significantly alter the landscape of energy production in America. Unfortunately these early measures (principally H.R. 3534 and S. 3663) may cause more problems than they solve, especially for Texas.
Proposals to expand Texas’ energy efficiency program ignore the fact that there is simply no way, given the existing data and methodology, to properly determine the efficiency—or inefficiency—of the program.
Early Signs Point to Constitutional Rejection of ObamaCare No one can predict with certainty how the constitutionality of the health care law will be resolved. But Judge Hudson’s focus on the individual mandate and his granting of standing is the best of all possible starts for finding the individual mandate unconstitutional.
Universities Shouldn’t Fight New Transparency Law Building upon Texas’ nationally-recognized reforms, House Bill 2504 by Rep. Lois Kolkhorst was passed unanimously by the Legislature, requiring more openness from our state’s public universities. But no good deed goes unpunished, and Texas is now under rhetorical attack from certain academic institutions and faculty associations.
Texas Insurance Market Still Unprepared for Hurricane Season A major hurricane blowing through Texas this year would likely leave consumers with few choices and high rates in an insurance market still recovering from Hurricane Ike. Although it is easy to put the blame on the insurers, they have been hit hard too. The past two years have seen the insurance providers suffer major losses.
Administration Using Oil Spill to Force Radical Energy Policy The federal government has enlarged the destructive aftermath of the explosion at BP’s Macondo well in the Gulf of Mexico. With the oil flow’s increasing coastal intrusion and an inept response by the federal government to containment, government edict now adds a greater blow to the regional Gulf economy.
Consumers Are King… The concept of the consumer-driven economy is everywhere. We are told a consumer-driven recovery is going to turn our economy around. Consumer-driven health care was supposed to drive down medical costs. Yet the real power of consumers is generally ignored by those proposing government solutions to problems.
A Case Study on Tort Reform Six thousand claimants in Texas silica lawsuits await their day in court. For most, that day will never come. Though it seems like justice is not being served, this is actually good news for courts and these claimants.
Transit Agencies Should Open Their Books Last year, Texas’ metropolitan transit authorities (MTAs) spent more than $4 billion of your transportation tax dollars. If you’re curious to know why, how, or on what, good luck.
AUSTIN – The Texas Public Policy Foundation honored Dr. Milton Friedman on July 30 as part of a national day of recognition for the Nobel Laureate, his work, theories, and contributions. The Friedman Legacy for Freedom Day was celebrated at a total of 64 events held in every state and five countries around the world.
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What Texans want is more, less expensive electricity, not less, more expensive electricity. If Texas wants to reduce energy costs and save money for Texas consumers, it needs to go back to the drawing board and make significant changes to the energy efficiency program and eliminate the Renewable Portfolio Standard.
