This chapter of your textbook goes a lot of different directions, but seems centered around the assertion that Texas’ culture of low taxes and low spending creates or
worsens poverty.
There’s another side to the story, though. Even the San Francisco Chronicle, which is pretty liberal, notes in this article that Texas fares much better in the
statistics when you account for its low cost of living.
The idea seems to be that with a strong economy and lots of job opportunity, a state doesn’t need to spend as much on social services and public assistance.
On the other hand, every state has citizens who are not capable of surviving without assistance. State government provides much of this through the SNAP program
(formerly food stamps) and TANF(welfare). Advocates feel strongly that Texas should spend more on social services. Texas’ social safety net is also feeling the pinch
from federal budget cuts, as explained in this Dallas Morning News article.
Write an essay about the level of social services provided in Texas. Explain the TANF and SNAP programs. Discuss the tradeoff between the higher taxes that would be
required to fund more generous social services programs and the economic benefits realized by low-income Texans as a result of the strong low-tax economy.
Submit in Word. Cite your sources.
Sources for Public Policy – People Assignment:
http://www.sfgate.com/opinion/openforum/article/Texas-vs-California-myth-busting-time-4257744.php
http://www.dallasnews.com/news/metro/20130722-dallas-area-social-service-agencies-feeling-squeeze-from-automatic-cuts.ece
http://yourtexasbenefits.hhsc.state.tx.us/programs/tanf/
http://yourtexasbenefits.hhsc.state.tx.us/programs/snap/
2. Public Policy – Resources Assignment
According to data the U.S. Census Bureau released in May 2013, Texas has eight of the country’s top 15 fastest growing cities. In fact, no state other than Texas had
more than one city on that list. And the population isn’t only expanding in Houston, Dallas and San Antonio – cities like Midland, San Marcos and Conroe are
experiencing significant increases.
We’re fortunate that Texas cities are growing, but during a significant drought (like the one over 90% of the state is currently experiencing), one question comes to
mind: How are we going to provide water for all those people?
Every five years, the Texas Water Development Board compiles information from Texas’ locally developed 16 regional water plans in developing the state water plan.
Among its many purposes, the 2012 State Water Plan projects which areas have the greatest population growth and potential water shortages, and recommends strategies to
meet water shortages.
In 2030, the Dallas-Fort Worth metro area’s water shortages during a severe drought would be more than 10 times the amount of water the city of Lubbock currently uses
in a year. The Rio Grande Valley’s water shortage in 20 years would be around today’s combined water use for the cities of Irving, Arlington, Brownsville and El Paso.
How will we deal with these shortages?
One way will be through the State Water Implementation Fund for Texas (SWIFT), which was approved by voters in last month’s Constitutional Amendment election.
The other major factor is conservation. How much can Texans reasonably be expected to reduce water consumption? Are lush, Saint Augustine lawns in every yard (and the
required watering…and mowing…) going to become a thing of the past? (The New York Times thinks maybe so.) A San Antonio state representative thinks we should
create a Strategic Water Reserve (like the we do for oil), andstore it in aquifers.
Write an essay about the future of water in Texas. How do you see the problem, and what do you think we should do? How much should we rely on new water development
projects? How much should we rely on conservation?
Submit in Word. Cite your sources.
Additional Resources for 2. Public Policy – Resources Assignment
The Texas Water Conservation Association is a good source of information on this topic: http://www.twca.org/
The Texas Water Development Board (linked above) is a good source of information on conservation as well as water projects: http://www.twdb.state.tx.us/conservation/
The Texas Tribune has a cool app that tracks the water level in the state’s reservoirs: http://www.texastribune.org/library/data/texas-reservoir-levels/
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