Press Releases
Harris County Wins Gold Leadership Circle Award For Financial Transparency
March 5, 2010
Award From Texas Comptroller’s Office Recognizes County’s Perfect Score In Openness and Public Accessibility
Media Articles
Federal pay ahead of private industry
March 7, 2010
USA Today
Federal employees earn higher average salaries than private-sector workers in more than eight out of 10 occupations, a USA TODAY analysis of federal data finds.
Testimonies
Improving Higher Education Transparency
Elizabeth Young, Higher Education Policy Analyst, Texas Public Policy Foundation
Chairman Branch and members of the committee, thank you for this opportunity to provide you written testimony today. My name is Elizabeth Young and I am the higher education policy analyst at the Texas Public Policy Foundation. I’ll be testifying in favor of House Bill 2504 authored by Representative Lois Kolkhorst.
Commentaries
View All CommentariesVideo
Visit this link to watch Texas Comptroller Susan Combs discuss three transparency initiatives.
Audio
80th Texas Legislature – Fiscal Policy
Legislative sessions can be difficult to follow, given the numerous quickly moving parts and the political circus that always seem to accompany. Now that the session is done and the legislators have gone home, what did they wind up accomplishing for Texas? This week, we begin a five-part series on the 80th Texas Legislature looking at its record on fiscal issues. Providing the assessment is Dr. Byron Schlomach, the Foundation's Chief Economist.
Shining the light on government spending
The Texas Public Policy Foundation has been a consistent and strong advocate for government transparency, especially when it comes to our tax dollars. The Foundation played an important role in the development of several spending transparency proposals during the 80th Texas Legislature. On the national level, one of the leading champions for fiscal transparency has been Americans for Tax Reform. ATR president Grover Norquist spoke at the 6th Annual Policy Orientation for the Texas Legislature, and we caught up with him for an update on the progress around the country.
Is It Any of Your Business? Budget and Spending Transparency
(Presenters: Comptroller Susan Combs, Rep. Mark Strama, and Grover Norquist. Moderator: The Honorable Talmadge Heflin.)
Texas has become a national leader in making government spending more transparent to the public. In 2007, the Legislature passed landmark transparency legislation resulting in the "Where the Money Goes" feature on the Comptroller's website, which provides a searchable database of state government spending. What are the next steps in bringing greater transparency to the state budget and spending? Panelists will discuss this initial step toward greater transparency, what it means for Texas and the rest of the country, and what more can be done.
TPPF Policy Orientation now online
February 5, 2010
James Quintero
Last month, the Texas Public Policy Foundation hosted its 8th Annual Policy Orientation for the Texas Legislature. This two-day conference attracted more than 650 people to hear dozens of national and state policy experts present their perspectives on some of Texas’ most critical issues.
The Foundation’s Center for Fiscal Policy hosted three panel discussions – “Taxing Texas: Is There a Better Way?,” and “Budget Climate: Fair or Stormy?” The Foundation’s Policy Orientation page includes audio and PowerPoints from the panel discussions, as well as video from the keynote addresses and the global warming debate.