"We are pleased that Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst and Speaker Joe Straus are getting out in front of our state’s budget situation by asking agencies for targeted spending reductions. This is a time for state government to prioritize needs and cut some of the least important items, and the letter from Dewhurst and Straus seeks precisely that.

"Beginning the belt tightening process in the current fiscal year gives us a head start on getting our spending in line with available revenues in the next state budget. We should not leave ourselves in the position of relying on an influx of federal funds that might not come."

The Honorable Talmadge Heflin is Director of the Center for Fiscal Policy at the Texas Public Policy Foundation, a non-profit, free-market research institute based in Austin. Heflin served 11 terms in the Texas House of Representatives and chaired the House Appropriations Committee in 2003, leading the Texas Legislature’s successful efforts to close a $10 billion budget deficit without a tax increase.

The Texas Public Policy Foundation is a non-profit, free-market research institute based in Austin. More information can be found on the Foundation’s website, www.TexasPolicy.com.

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