TX Senator Craig Estes Proposes Mandatory Drug Screenings for Welfare Recipients

To Test or Not to Test? is the title and question my classmate is presenting on her blog, Kidnapped and Dragged to Texas. I agree with my classmate that people receiving welfare may be tested for illegal drug use. On November 13th, Governor Rick Perry and Lt. Governor David Dewhurst endorsed Texas Senator Craig Estes in his bill to require drug screenings for welfare recipients. The potential welfare recipients that may be tested are those who are applying for Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) or  Unemployment Insurance (UI). I would like to explore multiple perspectives on this issue for sake of debate, first from a legal standpoint of what the constitution declares which will be against testing and secondly from my opinion as a tax payer which will be for testing.

The fourth amendment of the United States constitution states "The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated; and no Warrants shall issue but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized".

This is also known as the search and seizure amendment. Submitting a urine sample, piece of hair, or saliva can be classified as a search. Being a applicant or receiver of social service benefits does not serve as probable cause for a search. Some would say such requirement is an invasion of privacy.  Florida recently had a law in place to test welfare recipients. Only after four months of the law being in effect, it was deemed unconstitutional by a lower court in Florida. The lower court cited the fourth amendment in their verdict. The lower court's decision is now being appealed at the U.S. 11th Circuit of Court Appeals in Atlanta, Georgia.

Now from my opinion as a tax payer, i would like to be certain that these welfare benefits are going to those who need them the most and not to those who may be using illegal drugs rather than attempting to gain employment. A law requiring welfare recipients to be tested would encourage many to stop using illegal drugs and be motivated to find work. In many cases being drug-free is a necessary factor to gain employment. Individuals against testing welfare recipients may cite that during the four months Florida tested for illegal drug use only 108 out of 4,086 people tested positive or 2.6%. Statistics show that testing is not financially prudent. However, I encourage people to think about how many individuals stopped using and possibly remained sober without illegal drugs in order to apply and receive benefits. Regardless of the cost of the program I believe it is more important to be sure our tax dollars are ending up into the right hands, those who are trying to honestly provide for themselves and their families.

Competency-Based Certifications Arriving Soon to Texas

The Governor's Office in Austin, Texas, the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board and the Texas Workforce Commission are coming together to expedite the time it takes students to earn a certification for high-skilled fields of work. Governor Rick Perry announced their plan known as the Skilled Workforce Initiative this past Tuesday in Harlingen, Texas. Many certifications will be obtained quicker by using competency-based tests to prevent students from being lectured upon subjects they have already mastered. This quicker, more efficient means of obtaining a certification is a result of the demand for more high skilled workers in numerous industries.

Recently the manufacturing sector in Texas has seen job demand almost double in just the past three years. Furthermore the industry is projected to grow by 10 percent by 2020.  In order to keep up with the demands and growth of the many industries in Texas, more high skilled workers will be needed faster.

The framework of technical training is being developed by the Texas State Technical College System along side its fellow state agencies and Texas' industrial employers. The model will be sure to produce the same high quality trained workers as before but in less time. It will also be more affordable and will be targeted to very specific skills in demand. Skills that workers already have will be considered and credited to certifications.

The first effort with the initiative will target jobs for advanced manufacturing and industrial business sectors. The design of the program however will be very versatile and may be applied to any other industry or sector. Once an industry's needs are met the program will be adjusted accordingly.

Specific groups such as veterans, displaced workers, and career-focused high school graduates will be targeted by the initiative to maximize their potential for the job market.  Many of these candidates for jobs have experience and training but no certification. This initiative hopes to change that and get more Texans employed.

The College Credit 4 Heroes program launched earlier this year specifically rewards veterans for the training they have received, during their military service, through institutions and some community colleges. This is a great example of using a competency-based approach to consolidate course requirements to arrive at a degree or certification.

Sen. Dan Patrick, the Texas Chair of the Senate Education Committee, was praised by Governor Perry after he sent a letter to the State Board of Education encouraging them to double the number of approved Career Tech courses available to students in Texas. These courses prepare students to be ready to work upon graduating in numerous fields. With the efforts of all of these committees, boards, commissions, and agencies, Texas is well on it's way to broadening the opportunities for potential employees and employers. Competency-based certifications should help Texans quickly receive skills to meet our state's growing industry demands.

Why is the IRS Uninterested in Enforcing Policy?

I recently read my fellow classmate's blog, The Texas Political Fix, and the last entry was quite intriguing. Church in the Valley in Leakey, Texas put a message on their outdoor sign that said "Vote for the Mormon, not the Muslim! The capitalist, not the communist!". The article may be read here, it is titled "You Can't Have Your Cake and Eat It, Too". I agree with and would like to expand upon my classmate's assertions. 

According to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) website there is a restriction of political campaign intervention by Section 501(c)(3) of tax-exempt organizations. Under the Internal Revenue Code all 501(c)(3) organizations are absolutely prohibited from directly or indirectly participating in, or intervening in any political campaign on behalf of or in opposition to any candidate for elective public office. 

 

The policy goes on to say that public statements of position either verbal or written (which was seen in this case), made by an organization in favor of or against any candidate for public office clearly violates the prohibition against political campaign activity. Such violation may result in denial or revocation of tax-exempt status and the imposition of certain excise taxes. 

