Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick issued the following statement upon the filing of the Texas Senate Budget, Senate Bill 1 (SB 1) by Sen. Jane Nelson, R-Flower Mound:
“I want to thank Senate Finance Chair Nelson and the Senate Finance Committee who have worked tirelessly with our office for months. As always, Senator Nelson has done outstanding work.
“The budget introduced today reflects the challenges we face this legislative session because of the crippling impact of the coronavirus pandemic on our economy and difficulties encountered by our oil and gas industry. It also reflects the news late in the last quarter that the Texas economy is coming back even stronger than ever.
“SB 1 reflects our commitment to those conservative budgeting principles that have kept our state resilient and economically sound. SB 1 will appropriate $251.2 billion in All Funds and $119.7 billion in General Revenue funds. This is within the increase in Texas population growth times the rate of inflation and represents a 4% growth in General Revenue. The 5% reduction in spending cuts that I asked state agencies to make is included.
“This budget also reflects our commitment to:
- Maintaining the same fiscal restraint that has kept our state strong, using population times inflation as our guide
- Continuing to do all we can to mitigate the pandemic without further damaging the economy
- Maintaining the historic education funding increases and teacher pay raises established in 2019
- Continuing our commitment to delivering health care and mental health care to Texans
- Maintaining our commitment to public safety and border security
- Maintaining our commitment to roads and transportation infrastructure
“This is not the first time Texas has seen difficult economic times. We are committed to maintaining our fiscal integrity using the conservative budget principles that will ensure Texas remains a job creating engine for the nation and a major player in the global marketplace.”
