Texas And SNAP

The Texas legislature is the dominant branch of state government within the state constitutional framework of separation of powers. “Under the Tenth Amendment to the United States Constitution, the legislature, as representative of the people of Texas, exercises plenary powers, limited only by the Texas and United States constitutions and valid federal laws” (Texas Legislature). In the 1845-1879 Texas statehood constitution, which laid out the basic legislative framework established the bicameral legislature, which contains the House of Representatives and the Senate. The House of Representatives is formed by forty-five to ninety members, which are elected form counties, cities, or towns for two-year terms. The House of Reps. originated from the British House of Commons, which has the exclusive right to create taxes and spend that revenue, which is considered the ultimate check on royal authority. Therefore, “All bills for revenue shall be originated in the House of Representatives…” (U.S. Constitution), in reference to the fiscal policy. A fiscal policy is the means by which a government adjusts its spending levels and tax rates to

The state bureaucracy administers/implements the laws of Texas. It is run by executives whose job is to see that the laws of the state are implemented according to the will and intent of the Legislature. Ideally, these executive branch officials or bureaucrats are to administer their duties and implement the laws in a neutral manner, uninfluenced by politics. In reality, state bureaucrats are important players in not just implementation, but also policy making. In Texas, there is no overall central governing or controlling authority. Government authority in Texas is very decentralized, and rests within many independent state agencies.

This was a large improvement from 2002, when the SNAP participation rate was at only 54 percent. The participation rate among low-income working families increased from 43 percent in 2002 to 65 percent in 2010. SNAP payment efficiency is at an all-time high. Of all public benefit programs, SNAP has one of the most accurate quality control systems. Although there has been a growth in caseloads, the share of SNAP payments has reached a record low in fiscal year 2011 (Rosenbaum, 2013).

It has been reported across media that the number of food stamp recipients has increased tremendously, reaching an all time high of 5 million people (Matt, 2013). The amount forgone is approximately $175 million (Matt, 2013). Of this amount, $75 million has been distributed to individuals who do not meet the eligibility criteria (Matt, 2013). In his research study, Matt (2013) indicated that for every $60 in benefits, Texas doled out close to $6.11 to people or recipients who are not eligible (Matt, 2013). The national average stands at $3.05, which shows that Food Stamp fraud in Texas is alarmingly high (Matt, 2013). This shows clearly that Food Stamp fraud is indeed destroying the economic potential of Texas. The amount used in order to provide benefits to fraudsters is supposed to be used in other areas of economic worth. However, believing that the needy citizens are being assisted, Texas has continued to use its revenues for unwarranted courses of action. Furthermore, the food stamp fraud is costing the tax payers immensely. As such, the cost of benefits provided under this program is met by the tax payers. As such, they must pay some income tax, some of which is channeled into the food stamp course. With an increase in the number of recipients, it means that the tax payers have to forgo more. This, as a result, ensures that those who are economically active continue to suffer at the expense of

Texas is the second most populous state as well as the second largest state in the United States of America (Brown, Langenegger, Garcia, Lewis, & Biles, 2014). With a huge number of people currently calling Texas their home, it would make sense to draw the conclusion that the Texas government must make this state a great place to live by serving its citizens to the best of its abilities. However, it is best not to make assumptions and in order to ascertain whether the local government actually fulfills this role we must look at multiple aspects of the government.

Medicaid, WIC Programs, Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program known as “food stamps”, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF), and HUD which deals with housing are only a few of the programs that are available for the poor and underemployed today. These government programs cost the taxpayers billions of dollars. State and federal government try every year to reduce programs. In Mississippi, Medicaid has been reduced although children and the disabled are still covered. SNAP commonly known as food stamps have also been reduce and restricted to balance both the state and federal government. At the height of the recession, the last few years, has increased the number of single bread winner families seeking help by applying for government welfare programs. We often hear of people selling their food stamps for things that are not approved. These stories are used by the people who do not think that tax money should be used to support people who do not work. Changing the name of “welfare” to TANF has not slowed the

This paper will discuss about the three branches of government of Texas. The government of Texas has its operations under the constitution of Texas (Maxwell, Crain, & Santos, 2013). It consists of a unitary democratic state of government that applies the Dillon Rule as the County and municipal levels. The branches of the Texas government consist of the executive branch, which consist of the governor, Lieutenant governor and many others in that docket.