My classmate is correct that the IRS should investigate the legitimacy of the tax-exempt status of this church according to it's policies. However it is rare that an investigation leads to any reprimanding. Since the founding of the country until 1954 when Lyndon Baines Johnson was re-elected as Senator, churches were openly allowed to be in favor or against any candidate for public offices. LBJ proposed the legislation that stands today, which as stated above, disallows churches to publicly endorse a candidate. Since 1954 only one church has had their tax-exempt status revoked. The revocation occurred in result of the opinions expressed about the 1992 presidential election. A church had articles published in The Washington Times and USA Today against Bill Clinton. 

Even if the IRS were to investigate the church in Leakey, TX, it is likely no real consequence would be dealt. So now the question is why does the IRS choose to remain quiet? An estimated total of 539 pastors participated in Pulpit Freedom Sunday last year, which is an annual event that intentionally provokes the IRS to take legal action against churches to consider the matter of free speech and religion in a court of law. No suits have been filed yet.  

Support Gov. Perry In Making College Timely Efficient & More Affordable

Texas Governor, Rick Perry, has expressed his proposal to make higher education more affordable,  increase enrollment to compete with other populous states, and create incentives for education institutions to develop faster graduation rates. I believe he has upstanding ideas that may influence more students to pursue higher education.

The number of high school students taking the SAT exam has climbed significantly over the past five years. More specifically these large increases are being seen in minority groups. Statistics are showing increases of 65% in Hispanic students, 42% in African American students, and 29% in Asian students.

This significant increase in desire for higher education in Texas is great news and quite a change since 2000 when Perry first took office. At that time Texas had a lower percentage of students enrolled in college compared to the next ten most populous states. To compete with these other populous states the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board (THECB) adopted the "closing the gaps" plan in 2000 to challenge higher education institutions to increase enrollment by 630,000 by the year 2015.

In June 2012 THECB released its annual progress report of their "closing the gaps" plan. Since 2000 533,000 more students have enrolled in higher education institutions, the state is now above the target to reach their goal for 2015. Texas is now proving to be producing more college-minded individuals.

Governor Perry wants to put a freeze on four-year tuition expenses to lock in the same amount from freshman to what should be senior year, thus making college more affordable. This would encourage more students to complete a baccalaureate degree within four years with less debt accrued.

Less than 30% of students at Texas' four-year institutions actually graduate within four years.
Only 58% obtain their degree within six years.

In order to improve these graduation rates Governor Perry has developed an incentive plan to encourage institutions by mandating 10% of their state funding will be dependent on how many students are obtaining degrees. If they fail to provide proper resources to efficiently graduate students, they will lose money.

Governor Perry also wants higher education institutions to be more transparent about the cost of graduating within four, five, or six years. This would potentially encourage students and their parents to be more responsible about using their time and money wisely.

Overall by making higher education more affordable and timely efficient there will be decreases in the amount of debt Texans will have when starting their post-college lives.

What should Texas do with a surplus of $3.7 billion in tax revenues?

In an article from the Editorial Board of Austin American Statesman titled "A big surplus? Give schools a boost" you can learn that lawmakers may be starting with a record surplus for the next legislative session. The article was published on September 14, 2012 about two weeks after Susan Combs, the Texas Comptroller, began gathering data for the end of the fiscal year on August 31, 2012. She found that the state had collected over $44 billion in tax revenue which is $3.7 billion more than what she and her colleagues projected. A large increase to state revenues are coming from oil and natural gas production taxes, which are more specifically from drilling and fracking activity in West Texas' Permian Basin and the Eagle Ford Shale formation. The comptroller's office published data stating oil and gas production tax collections in the first 11 months of the 2012 fiscal year were 44% higher than during the same period the year before. This is great news, however what the Texas Legislature does with this surplus is more important.

The Editorial Board of the Statesman is attempting to make fellow Texans, who are concerned with education in our state, aware that education should be the primary beneficiary of this surplus. I could not agree more. The Texas Legislature cut about $4 billion from education in 2011. The percentage of high school graduates in Texas has been lower than most other states in the U.S in recent years. We should not jeopardize the future of Texas by decreasing resources for education.

The report from Combs has some encouraging the Texas Legislature to use the $3.7 billion in surplus to satisfy its Medicaid obligations, as it did not in 2011, it was left underfunded to create the illusion that the 2012-13 budget was balanced. Once the Medicaid obligations are taken care of many believe it would be in our best interest to restore the $4 billion it cut from education in 2011. I along with the Editorial Board support this idea.

The 2011 Texas Legislature made about $15 billion in cuts over the previous two-year budget. Some project this session will be similar since the members will mostly hold the same ideology. Making cuts to obviously useless programs is understandable although most will agree education is a top priority and if we want to remain a leader amongst the states and the world we must invest in education for the future.

Austin city council considers replacing coal-fired energy plant

As ordered by the Austin City Council, city owned Austin Energy released a report to the Electric Utility Commission on Monday night. The report claims that the energy company could replace its share of the coal-fired Fayette power plant with a natural gas facility at reasonable costs to the city. Utility officials say they need to test their theory with real life offers to determine if the change will be efficient. Environmentalists support the change to natural gas facilities because of the detrimental effects burning coal has on the climate. Austin Energy is asking for permission from the council to begin receiving offers on their stake at the Fayette power plant that provides about one-third of Austin's energy. A federal court recently denied stricter environmental standards to be placed on coal-fired plants, which means the Fayette plant could be sold at a fair price on the market. Furthermore, natural gas prices are at a historic low which would allow the city to build a facility at lower costs. A natural gas facility would produce less than half of the emissions than that of a coal-fired plant.

Read the entire article from Austin American Statesman and determine for yourself if this sounds like a good idea. This is an issue that could very well affect how much citizens pay in energy costs for the future. Turning to more economically and environmentally friendly energy options may be right around the corner.