Connecting today’s news with the research & opinion you need

They’re Coming for Your Truck

What to Know: Austin transportation planners want to force people out of their cars and into electric vehicles. The reason? Climate change. One planner even suggested requiring “all new car sales to be electric vehicles by 2026 or 2027” in order to meet the city’s arbitrary and capricious goals.

The TPPF Take: Texans like their trucks and SUVs. Some even need them. Texans don’t trust an electric vehicle to bale hay or carry lumber to a job site. Nor do they want to run errands only to worry that they won’t have time to charge a vehicle in between trips.

“Texans shouldn’t be forced to drive government-approved vehicles for government-backed reasons. It’s wrong for cities to engage in this type of social engineering,” says TPPF’s James Quintero. “The market should decide what consumers drive and why, not government.”

How About That?

What to Know: Democrats are backing away from their promise to “quickly reverse” President Trump’s tax cuts.

The TPPF Take: You can’t argue with success; Trump’s tax cuts did exactly what they were intended to do.

“The Tax Cut and Jobs Act of 2017 profoundly affected the economy, extending and strengthening the expansion, and reordering incentives to invest at the state level,” says TPPF’s Chuck DeVore. “That was only derailed by the COVID-19 pandemic and the economic shutdowns put into place to address it. As we emerge from the self-inflicted Great Disruption, we will need to keep in place the policies that enabled our growth—including the tax cuts.”

Policing Reform

What to Know: The city of Houston’s contract talks with its police union have broken down, dimming prospects for policing reforms.

The TPPF Take: Elected officials and police unions should work together toward policing reform.

“Law enforcement executives, elected leaders, and police unions must find common ground regarding the role of police departments in their respective communities,” says TPPF’s Currie Myers. “They must agree to limitations to collective bargaining agreements that adversely affect good public policy and instead pursue a codified set of legitimate protections through state legislation, such as a contract for public safety.”