AUSTIN – The Texas Public Policy Foundation’s 14th Annual Policy Orientation for the Texas Legislature begins TOMORROW, Wednesday, January 6, 2016 and runs through Friday, January 8, 2016. This year’s sold-out Policy Orientation takes place at the Hilton Austin Hotel, and will feature an array of prominent speakers on the major issues affecting the future of Texas.
Keynote speakers include Medal of Honor recipient Sgt Dakota Meyer, USMC, former U.S. SenatorsTom Coburn and Phil Gramm, Nevada Lieutenant Governor Mark Hutchison, Texas Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick, Governor Greg Abbott, and more.
Keynote and plenary sessions will be livestreamed at: http://txpo.li/TPPFlive
To view the complete agenda, visit: www.PolicyOrientation.com
For over thirteen years, the Texas Public Policy Foundation’s Policy Orientation has been one of the nation’s top policy conferences, selling out each year while bringing together lawmakers, policy experts, and engaged citizens from across the political spectrum to discuss critical issues facing the Lone Star State and America.
To register as media please contact Caroline Espinosa at [email protected] or 512-472-2700.
WHO: Texas Public Policy Foundation
WHAT: 14th Annual Policy Orientation for the Texas Legislature
WHEN: January 6-8, 2015
WHERE: Hilton Austin
500 East 4th Street
Austin, TX 78701
AGENDA
The Texas Public Policy Foundation’s 14th Annual Policy Orientation for the Texas Legislature
Day 1: Wednesday, January 6, 2016
12:00 pm
OPENING LUNCHEON KEYNOTE
Sgt Dakota Meyer, USMC
1:30 pm
CONCURRENT POLICY PANELS
Three Felonies a Day: How Everyday Behavior Affects Everyday People
Greg Glod • Doug Deason • Shannon Edmonds • Representative Matt Krause • Bill Kuntz
Spending vs. Taxation: Does the Conservative Texas Budget Meet the Needs of Texans?
The Honorable Talmadge Heflin • Representative Greg Bonnen • Representative Donna Howard • Bob Williams
Uncompensated Care, Medicaid, and Solutions to Texas’ Health Care Crisis
John Davidson • Representative Garnet Coleman • Dr. Vance Ginn • Camille Miller
3:00 pm
CONCURRENT POLICY PANELS
The Uber Debate of Health Care: Telemedicine and Texas
Kate Murphy • Dr. Elliot Justin • Commissioner Sid Miller • Dr. Billy Philips • Mari Robinson, J.D.
How Will Texas’ Rising, Low-Income Majority Afford College?
Dr. Thomas Lindsay • Jorge Klor de Alva • Representative Armando "Mando" Martinez • Dr. Ronald Trowbridge
Government and Poverty: Do Our Policies Help or Hurt?
The Honorable Chuck DeVore • Alan Graham • Fred McMahon • Randal O’Toole
4:30 pm
PLENARY SESSION
No Voice, No Vote: Forced Annexation in Texas
The Honorable Chuck DeVore • Senator Donna Campbell • The Honorable Phil Gramm • Representative Dan Huberty
Day 2: Thursday, January 7, 2016
8:00 am
BREAKFAST KEYNOTE
The Honorable Tom Coburn
9:30 am
CONCURRENT POLICY PANELS
Regulatory Water World: How to Best Prepare for Growth in Texas
Leigh Thompson • Bech Bruun • Representative Jason Isaac • Martha K. Landwehr • Mike Mason
Educational Choice: Is It Good for Texas?
The Honorable Kent Grusendorf • Senator Scott Hammond • Stacy Hock • Dr. Charles Luke • Senator Larry Taylor
Breaking Point: Texas' Property Tax Problem and Finding a Fix
James Quintero • Representative Dennis Bonnen • The Honorable Cheryl Johnson • Dick Lavine • Councilwoman Ellen Troxclair
11:00 am
CONCURRENT POLICY PANELS
Labor Unions in Texas: Fair and Balanced?
Bill Peacock • Senator Paul Bettencourt • Rick Levy • Annie Spilman • Vincent Vernuccio
Limits or No Limits: Will Budget Restrictions Alter Growth in Our State?
The Honorable Talmadge Heflin • Senator Kelly Hancock • Ursula Parks • Dr. Barry W. Poulson
After the Fall: How Will Texas Protect Its Citizens From the National-Debt Crisis?
Dr. Thomas Lindsay • The Honorable Susan Combs • Representative Matt Krause • Mario Loyola
12:30 pm
KEYNOTE LUNCHEON
Education Freedom and the American Future
The Honorable Kent Grusendorf • The Honorable Phil Gramm • Lieutenant Governor Mark Hutchison • Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick • Commissioner George P. Bush
2:00 pm
CONCURRENT POLICY PANELS
School Finance: After 30 Years of Litigation, How Can Texas Restructure Education to Benefit Students?
The Honorable Kent Grusendorf • Michael Barba • Chris Diamond • Rick Gray • Senator Don Huffines
Local Control vs. Local Liberty
James Quintero • Senator Sylvia Garcia • Senator Bob Hall • Luke Metzger • Representative Matt Rinaldi
Mission Accomplished!? What Should Happen After a Protected Species Under the Endangered Species Act Recovers?
The Honorable Robert Henneke • The Honorable Susan Combs • William Perry Pendley • Adam Zerrenner
3:30 pm
CONCURRENT POLICY PANELS
Watchmen or Warfighter? Finding a Policing Model for the 21st Century
Derek Cohen • Representative Eric Johnson • Representative Linda Koop • Matt Miller
Advancing the Texas Model: Will a Simple Tax System Drive Prosperity?
Dr. Vance Ginn • Senator Paul Bettencourt • Scott Drenkard • Senator Craig Estes • Representative Chris Turner
Time to Bring Migrant Worker Programs Under the Control of the States?
Dr. Thomas Lindsay • Senator Bob Hall • Alex Nowrasteh • Representative Gilbert Peña
Day 3: Friday, January 8, 2016
8:00 am
BREAKFAST KEYNOTE
Strategy and Democracy: A Conversation on the 2016 Presidential Elections
Benjamin Domenech • Jason Johnson • John Noonan • Avik Roy • Tim Teepell
9:30 am
CONCURRENT POLICY PANELS
Who Benefits? Corporate Welfare in Texas
Bill Peacock • Senator Konni Burton • Chris Wallace • Councilman Don Zimmerman
The Untouchables: A Look at Local Retirement Systems Protected by State Law
James Quintero • Representative Roberto Alonzo • Representative Jim Murphy • Max Patterson • Bob Williams
Benefit vs. Burden: Do the EPA’s Clean Power Plan Costs Exceed the Regulation’s Impact?
The Honorable Robert Henneke • Theodore Hadzi-Antich • Cyrus Reed • Dr. Bryan Shaw, Ph.D., P.E.
11:00 am
CONCURRENT POLICY PANELS
The Fourth Branch: EPA and the Administrative State
The Honorable Kathleen Hartnett White • Representative Drew Darby • John R. Hays, Jr. • Dudley McCalla
Do Property Rights Help the Poor? Affordable Housing in Texas
Kathleen Hunker • Representative Diego Bernal • Randal O’Toole • Phyllis Snodgrass • Geoffrey Tahuahua
Right-Sizing an Overgrown Criminal Justice System
Marc Levin • Devon Anderson • Zoe Towns • Representative James White • Senator John Whitmire
12:30 pm
CLOSING LUNCHEON KEYNOTE
Governor Greg Abbott
The Texas Public Policy Foundation is a non-profit, free-market research institute based in Austin, Texas.