Today, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton issued guidance on school reopenings during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. “Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton is completely correct in his legal guidance that local health authorities lack power to issue a blanket closure of all schools,” said TPPF’s General Counsel Robert Henneke. “Unless applied to individual campuses based upon specific facts,...
Press Release July 28, 2020The Wayne County Circuit Court in Michigan on Friday held that the Township of Canton’s tree ordinance is an unconstitutional taking and seizure of private property and dismissed Canton’s claims against the Texas Public Policy Foundation’s clients, Matt and Gary Percy. “The court rightly recognized that it is the Percys, not the government, that own...
Press Release July 20, 2020Today, Texas Comptroller Glenn Hegar revised the Certification Revenue Estimate (CRE) to project a fiscal 2021 ending shortfall of $4.58 billion which Hegar attributed to the COVID-19 pandemic and recent volatility in oil prices. “Today’s update by Texas Comptroller Hegar on the budget shortfall shows the importance of reining in government spending without raising taxes...
Press Release July 20, 2020The Texas Public Policy Foundation applauds the historic efforts of the Trump Administration to put in place innovative regulatory reforms that will have lasting effects throughout the economy. Today, the administration announced updates to the National Environmental Policy Act to remove ineffective and burdensome regulations that destroy jobs, raise costs for Americans, and create unnecessary...
Press Release July 16, 2020Today, Rafael Bejar, Director of Outreach for the Texas Public Policy Foundation, released the following statement on President Trump’s executive order expanding school choice opportunities for Hispanic students. “Latinos compose nearly 40 percent of Texans and are a vital, vibrant part of the Texas economy,” said Bejar. “The President’s order will help to ensure that their education,...
Press Release July 9, 2020Today, the Texas Public Policy Foundation published the paper Promising Approaches to Workforce Development in Texas which explores best practices for private workforce development in Texas. “In broad economic terms, Texas is one of the most prosperous states in America,” said the paper’s co-author David Bass. “Study after study has ranked Texas at the top of economic...
Press Release July 9, 2020AUSTIN – Today the Texas Public Policy Foundation released a paper, The Texas Two-Step: Community-Based Care and the Family First Prevention Services Act. “As the compliance deadline for the federal Family First Act approaches, the Texas Legislature must make important decisions on how to advance child welfare reform,” said Andrew Brown, distinguished senior fellow of child and family policy...
Press Release July 7, 2020The Texas Public Policy Foundation has won its open records lawsuit against the City of Georgetown in response to the city withholding a “payback analysis” document from its client, Terry Putnam. “TPPF’s client Mr. Putnam has been vindicated by the court’s ruling that the ‘payback analysis’ document is public and should not have been withheld...
Press Release July 7, 2020This week, Sen. Mike Braun (R-Ind.), Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), Sen. John Kennedy (R-LA), and Sen. Kelly Loeffler (R-Ga.) released the Healthcare PRICE Transparency Act to make permanent the rule established in the executive order by President Trump. “People avoid needed care because of the secretive pricing of hospitals,” said David Balat, policy director of Right on Healthcare at...
Press Release July 2, 2020The United States-Mexico-Canada (USMCA) trade agreement’s entry into force will bolster North American trade, support the American energy industry, and encourage trading partners to meet America’s environmental standards as a world leader in clean air. “This trade agreement is a critical move toward maintaining America’s status as a global energy powerhouse,” said Jason Isaac, senior manager and distinguished fellow of Life:Powered, a national initiative of...
Press Release July 2, 2020Washington, D.C. – Several top U.S. conservative leaders and organizations, representing millions of members, are amenable to making current beneficiaries of the soon-to-be defunct Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program at least eligible for renewable residency permits (with a lasting bar to U.S. citizenship, due to their initial unlawful entry into the country), but...
Press Release June 30, 2020AUSTIN – Today the Texas Supreme Court published its unanimous opinion in In Re C.J.C., Relator vindicating the rights of a father who was forced by a trial court to share custody of his daughter with her mother’s former boyfriend. The court’s decision overturned the trial court’s order and restored full custody of the child to her father. “Today’s...
Press Release June 26, 2020