Economic Opportunity

Texas has long been known as a land of opportunity. Governor Perry
helps grow the Texas economy through sound fiscal policy, free markets,
and fair competition. Governor Perry’s policies of low taxes, efficient
government spending, lawsuit reform and limited government regulation
give Texas families and businesses fair access to the American dream.

Tax Relief for Families and Businesses

Lt. Governor Perry helped pass tax cuts of nearly $2 billion. These
included tax exemptions for over the counter medicine, the creation of
the sales tax holiday for school clothing and supplies, tax cuts for
small businesses with gross receipts under $150,000, and $855 million
in property tax relief for Texans.

Record Property Tax Reductions

Governor Perry signed into law a three-year, $15.5 billion property
tax reduction that will result in a 33% reduction in school property
taxes for Texas homeowners and businesses.

Increased Protection against Appraisal Creep

Governor Perry signed legislation lowering property tax rollback
thresholds. Under the new law, an increase in property appraisals above
the effective rate will require a reduction in the tax rate or a public
election. To increase the accountability of school boards to taxpayers,
the law also limits school board’s ability to increase tax rates
without a public election.

Balanced Budgets without Tax Increases

As Governor, Rick Perry signed three balanced budgets, fought tax
increases, and used his line item veto to strike over $2.5 billion in
proposed government spending. When Texas fell on hard times and state
revenues didn’t meet projections, Perry worked with legislators to cut
spending, rather than raise taxes, to balance the budget.

Lawsuit Reform

Governor Perry has been a long-time proponent of lawsuit reform
because frivolous lawsuits are one the top job killers in America. In
2003, Gov. Perry led the effort to pass the most sweeping lawsuit
reforms in the nation so that innocent employers could put their money
into job growth instead of the pockets of trial lawyers. A leading
economist projected that 240,000 new jobs will eventually be created as
a result of these reforms.

In 2005, Perry signed a law cracking down on junk asbestos claims
that were forcing innocent employers into bankruptcy and putting
thousands of people out of work. He also signed a law to prevent trial
lawyers from targeting the fast food industry on behalf of clients who
have obesity-related health problems.

Growing the Jobs of the Future

The Texas Emerging Technology Fund is Governor Perry’s new tool to
help ensure Texas gets the jobs of the future. In 2005, Perry secured
$200 million to help Texas attract growth in high-tech fields like
biomedicine and nanotechnology. The new Emerging Technology fund will
help Texas attract the world’s best scientists and researchers to our
universities, attract thousands of high-tech jobs, and help start-up
companies get their inventions out of the laboratory and into the hands
of consumers sooner.

Creating jobs with the Texas Enterprise Fund

Since Governor Perry proposed its creation in 2003, the Texas
Enterprise Fund has earned a reputation as the most aggressive and
successful job creation tool in America. Perry has used the Enterprise
Fund to seal the deal on projects that will bring tens of thousands of
new jobs to Texas and add more than $6.5 billion in capital investment
to our economy. Among the Enterprise Fund’s biggest successes: the
largest capital investment in the nation for 2003, the largest job
announcement in the nation for 2004, and the largest job announcement
in the nation for 2005. Texas earned the last two coveted Governor’s
Cups (2004 and 2005) for closing the most number of job creation deals
in the country.

Consumer Choice in Cable Television

Texas is the first state in nation to legislatively encourage
competition in the local cable market by removing barriers for cable
providers to enter the market. Allowing telephone companies to compete
with cable TV companies to provide premium television service is
creating better choices for consumers, leading to the development of
more product options, and ultimately lowering prices.

Homeowners Insurance Reform

Governor Perry signed into law an insurance reform package that
ensures fair insurance rates, limits credit scoring practices and
empowers the Texas Department of Insurance to address problems in the
insurance marketplace. Since the enactment of these reforms, several
new residential property insurers have entered the Texas market
bringing more choices, increased competition and lower rates for Texas
consumers.

Repairing Texas’ Workers Compensation System

Governor Perry’s proposal for workers compensation reform was passed
by the legislature in 2005. The new system will lead to significantly
lower workers compensation costs for Texas employers, control medical
costs and expand access to care, and improve benefits for those hurt on
the job so they can return to work sooner.

Protecting Texas Military Bases and Jobs

Governor Perry created the Base Realignment and Closure Response
Strike Force to lead the effort to protect Texas military installations
recommended for closure by the federal government. The Strike Force,
comprised of representatives from 14 state agencies developed a plan of
action for each endangered base to remedy problem areas before a final
closure order was issued.

Perry worked to aggressively position Texas’ 18 military
installations as ideal locations for continued and expanded missions.
Under Perry’s direction, the state made unprecedented commitments to
improve infrastructure on Texas bases to increase their value to the
military. Perry also signed legislation giving military communities the
authority to invest local sales tax dollars in base improvement
projects.

Protecting Texans from Identity Theft

Governor Perry signed legislation in 2003 allowing Texans to place a
freeze on their credit with the three major credit bureaus. This credit
freeze protects Texans from identity theft by preventing the opening of
new credit accounts without permission.