Wednesday, March 25, :30 PM to 8:00 PM Young Women’s Leadership Academy 2123 W. Huisache Ave., San Antonio, Texas DISTRICT OFFICE:

TREY MARTINEZ FISCHER -Chairman of the Mexican American Legislative Caucus, the oldest and largest Latino Legislative Caucus in the United States. -State Representative, HD 116 – The Historical West Side of San Antonio. Accomplishments: -Helped secure $3.9 Billion dollars for Texas school children in Awards: -“One of Texas Ten Best Legislators” – Texas Monthly Magazine “20 Latino Democrats to watch over the next 20 years” – Hearst Newspapers. -“Pillar of Character Award” NISD and Holmes Husky Hall of Fame member.

TREY MARTINEZ FISCHER Most importantly, I am a husband to my wife, your neighbor, and a father of two strong and beautiful daughters. Trey Martinez Fischer with his wife, Elizabeth, an attorney, and his two daughters Francesca, 6, and Camilla, 4.5.

LEGISLATIVE PRIORITIES FOR THE 84 TH LEGISLATIVE SESSION When I talk to our neighbors, these are the policies that are their priorities:  Public Schools  Improving Healthcare  Increasing the minimum wage  Pre-Kindergarten What are your priorities for the Legislative Session?

CAN YOU GUESS WHAT THE NUMBER ONE PRIORITY IS FOR THE TEXAS LEGISLATURE RIGHT NOW? ANY GUESSES…

LEGISLATIVE PRIORITIES FOR THE 84 TH LEGISLATIVE SESSION Open Carry – Overturning Texas’ 144 year ban on the open carry of weapons. Guns on Campus – Senate Bill 11, allows carrying weapons on campus of certain Texas public universities. Money for Border Troopers – House Bill 11 authorizes $565.2 million dollars for Border Security over the next two years. Tax Cuts for Businesses and Diversions – Senate Bills 1, 7, & 8 seek to cut $4.6 billion dollars from general revenue. SB 5 seeks to divert money from the general revenue, which will hurt public schools in the future.

LEADERSHIP’S PRIORITIES ARE NOT SAN ANTONIO'S PRIORITIES “Leadership is not just by your actions, but it’s also an evaluation of your omissions,” said Rep. Trey Martinez Fischer, D-San Antonio. …. Martinez Fischer, for example, said Abbott should be more up-front on issues such as in-state tuition for qualifying undocumented immigrants. Abbott has said its goal is noble, but that he won’t interfere if lawmakers do away with it, as some Republicans like Patrick want to do. “I think the governor should use his platform to not just identify things he wants, but to outline things happening within his party that he doesn’t agree with,” Martinez Fischer said. He also said that Abbott has neglected “the headline issue of this state, which is the plight of the uninsured.” Abbott opposes Medicaid expansion and has voiced support for a federal block grant that’s considered unlikely. “Saying 'no,’ that’s not a public policy. We need to have solutions,” the San Antonio Democrat said. “Abbott employs charm offensive at halfway point of the session” San Antonio Express News, Fikac, 3/21/2015

NEXT UP: THE BUDGET Source: “Summary of Committee Substitute for House Bill 1,” Legislative Budget Board, p. 3

BUDGET: GOOD NEWS & BAD NEWS Good News  Budget increases spending to $209 billion, including increasing the state share for TRS  There is $8.4 billion left unspent  $ 2 Billion is left below the Constitutional Spending limit  $11.1 Billion in the Rainy Day Fund  Budget actually spends less than previous budget when adjusted for population growth and inflation  Pre-K is not fully restored to 2011 levels  40% of school districts will receive less money than before the 2011 budget cuts Bad News

HOW MUCH MONEY DO WE HAVE? For , Texas can expect to have $113 billion dollars available for general- purpose spending. $7.5 billion remains unspent from previous budgets. Texas will also receive $72.9 billion in federal receipts and other revenues. Revenue from all sources and all purposes is estimated to be $220.9 billion dollars. The Rainy Day Fund Balance is projected to exceed $11.1 billion at the end of the Texas budget cycle.

