Wednesday, January 30, 2013

Bullet Points on Perry's State of the State proposals

Here's a concise list of the proposals Governor Perry made in his state of the state address yesterday. These are copied from the Austin American Statesman:

State budget- *Pass proposed constitutional amendment allowing tax rebates
- *$1.8 billion in unspecified tax relief
- Pass constitutional amendment to further limit growth in spending
- Make franchise tax exemption permanent for small businesses
- Scrub the budget for waste and duplication
- End practice of using dedicated funds and fees for anything other than their intended use

Human services
- No expansion of Medicaid to cover more Texans under Affordable Care Act
Infrastructure needs
- *Use $3.7 from $12 billion rainy day fund for one-time investment in water and roads
- End diversion of State Highway Fund money, freeing $1.3 billion every two years for road maintenance and construction
-

Education
- Authorize more charter schools
- Offer incoming freshmen a four-year freeze on public university tuition
- Tie at least 10% of state funding for public universities and community colleges to graduation rates
- *Give a South Texas university access to the Permanent University Fund

* Indicates new proposals by the governor