Based on the comprehensive TCC scorecard and the Pledge with Texans, we are pleased to announce the recipients of the TCC Courageous Conservative award, in recognition of legislators’ efforts to advance, support, and vote for conservative policy positions in the 82nd Texas Legislature.

In this opinion-editorial, which was published by the Corpus Christi Caller Times on December 4, 2011, State Rep. Raul Torres notes the conservative successes of the 82nd Texas Legislature and the TCC "Pledge with Texans."

In this Houston Chronicle opinion-editorial, State Rep. Patricia Harless makes the case for the state's photo identification election integrity bill, urging the Department of Justice to expeditiously pre-clear the law. 

In this opinion-editorial, thirteen state legislators discuss the legislative session, the success of the TCC Pledge with Texans, and the work that remains to be accomplished. 

Prior to the start of the 82nd Texas Legislature, seventy-nine conservative state legislators, along with Governor Perry and Comptroller Combs, signed a conservative agenda – the Pledge with Texans. This report details the final status of the Pledge at the conclusion of the 82nd Legislature, including measures that were signed by the Governor, as well as conservative priorities that failed to win final passage.

In its unanimous decision in Bond v. United States, the United States Supreme Court makes a number of critically important arguments in favor of restoring the principle of federalism and returning the federal government to its limited, constitutionally-defined role.  The decision, coupled with the success of the 82nd Legislature, should give conservatives new optimism as we challenge extra-constitutional exercises of federal power that come at the expense of state prerogatives and individual liberty. 

On Monday, June 27, the Texas Senate and the Texas House of Representatives each gave final approval to Senate BIll 7.  The comprehensive health care reform bill includes language that would enter Texas into an interstate health care compact pursuant to Article I, Section 10 of the United States Constitution.

Senate Bill 18, the primary piece of private property rights legislation this session, passed in both the Texas Senate and the Texas House of Representatives.  The bill was signed into law by Governor Rick Perry on May 19, 2011.

Senate Bill 14, which is the photo idenification bill, has been signed by Governor Rick Perry. With the passage of this legislation, Texas joins other states that have addressed voter fraud with similar legislation. Eliminating voter fraud is an essential part of protecting voter rights, because every fraudulent vote cancels out a legitimate vote. The United States Supreme Court has ruled voter identification to be constitutional. 

The Texas House of Representatives has passed the proposed state budget for 2012-2013, and in the face of a revenue shortfall, conservatives in the House have kept their word by balancing the budget without raising taxes.