Good morning!

We received interesting – even surprising – results from yesterday’s One Click Survey answers. But what’s not surprising was the volume of the incredibly thoughtful insights concerning Texas’ burdensome property tax system.

You’ll find those at the conclusion of today’s Texas Minute!

– Michael Quinn Sullivan
Wednesday, Dec. 14, 2022 

A.G. Asked To Investigate Child-trafficking Allegations

• The Alliance for a Safe Texas is calling on Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton to investigate allegations that unaccompanied children who have crossed the southwest border are being trafficked within the states …  and it is happening with the federal government’s knowledge. Sydnie Henry has the story.
      
• “While Texas alone cannot stop this unprecedented and unconstitutional collapse of the United States’ sovereign southern border, Texas must do all it can to end the exploitation of children occurring in Texas as a direct result of the failing border policies being advanced by the federal government,” said Sheena Rodriguez, president of Alliance for a Safe Texas.
      
• In November, Project Veritas released videos of conversations with children who described being used for forced labor and sex work. Information provided by a whistleblower in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services confirmed these accounts.
      
• According to government data, more than 30,000 unaccompanied children have been released to sponsors in Texas. Project Veritas’ whistleblower explained that “sponsors typically are not citizens. They’re not permanent residents. They don’t have a legal presence.”
     
• Media reports find the Biden administration has lost track of nearly 40 percent of unaccompanied minors released to sponsors, including dozens of children in Houston alone.

INVESTIGATION: Texas’ Troubled Military

• An investigation by Texas Scorecard is finding severe problems in the Texas Military Department, which is composed of the Texas National Guard, the Texas Air Guard, and the Texas State Guard. Robert Montoya led the research into problems taking place as a direct result of Operation Lone Star.
      
• Operation Lone Star was established by Gov. Greg Abbott to assist the Texas Department of Public Safety in border control. From the start, OLS was plagued with issues, ranging from soldiers not being paid on time, a lack of equipment, poor living conditions, sexual assault or harassment, and more. 
      
• Texas Scorecard’s reporting has revealed repeated incidents of accidental weapons discharge, criminal complaints, reports of substance abuse, and mental health episodes. Some records reveal a lack of discipline among soldiers, while others appear to validate reported strains between OLS soldiers, law enforcement, and U.S. Border Patrol. The Serious Incident Reports also detailed multiple soldiers struggling with suicide.
     
• On top of that, TMD’s fiscal house was not in order. Internal communications reveal that last year the Texas comptroller repeatedly told the Texas Military Department they had broken state law. After a third violation, the matter appeared to reach a tipping point requiring the comptroller’s office to threaten the state military with action. 
       
• The problems in Operation Lone Star have exposed serious flaws within the Texas Military Department and show the dangers of over-relying on a federal government to do a job it hasn’t done in decades: secure the border. Such over-reliance appears to have resulted in a lack of proper attention and maintenance of TMD by state public servants. When said public servants called on TMD to conduct a major operation, failures and errors mounted.
       
• Part 2 of this investigative series will be released later today and explore unaccountable spending of taxpayers’ money in a quest to rapidly fix problems that surfaced during Operation Lone Star.

Rising Number Of Texans Seek “Sex Change” On Birth Certificates

• The number of Texans seeking to change the sex listed on their birth certificates is on the rise, according to data from the Department of State Health Services obtained by Texas Scorecard. Brandon Waltens has the details.
      
• In 2015, only 34 court-ordered sex changes were recorded, compared to 385 in 2021, more than a tenfold increase in six years.
     
• “As we have long suspected, voluntary sex change operations are on the rise,” said Chris Hopper, the president of Texas Family Project. “The vast majority of left-wing doctors, psychiatrists, and blue-haired teachers are doing their best to funnel innocent children into the system of irreversible chaos.”

Keller ISD Approves ‘Guardian’ Plan

• At their monthly board meeting this week, trustees at Keller Independent School District approved a “guardian” program that allows specially trained educators to be armed at school so they can protect students in the event of an active shooter on campus. Erin Anderson has the story.
      
• Board President Charles Randklev and the three conservative trustees elected in May—Joni Shaw Smith, Sandi Walker, and Micah Young—voted in favor of allowing Keller teachers and staff to participate in the program. Three members – Beverly Dixon, Ruthie Keyes, and Chris Roof – voted against it; Dixon and Roof are up for election in May 2023.
        
• Representatives of the radical anti-gun group Moms Demand Action spoke against the proposal.
      
• Trustee Young pushed back against the predictable fear-mongering, noting that more than 300 Texas school districts (about 30 percent) already use a guardian plan and “have not had a single incident” to date.
        
• The 4-3 vote represents another example of a conservative-majority school board keeping their campaign promises to the community to protect students.

Y’All Answered

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott wants half of the state’s $27 billion budget surplus to go toward property tax relief. House Speaker Dade Phelan and Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick are offering more tepid approaches. Yesterday we asked readers how much of the surplus should be applied to property tax relief.

