Texas Becomes First State in 50 Years to Actually Cut Budget Spending

Red State ^ | May 20th, 2011 | Leon H. Wolf

[ForGod'sSake]

UPDATE: Reading the release a little more carefully, this is the first budget cut in Texas in 50 years. I have no idea when the last other state was to actually reduce spending. I would welcome if anyone has the answer to this question.

Via the Texas Public Policy Foundation, the Texas Legislature has reached a deal for the upcoming fiscal which actually cuts government spending. This is not a reduction in the rate of growth, it is not a cut based on a proposed budget, it is not a series of accounting gimmicks, the State of Texas will actually spend less money next fiscal year than it did last year. In so doing, it will be the first state in 50 years to actually implement a real reduction in spending. From the TPPF release:

This state budget deal is a victory for all Texans – and especially for the Texans who worked hard over the past several months to remind our legislators that they wanted a fiscally conservative state budget. The announced budget deal is a win for Texas on three specific points:

• It does not use a single penny of the rainy day fund for the next biennium.
• It does not raise taxes.
• It does represent the first all-funds reduction to a biennial state budget in the past half-century.

“What happened in the Texas Legislature this session is more than just a victory for Texans. It’s a victory for America. Texas already leads the way in job creation, economic vitality, and economic liberty. Now Texas is leading the way in the most important cause facing our country: the need to live within our means.

“Today, in Austin, Texas, the men and women of our legislature showed it can be done. That’s a tremendous accomplishment for Texas – and it’s a shining beacon of hope for America.”

Indeed. Let us hope that John Boehner is paying attention - this is the kind of leadership the American people expect from Congress. Not budget gimmicks, not reductions in the rate of the Federal Government’s growth, but some evidence that the government is actually spending less from year to year. And while liberals and go-along-get-along Republicans claim that actual cuts to government spending will create economic disaster, the experience in Texas proves the exact opposite, as Texas remains the strongest state in the country in terms of economic growth.

Cut the budget. Make government smaller. Grow American businesses. Texas is proving it can be done.

[comps4spice]

Uh, the Brazos runs through Waco (Baylor); the Colorado runs through Austin.

[comps4spice]

Austin has a bunch of liberalatarians too...they claim to be fiscally conservative, but I think they just want to smoke pot and do other drugs more than anything else.

[ForGod'sSake]

Your points are well taken but keep in mind that Texas is actually REDUCING spending over the next two years. An important FIRST apparently that shouldn't go without some kudos being passed around.

In any case, the closer to home the better when it comes to taxes and government meddling. It's a lot easier getting in the faces of local and county "authorities".

[Quickgun]

I’m positive towards him. He’d do just fine as president.

[luvie]

Just another reason to love living in Texas!

So we have to scrimp a bit...we’ll survive and thrive! :)

The oil bidness is booming, and contrary to what the MSM and
the goons in DC think, their profits and revenue will re-fill
our coffers nicely, because we don’t demonize them here!

[tbw2]

Or by calling a special emergency session of the legislature in the mean time, as was used in prior cases with the “Robin Hood” education funding plan (take more from rich districts to give to poor districts).

[tbw2]

I share the sentiment. Our school district recently passed a bond election, raising taxes about $300 per year per house. Not to build new schools or fix old ones. To build a new administration building to replace one being ripped out as a highway expands (but no one is moving into the newly emptied library because we just built a new one). And they’re building lots of new high school athletic buildings, because the same 40 year old high schools can’t accommodate 4x as many sports as they had 40 years ago. No one proposed cutting the number of sports, just building millions of new luxury buildings.

[tbw2]

It’s even more amazing because it is a financial cut despite rising population. Most other “cuts” were simply not growing as fast as inflation and/or the population.

[ForGod'sSake]

I love the smell of crude in the morning! And timber and cattle and... What the heck can we do about those nasty fire ants??? THEY don’t even want to move up north.

[ForGod'sSake]

It’s even more amazing because it is a financial cut despite rising population.

So it would seem. There's probably a teachable moment in there somewhere.

[luvie]

I keep hoping the fire ants move up to Oklahoma! *grin*

This budget is a good start but we need to hang tough when
the teachers’ union starts whining about the chillun going
hungry and uneducated. Money doesn’t do the educating, good
teachers do....and the “deadwood” needs to go!

[delbertt]

I hope they actually cut the budget. I have my doubts.

[ForGod'sSake]

Just looked at some maps of the fire ant range and it looks like our little sister to the north has already been blessed with the little critters. Sister and BIL live just south of OKC and they say they haven't seen any of 'em yet. Told 'em I might bring a few on my next visit but they didn't appear all the excited about the proposition. Imagine that! Share and share alike is what I always say. ;^)

Our schools, along with many other of our state or state supported institutions have become drunk on the taxpayers' dime. Past time they started a 12 step program to wean themselves from their over indulgence at our expense. Might do them all a world of good to be reintroduced to the reality of limited resources. Maybe more importantly, that the citizens are the ones that should be laying down the law, not government apparatchiks.

[luvie]

I wouldn’t wish fire ants on anyone actually! But sure wish someone would allow DDT for about a week and we could probably rid ourselves of those and the killer bees.

The schools spend too much on “programs” and extras and too
little on just educating students. They don’t need all those
expensive tools to get Johnny to read, write and add! We’ve
spoiled the teachers and the unions push hard for all that stuff.

[BJClinton]

Ft. Griffin was Babylon on the Brazos. The Colorado runs through Austin.

[onona]

Thanks for posting. I know internet sales taxes are chum in the water for the sharks. Sad to see them start to attack this tax free haven.

[Theodore R.]

There is a tax increase: sales taxes now leveled on Internet sales.

[VRWCmember]

Maybe Perry for President ain’t such a bad idea after all.

Other than signing or vetoing the budget bill, the governor has NOTHING to do with what the legislature did. There was no leadership from Perry on this.

[xzins]

I hadn’t mentioned taxes, iirc, but it could be that you are just giving info.

Thanks. I don’t favor tax increases of any kind. I would rather that all taxes be sales taxes, and that all income, property, etc. taxes be declared illegal.