Items of Interest Compiled by Arnold Public Affairs

Below are some general items of interest pertaining to the latest political developments and important events:

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Perry Seeks to Slow Move Toward Rainy Day Fund
“Gov. Rick Perry, sensing that lawmakers are racing to take money out of the state’s rainy day fund to ease the impact of sweeping spending cuts, said Monday that they should use that money only as a last resort. After a closed-door meeting with the House Republican Caucus, Perry said he does not think the time has come to tap the fund, where more than $9 billion is expected to accumulate by the end of the upcoming budget period in 2013. But in doing so, he seemed to soften on his earlier position that lawmakers should not use that money at all. ‘I specifically asked them to look at all the different options before they would ever come to the point of saying, OK, that is an option,’ Perry said about the rainy day fund. ‘We’re not there…’”
(View full article here).

TribLive: Straus on the Rainy Day Fund
“At today’s TribLive conversation, Speaker Joe Straus stopped short of supporting the tapping of the Rainy Day Fund to cover the current biennium’s $4.3 billion deficit, but he left the door open…”
(View full article here).

Texas Lawmakers Look Beyond Cuts for Revenue
“Lawmakers struggling to soften deep cuts that would be required in the face of a massive budget shortfall and no-new-taxes sentiment are looking at options such as deferring billions in state payments, speeding up tax collections, taking ownership of unclaimed property quicker and offering amnesty on penalties to laggard taxpayers. ‘Right now, there is a tremendous amount of effort being invested in identifying new revenues that avoid being called a tax bill,’ said Dale Craymer of the business-based Texas Taxpayers and Research Association. ‘Politically, a lot of members have pledged not to raise taxes,’ he said. ‘Obviously, members are seeing the impact of the budget proposal, and there’s a desire to try and raise new revenue to protect the budget without violating the no-new-taxes pledge…’”
(View full article here).

After Red Tide in Texas, Tea Party Still Making Waves
“In November, Republicans rode to victory in Texas offering a familiar refrain: ‘no new taxes.’ Then the legislative session began, and the reality of cutting billions from state agencies and services set in. That’s when you started to hear some in the Republican majority, especially those with a couple of legislative sessions under their belt, begin talking about ways to reduce those tax cuts. ‘There’s no doubt that you know individuals who have been here multiple terms bring a perspective that younger members can’t,’ said state Rep. John Zerwas…”
(View full article here).

Will Texas Lawmakers Cut Their Own Benefits?
“As they talk of cutting pension contributions and raising premiums for state employee health care, having state employees pay to park in state garages, and mandating layoffs and furloughs at state agencies, what are lawmakers doing to their own compensation and benefits? It’s a mixed bag. They already trimmed their regular pay, in a roundabout way. Their health benefits work just like those for state employees, which means lawmakers shoulder the same added costs and/or lowered coverages they impose on state workers. Their retirement benefits — arguably the most lucrative benefit available to a state legislator in Texas — probably won’t change…”
(View full article here).

Furloughs Possible for State Workers
“State workers could face furloughs beginning in September, under a bill filed Wednesday that would allow state agencies to require employees to take days off without pay. The proposal, authored by House Appropriations Chairman Jim Pitts, R-Waxahachie, a key player in the state’s money matters, is presumably intended to make the balancing of agency budgets easier as Texas struggles with a massive budget shortfall for the next two years. The bill gives agency directors the optional authority to implement furlough programs with the consent of their governing boards. House Bill 2720 could affect more than 300,000 employees of state agencies and higher education…”
(View full article here).

Guest Worker Program for Immigrants Proposed
“A freshman lawmaker from Austin has proposed creating a guest worker program in Texas. While other Republican members of the Legislature are sponsoring measures to punish business owners who hire undocumented workers or push for law enforcement agencies to identify people who are in the country illegally, Republican Rep. Paul Workman said he would rather try to tackle the bigger issue. ‘There are millions of people living amongst us,’ he said. ‘The vast majority are just honest, hardworking people.’ Workman, who filed House Bill 2886 on Thursday, said the federal government has not dealt appropriately with illegal immigration, which is supposed to be its responsibility… ”
(View full article here).

“Loser Pays” a Winner in the Texas Legislature?
“Loser pays; everyone wins. It is the perfect sound bite in what could be the next tort reform battle in Texas: a push to require the losing parties in litigation to pay their opponents’ legal fees. Also known as the English Rule, because of its prevalence in Britain, the loser-pays approach, advocates say, is the cure for courts choked with the costs of ‘junk’ lawsuits.’ But opponents say it obstructs all litigation — without regard to merit — and keeps those with plausible legal claims from seeking justice…”
(View full article here).

Stubbornness Could Hold Up Abortion Sonogram
“The biggest hurdle getting an abortion sonogram bill passed this session may be good old-fashioned stubbornness. House Republicans have no interest in taking up the Senate version, which they say is too lax for their liking. Indeed, an amendment on the House floor that would’ve replaced that chamber’s sonogram bill with the Senate’s language went down in flames last week…”
(View full article here).