Austin – Senator-Elect Donna Campbell applauded the announcement by Lieutenant Governor David Dewhurst and Senate Finance Chair Tommy Williams to keep the Senate version of the State budget to well below the spending cap adopted by the Legislative Budget Board (LBB). “I believe Governor Dewhurst is on track to provide fiscally conservative leadership which reflects the wishes of many Texans. There’s no reason to grow government just because the Legislature can.”
Last week, the Legislative Budget Board adopted a rate of growth for the 2014-2015 budget of 10.71% based on a Texas Constitutional requirement that sets the spending cap based on indicators of economic growth – mainly personal income. This determines how much larger the budget adopted by the upcoming 83rd Legislature can be over the previous budget. Many conservative groups believe this rate should be changed to reflect a cap based on population growth and inflation, which would result this year in a spending cap of 9.85%. Governor Dewhurst and his newly adopted Finance Committee Chair committed to use this lower spending cap.
“By changing the criteria for the spending cap, Texas will save taxpayers 600 million dollars,” stated Senator-Elect Campbell. “Instead of looking at how much our citizens are making and how much more we can take from them, we need to be looking at what the true costs are for essential services provided by the State. I am proud of this new direction taken by the Senate and look forward to working with Governor Dewhurst and Chairman Williams on a fiscally conservative budget.”
Senator-Elect Campbell will represent Senate District 25, which includes Comal and Kendall Counties, as well as parts of Bexar, Guadalupe, Hays, and Travis counties. Senator-Elect Campbell is an emergency room physician and lives in New Braunfels with her husband and youngest daughter. She will be sworn into her first term on January 8, 2013.