HISTORICAL COMPARISON The Texas Budget for was $7.1 billion. Today the House Committee on Appropriations has just voted on a budget that spends $209 billion dollars. This is increase of 2900% over 42 years.

PUBLIC EDUCATION  Projected Enrollment Growth of 83,000 to 85,00 students  This new growth is expected to cost $2.5 billion to educate Source: “Enrollment in Texas Public Schools ”, TEA “In , Hispanic students accounted for the largest percentage of total enrollment in Texas public schools (51.8%), followed by White (29.5%), African American (12.7%), Asian (3.7%), and multiracial (1.9%) students.”

BUDGET: PUBLIC EDUCATION  Public Education money from all sources – not counting TRS - total $53.5 billion for the 2016–17 biennium, an increase of $1.9 billion, or 3.7 percent from the 2014–15 biennium.  General Revenue and General Revenue–Dedicated Funds total $33.9 billion, an increase of $148.8 million, or 0.4 percent from the 2014–15 biennium. Source: “Summary of Committee Substitute for House Bill 1,” Legislative Budget Board, p. 53

BUDGET: TRANSPORTATION  $24.8 billion from all funds is provided for all functions of the Department of Transportation;  Ending Diversions: $1.3 Billion in State Highway Funds (made available from the discontinuation of in State Highway Fund appropriations to agencies other than the Department of Transportation);  New GR: $1.5 billion in General Revenue Funds to provide additional funding for non-tolled roadway projects;  Prop 1: $2.4 billion in funding from oil and natural gas tax-related transfers to the State Highway Fund as approved by voters in November 2014 (Proposition 1, 2014). Source: “Summary of Committee Substitute for House Bill 1,” Legislative Budget Board, p. 8

DEBT CONCERN - TRANSPORTATION  $2.4 billion in All Funds for Transportation is provided for debt service payments and other financing costs.  Texas began borrowing for transportation projects in 2003 growing our state debt from $13.4 billion in 2001 to $44.33 billion today.  Meanwhile, borrowing costs to taxpayers over the lifetime of the existing Transportation bond debt ($17.3 Billion) is $31 billion. Even with these funds, Texas is nowhere close to what it will need for transportation infrastructure for the next thirty years.

BUDGET: BORDER SECURITY Border Security funding has increased 409% since What if Pre-K funding had been increased by 400% since 2008? Almost the entire Bexar County House Delegation voted against the increase in Border Security.

BUDGET: TRS  $3.6 billion from all sources is provided for the state contribution to retirement benefits of the Teacher Retirement System (TRS), including $3.5 billion in General Revenue Funds, $94.2 million in General Revenue–Dedicated Funds, and$6.8 million in Other Funds.  Funding reflects a state contribution rate of 6.8 percent of employee payroll in each year of the 2016–17 biennium.

WHAT’S LEFT ON THE TABLE? House Budget writers left over $8 billion on the table in General Revenue. There is also $2 billion in wiggle room under the spending growth cap. “Taking a longer view of spending, it becomes clear that despite having more resources to address the needs of our growing state, House budget writers are opting to do even less for the people of Texas. When adjusted for population growth and inflation, the proposal actually cuts spending relative to the current budget. Without smart investments now, the future prosperity of the state is in serious jeopardy.” - Eva De Luna Castro, CPPP, Budget Analyst

WHAT GOT LEFT OUT?  Pre-K – Not fully restored to pre-2011 levels, when there are more children now and the cost to educate has increased.  Public Schools - 40% of School Districts still will not receive the same amount of funding as they received before the budget cuts in  Texas Grants - Did not receive the funding needed to continue providing financial aid to college students at current levels, and may have to once again reduce individual grant amounts or restrict eligibility.  Medicaid Expansion – The current budget being spent on Article II is $77 billion dollars. If Texas had expanded Medicaid, for the budget cycle, it would have brought an additional $1.2 billion dollars, which would have freed up other dollars to be spent elsewhere. Source: “Preliminary Estimate of General Revenue Availability in State Health Care Programs,” Billy Hamilton How would you spend the money? -Public Education -Parks -Tax Cuts -Pre-K -College Financial Aid

QUESTIONS?