Conservative Texas Budget: $234.1 Billion
Senate Recommended Budget: $240.2 Billion
House Recommended Budget: $235.8 Billion
The table provide an apples-to-apples comparison of amounts appropriated for the 2018-19 budget from the Legislative Budget Board’s (LBB) Fiscal Size-Up and each chamber’s 2020-21 recommended budget. We compare each chamber’s recommendations with the Conservative Texas Budget (CTB) limits for state funds and all funds (state and federal) based on an increase of 8 percent in population growth and inflation over the last two fiscal years.
We exclude from each chambers’ recommended budgets the designated Harvey-related disaster recovery expenses of $7.1 billion in federal funds because these should be one-time, unwarranted expenses.
These recommendations are the starting point. Currently, the Senate budget falls below the CTB limit in state funds and does not use the Economic Stabilization Fund but is over the limit in all funds. The House budget is over the CTB limits in state funds and all funds, but allocates $3 billion more toward school finance reform and property tax relief than the Senate, which more efficient use of current resources could fund an improved education system.