AUSTIN – Today, the Texas Public Policy Foundation makes a strong case for defending local liberty through a full-page ad in five major Texas newspapers. The ad features an abridged article by Dr. Tom Lindsay, TPPF’s senior constitutional scholar and director of the Center for Higher Education.
“As Tom explained in his article, when local governments infringe on individual liberties, the state is not only entitled to intervene but has a duty to do so,” said Dr. Kevin Roberts, executive vice president of the Texas Public Policy Foundation. “As this issue is central to reforms the Legislature is considering right now, we wanted to deliver this message directly to the Texans who will be affected by these decisions to protect individual freedoms or to allow government overreach.”
The ad appears in today’s Austin American-Statesman, Dallas Morning News, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, Houston Chronicle and San Antonio Express-News.
The article, which originally appeared in Forbes on July 24, discusses the issue of local control and how it has become a point of contention in the current special session of the Texas Legislature. Issues affected by the debate includes tree-cutting ordinances, forced annexation, cell phone policies and speeding up local permitting.
“The debate has been mischaracterized as state authority versus local control, but that misses the point,” said Dr. Lindsay. “What the battle really comes down to is the choice between government regulation and individual liberty. What we should remember is that the proper purpose of any government, local or state, is to protect the rights of individuals.”
TPPF also champions local liberty in radio ads addressing property tax and annexation reform.
To see the ad visit: https://www.texaspolicy.com/multimedia/detail/tppf-champions-local-liberty-in-statewide-ad-campaign
To read the full article in Forbes: https://www.forbes.com/sites/tomlindsay/2017/07/24/state-regulation-of-cities-does-not-illegitimately-infringe-on-local-control/#5e0cf68698ca
For more information or to request an interview with Dr. Lindsay, please contact Alicia Pierce at [email protected] or 512-472-2700.
The Texas Public Policy Foundation is a non-profit free-market research institute based in Austin. The Texas Public Policy Foundation aims to advance a societal framework that effectively fosters human flourishing based upon cooperation and mutually beneficial exchange of ideas and speech.