The state is made up of different sectors all in existence and intertwined each other. The constitution serves many functions in the operations of the government and the life of the people governed. The document houses the rules of the land and the conditions governing the way the various sectors of the economy react and act in a mutual status. The constitution is the key to the viable existence of the people of Texas providing the fundamental rules and laws for the inception and operations of legal laws (Brown et al., 2014). Likewise, the constitution outlines the underlying breakdown of the way the individual powers and limits to the powers in place exist.

The state of Texas has a government that is broken up in a way to appeal to the public. The question of trusting the government is a common thing for some people. There could be many reasons for this but that’s not important. The government is here to keep control and needs to be trusted by the people. To prevent this distrust, the government is broke up into multiple different levels. These levels are made to aid public needs and separate major powers. The Texas legislature is the main level.

The counties in Texas have an odd relationship with the state government and the Texas constitution. The counties are under the state and they are required to handle duties that the state rants them. However, the counties are strongly against the involvement of the state government. Brown (2014) states that “both county officials and county residents see them as local governments and resent any state ‘interference’” (p.110). The counties are charged with the responsibilities of collecting taxes on both urban and rural property, issues state automobile licenses, enforce state laws, register voters, conduct elections, and help administer justice. The counties, along with state and federal governments, “conducts health and welfare programs, maintains

The Texas Government has long been considered a weak type government because it is not the government which holds all of the power, it is the voter. This weak system of government can be seen all the way up through Texas’ executive power. The Federal Government, under the authority of the U.S. Constitution has a comparatively strong centralized form of government. The plural executive in Texas and the Executive of the United States are vastly different in principle and policy. This paper will explain what the plural executive is and how it works in Texas, compare it to the U.S. Executive branch, and explain why the plural executive was created.

Mandira Pandey Professor Sherifian GOVT 2306-73004 1 May 2017 Local control in Texas The government of Texas is composed of entire democratic state government which uses municipal levels and dillion rule. It works beneath the constitution of Texas. The government of Texas is divided into three branches i.e. 1 executive legislative and judiciary. Executive for carrying out laws. Whereas, legislative for making laws. Likewise, judiciary branch aims for interpreting laws.

The state of Texas receives the majority of funding from two sources; taxes and federal receipts. “Currently, Texas is one of nine states that does not levy a personal income tax on its residents and, in addition, its property tax system is a function of local governments. This makes Texas somewhat unique, in that, its state government largely relies on revenue generated from sales taxes and a business tax.” (Texas Public Policy Foundation, 2012) For

When it comes to public finances in Texas, there must be a budget before any spending can occur. There are five broad categories when it comes to the Texas budget. General revenues fund budget is the prime operating fund for the state and a nondedicated income account. This is where the majority of the state fees and taxes circulate. Some educational funds, the Foundation School Fund, the Available School Fund, and the State Textbook Fund, are also included in this budget. The general revenue-dedicated funds budget incorporates funds committed to specific objectives. “These include such funds as the State Parks Account and the college operating accounts (which hold tuition funds.).” “(313)”. The federal funds budget includes payments, reimbursements, and grants collected from the federal government by Texas institutions and agencies. The other funds budget comprises of all funds that aren’t included in other budgets. These funds include revenue in some education accounts, trust funds, State Highway funds, etc. Lastly, there is the all funds budget, which accumulates all of the budgets before into the state spending and treasury.

The SNAP program is based on the gross income a family makes and does not take into account the expenses that the family has such as school loans, car payments, and even household items such as diapers. Due to this system, many people who are working and making an effort to improve their lives are unable to make progress because this type of