Connecting today’s news with the research + opinion you need from TPPF experts.

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

Shut it Down

What to Know: El Paso’s county judge has extended the county’s shutdown order until at least Dec. 1. Penalties could include big fines for people and businesses. ([link removed] )

The TPPF Take: This is the wrong approach to defeating the virus without destroying the economy.

“In a time when people and businesses can least afford it, local governments continue to threaten to take what they have left,” says TPPF’s Shelby Sterling. “While continuing the best health practices is imperative for keeping people safe, shutting down the economy again is not a valid option. As a result of the government-mandated shutdowns, more than 8,900 Texas businesses have permanently closed with more 5,300 more businesses on the brink.”

For more on shutdowns and the pandemic, click here.
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Walking Away Wealthy

What to Know: Lancaster ISD—a small North Texas school district with only 7,105 students—terminated its superintendent’s contract for unknown reasons. However, the outgoing superintendent may soon leave with “more than $1.5 million in the separation agreement. ([link removed] ) ”

The TPPF Take: Texas taxpayers deserve better. No government employee should get a golden parachute, especially when the departure is clouded in mystery.

“It’s outrageous that public schools are giving superintendents bags of cash on their way out of the door. This is taxpayer abuse of the highest order,” says TPPF’s James Quintero. “Strict new laws are need to limit the size of a severance payment, restrict who is eligible to receive one, and force disclosure of the details.”

For more on super severance packages, click here.
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LAA Corner

What to Know: Improving Career and Technical Education is on TPPF’s Liberty Action Agenda for the upcoming legislative session. ([link removed] )

The TPPF Take: Texas’s career and technical education (CTE) funds are poorly aligned with future job prospects.

“Now is also the time for lawmakers to consider granting more flexibility to districts in how they spend their CTE allocations,” says TPPF’s Erin Davis Valdez. “We can incentivize schools to collaborate with community organizations and businesses, which are racing to rebuild civil society and local economies.”

For more on CTE, click here.
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Texas Public Policy Foundation, 901 Congress Avenue, Austin, Texas 78701, United States, 5124722700

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