Just shy of half (49.8 percent) of the readers want “All Of It” to be used for property tax relief. Meanwhile, 41.6 percent believe only half of it should be used that way. This compares to 3.7 percent of readers who think the number should be around $3 billion, and the 4.9 percent who don’t think any of it should be used for property tax relief.

Here’s a sample of readers’ replies…

• “Who else's money is it?” – Spencer Siino
     

• “A budget surplus means that the government took too much of your money. They should return every penny back to the taxpayers.” – Randall Woodman 
     

• “Using the surplus for property tax relief is just the first necessary step. School districts are spending out of control.” – Jay Stroker
     

• “The surplus belongs to the people. It is their money. Send it back to the property owners before the politicians spend it.” – Pamela Millisor
     

• “When the list of highest property tax states is shown, it is embarrassing Texas is mixed in at the top with the group of liberal, blue, disastrously run states. Texans missed the opportunity to elect a government to ease the tax burdens on its citizens.” – Steve Crevier
      

• “I don't expect more than a small token amount to be applied to property tax relief. The politicians we keep electing know that most people don't pay attention to what they actually do. They'll make a few campaign promises, then rig the system so they'll never pass by putting Democrats and RINos in leadership positions that allow them to kill conservative legislation. The House passes something that never quite makes it through the Senate. The Senate passes something that never quite makes it through the House. Then they all get to brag about how they worked for us.” – Alan Higginbotham
     

• “If you are overcharged at a business, you demand a full refund! Not half, not a minimum amount, ALL of it.” – Roger Taylor
     

• “We shouldn’t have property taxes to begin with! It’s ridiculous how bad it is.” – Kathy Villafuerte
     

• “Until the Legislature is willing to tackle reform of the appraisal process, buying down property taxes with state funds is just a temporary fix. Tax rate compression along with escalating property values proves that there is NO meaningful tax relief.” – Doug Karr
    

• “Dan Patrick stood before the electorate at the Republican convention in Houston this past summer and received adulation from about 10,000 delegates when he PROMISED much property tax relief! Should we charge him with fraud or impeach him?” – Rosemary Teel
     

• “A major part of my plan allowing me to retire was to have my house paid off and to have no debt (credit card balances). With that accomplishment, I still can’t live the ‘high life,’ so you get the picture. Yet every year I still must come up with my rent payment (property tax), and I can think of many more things I could spend that money on rather than paying Texas taxes.” – Garry Ludwig 
     

• “That ‘surplus’ is OUR money and SHOULD be returned to us. Property tax relief would help the most people.” – Charlene Roberson
     

• “When government gets too big, we lose more of our liberty. That's why we should always keep taxes low - refund all of the tax surplus back to the people.” – Philip Pizzurro
     

• “Seniors are becoming ‘tax’ poor. Our taxes have gone from $300 to over $3,000!  It’s really hard justifying this much of an increase when there is no improvement in local infrastructure!” – Dawn Gerstenberger
     

• “Myself, along with countless other Texans, have written, called, and sent suggestions at the behest of Senator Paul Bettencourt to address this property tax situation over several years, all without solid success. Now, with this ‘surplus,’ it is high time citizens get a property tax break that is lasting and passed in this upcoming legislature, once and for all!” – Robert Finimore
     

• “Yes, we need all of it for tax relief; it just pisses me off that Republicans are just as gimmicky as the Dems. As soon as they’re voted in they go right back to filling their dang ‘pockets.’” – Dave Sommers
     

• “The government needs to stop taking our money through property taxes, except for things like police and fire districts. ISDs should be abolished.” – David Demaree
     

• “The more important question is, how should they go about setting the budget? One thing they should not do is assume every category starts with at least what they had before. Some areas should be reduced or eliminated and some areas should be increased. The resulting total should be no greater than or less than the previous total.” – Ronald Thompson
     

• “I clicked ‘None’ because this shouldn't be a one-year rescue deal. The law needs to be changed. Texas is un-housing its senior citizens and preventing homeownership.” – Mary Parks
     

• “The entire tax system in Texas needs to be reformed. Robbing Peter to pay Paul is not an answer.” – Wayne Johnson
     

• “I said only half because the other half needs to go to securing the border and re-establishing law and order. Anybody still remember the concept?” – Mike Hudgins
     

• “All the surplus returned or start the recall of all the RINOs!” – H J Bronson
     

• “Using the budget surplus to pay down our property taxes is a coward’s effort at fixing the problem and is like putting a Band-Aid on a severed limb. We need REAL property tax reform, not more political posturing!” – Bill Parks
     

• “Most conservatives in Texas are expecting at least half of the surplus to be returned to taxpayers because the governor has set that expectation. Only two other options are acceptable: return more than half or make a significant tax break permanent.” – Thomas Camardo
    

• “Texans value home ownership but never truly own their homes while property taxes are taken from us annually! Property taxes on our homes are a scourge.” – Harry Hungst
     

• “‘All of it.’ Then, they can go to work on decreasing spending and cutting worthless programs to build back up a nest egg for emergencies that should always be in place.” – Reid Davidson
     

• “This surplus should show everyone that we are all being over taxed!” – John Burney 

Your Federal & State Lawmakers

The districts displayed here should reflect those taking representational effect on January 1, 2023.