This week, I filed the ban on taxpayer-funded lobbying and other bills to address the waste, fraud, and abuse in our government and meet the mandate for D.O.G.E. in Texas.
BAN TAXPAYER-FUNDED LOBBYING
For too long, taxpayers’ and parents’ own tax dollars have been used to lobby against them in Austin. These taxpayer-funded lobbyists have squandered millions of dollars of your hard-earned dollars to lobby against border security, election integrity, parental choice in education, teacher pay raises, and even fought against property tax relief and reform. Taxpayer-funded lobbying groups, like Texas Association of School Boards, use your school tax dollars to lobby against the bill to stop men from going into girls’ restrooms and locker rooms, and invited transgender advocates to train school board members on how to use pronouns. Time and time again, we have seen taxpayer-funded lobbyists advocate against Texans and against common sense.
Nearly $70 million per year is spent on taxpayer-funded lobbying. We don’t need an Austin lobbyist middleman between state and local elected officials. We are elected to represent our constituents directly. Thank you to Lieutenant Governor Dan Patick for making S.B. 19 a priority this session. There is a mandate for D.O.G.E. in Texas, and taxpayers are sick and tired of government waste, fraud, and abuse. Now is the time to end this unethical practice of taxpayer dollars being used to lobby against taxpayers.
MOVING STATE AGENCIES OUT OF AUSTIN AND SLASHING GOVERNMENT SPENDING
Austin is one of the most expensive cities in Texas, with the highest cost of living. There is no reason almost all our state agencies should be in Austin. Moving state agencies to lower cost areas of the State will save taxpayer dollars about 40% on renting office space alone, and will improve government efficiency.
President Trump has proposed the same concept for the federal government. Washington D.C. values don’t match the rest of American’s values, just like Austin doesn’t represent the rest of Texan’s values. Moving agencies out of Austin is a win-win for taxpayers and allows agencies to be closer to the Texans they serve and work for.
PROHIBITING PUBLIC FUNDS FOR ILLEGAL IMMIGRANT DEPORTATION DEFENSE
Texas stands with President Trump in securing the border and his deportation program to keep citizens safe and put America first. It’s wrong to force Texas taxpayers to pay for legal fees to protect illegal immigrants from deportation and returning to their home country. Joe Biden endangered our communities and families by allowing countless criminals into our country with his open border policy. Now some governmental entities are making taxpayers pay to fight President Trump and keep illegal immigrants in America.
Local government should be working with President Trump to secure our border, not fighting against him with our own tax dollars. SB 1005 and HB 1554 are an answer to the clear mandate given to legislators in the most recent election: return to common sense policy and secure the border. These bills will stop the practice of using your tax dollars to pay for the legal defense of illegal immigrants. Our government must be held accountable for the policies and resources they enact on behalf of the citizens they serve. There is no such thing as government funds, only taxpayer money. I will continue to fight to make sure Texans keep more of their paycheck, and make sure their tax dollars are being spent responsibly.
God Bless Texas,
Mayes Middleton
