en-us A weekly audio magazine exploring the issues facing the Lone Star State. Texas Public Policy Foundation A weekly audio magazine exploring the issues facing the Lone Star State. Texas PolicyCast is presented by the Texas Public Policy Foundation, and hosted by Michael Quinn Sullivan. A weekly audio magazine exploring the issues facing the Lone Star State. Texas PolicyCast is presented by the Texas Public Policy Foundation, and hosted by Michael Quinn Sullivan. http://www.texaspolicy.com/policycast.php policycast@texaspolicy.com (Texas Public Policy Foundation) 2006 policycast@texaspolicy.com clean Texas Public Policy Foundation policycast@texaspolicy.com Thu, 4 May 2006 12:00:00 -0600 http://www.policycast.com/images/txpolicycast-itunes.jpg http://www.texaspolicy.com/policycast.php 70 70 Taxpayer protection has taken on additional significance during this special session of the Texas Legislature. As lawmakers look to shift tax burdens, and even create new types of taxes, many are worried, perhaps rightly, that without adequate protections taxpayers may be handed even larger bills in the future. This edition of Texas PolicyCast is a conversation with Texas State Senator Kyle Janek. First elected to the Texas House in 1995, and then to the Senate in 2002, he has distinguished himself as a staunch advocate for fiscal responsibility and taxpayer protection. Thu, 4 May 2006 12:00:00 -0600 http://www.policycast.com/item-20060504 As lawmakers meet in a special session on school finance, there are those in and around the Capitol who are using the occasion to call for across-the-board pay raises for teachers and other public school employees. The proposals range from a thousand-dollar to a six-thousand-dollar across-the-board raises. Some claim these pay raises are needed because Texas teachers are underpaid. But do across-the-board raises help? Will they promote better academic achievement and draw more math and science teachers, or simply preserve the status quo? A discussion with Jamie Story of the Foundation's Center for Education Policy Studies. Thu, 27 Apr 2006 08:00:00 -0600 http://www.policycast.com/item-20060427 Just hours before the legislature gaveled into special session to consider taxes and the funding of public schools, the Texas Comptroller announced that 8.2 billion dollars in surplus money was available to lawmakers. Many people view the surplus as an overpayment for the cost of government that should be returned to the taxpayers, while others suggest the surplus is not even real. Still others around the Capitol believe that even if the surplus exists, the money cannot be used for tax relief because doing so would violate the spending limitation put in the state constitution in the late 1970s. In this edition of the Texas PolicyCast, John Colyandro of the Texas Conservative Coalition Research Institute and Byron Schlomach of the Texas Public Policy Foundation address these questions. Thu, 20 Apr 2006 08:00:00 -0600 http://www.policycast.com/item-20060420 When the state Supreme Court ruled late last year on public school finance, they found that the existing system is inefficient. The court noted that the large number of school districts makes it difficult for them to produce sound educational results without waste, and that no economies of scale can be achieved when districts, particularly small districts, duplicate staffing, facilities, and administration. The ruling, of course, raised the specter of school consolidation, a concept that provokes deeply emotional responses in communities throughout the state. Chris Patterson, the visiting research fellow in the Center for Education Policy, discusses the research behind school consolidation, and suggests a better way to view the issue. Thu, 13 Apr 2006 08:00:00 -0600 http://www.policycast.com/item-20060413 Since it began in 1965 as assistance for the poor and uninsured, Medicaid has grown into a program costing taxpayers around the country more than 300 billion dollars a year. Medicaid surpasses public education as the top budget line-item in many states, including Texas, and threatens to overwhelm other budget priorities. Thu, 6 Apr 2006 08:00:00 -0600 http://www.policycast.com/item-20060406 The Texas Tax Reform Commission has now unveiled their recommendation for consideration by the legislature. But when lawmakers meet in special session, they will have a variety of options to consider, all tagged with the politically charged labels of progressive and regressive. Byron Schlomach, chief economist at the Texas Public Policy Foundation, discusses the relevance of these labels, the impact taxes have on Texas, and the burden everyone must bear. Thu, 30 Mar 2006 08:00:00 -0600 http://www.policycast.com/item-20060330 The governor has announced he is calling lawmakers back to Austin on April 17 for a special session to once again attempt to fix to the Texas education finance system. This time, the legislature faces a June 1 deadline, with the Texas Supreme Court threatening to shut down the schools unless the issue is resolved. Brooke Rollins, president of the Texas Public Policy Foundation, discusses the likelihood of success, the issues driving the debate, and possible solutions. Thu, 23 Mar 2006 08:00:00 -0600 http://www.policycast.com/item-20060323 Lawmakers are facing a court-ordered June 1 deadline to fix public school finance. As the debate heats up, it is important that lawmakers and the public use facts, not rhetoric, to guide the important decisions ahead. A discussion about school spending facts with Jamie Story of the Foundation's Center for Education Policy Studies. Thu, 16 Mar 2006 08:00:00 -0600 http://www.policycast.com/item-20060316 An introduction to the Texas PolicyCast program by the Texas Public Policy Foundation's vice president, Michael Quinn Sullivan. Wed, 15 Mar 2006 08:00:00 -0600 http://www.policycast.com/item-20060315