Explore how Texas government addresses society's most pressing challenges!
Enter your name to begin your journey through Texas public policy:
Understand the definition of public policy and how it affects Texans.
Learn about private, public, common, and toll goods and policy categories.
Explore the five stages of making public policy in Texas.
Examine policies on gun rights, affirmative action, and civil rights.
Discover K-12 funding, higher education, and school choice in Texas.
Learn about fracking, environmental policy, and Texas energy resources.
Explore Medicaid, Medicare, the ACA, and Texas social safety net programs.
Understand how policy advocates and analysts shape Texas policy decisions.
Public policy is the broad strategy government uses to do its job, the relatively stable set of purposive governmental behaviors that address matters of concern to some part of society. Most policy outcomes are the result of considerable debate, compromise, and refinement that happen over years and are finalized only after input from multiple institutions within government.
+30 points! 🏛️ The policy development process!
Policy doesn't happen by accident, and it is rarely formed simply as the result of campaign promises of a single elected official. Most policy outcomes result from considerable debate, compromise, and refinement over years with input from multiple institutions. For example, health care reform (the ACA) was developed after years of analysis, reflection on existing policy, and trial implementation at the state level. What may seem sudden was actually the product of decades of work by both parties, including proposals from Mitt Romney when he was governor of Massachusetts.
Public policy decisions impact our lives in many ways. As a result, we should understand how policies are formed, budgeted, implemented, and evaluated. We should also know who the policymakers are and be able to measure the effectiveness of policies that have been made.
+30 points! ✅ Defining features revealed!
Public policy has several important characteristics:
For example, much of the debate over gun control centers on Congress's unwillingness to act, even when public opinion supports changes. The 2004 expiration of the Federal Assault Weapons Ban resulted from lawmakers' inaction.
Economists use the term "goods" to describe the range of commodities, services, and systems that help us satisfy our wants or needs. Understanding different types of goods helps explain why government involvement is necessary in some areas.
+30 points! 🌍 Public goods explained!
Public goods (sometimes called collective goods) are not excludable and are essentially infinite. Examples include air, national security, and geographic regions like forests. The problem is that since no one owns them, no one has a financial interest in protecting their long-term value. Without government regulation, a factory owner can freely pollute the air or water since they have no responsibility for pollution once it moves elsewhere. This is why government involvement is necessary to protect these shared resources.
+30 points! 📊 Policy categories revealed!
Theodore Lowi categorized policy based on costs and benefits:
The Transcontinental Railroad illustrates distributive policy. In the 1860s, the U.S. government chartered the Central Pacific and Union Pacific Railroads, providing resources and land grants to facilitate construction. Publicly owned land was distributed to private citizens who could use it for their own gain, while simultaneously providing a national transportation network. Texas continues to have more railroad mileage than any other state and the largest number of railroad employees.
Policymaking is a cyclical process. It begins with recognition of a significant public problem and an organized call to government action. The process is a cycle because the evaluation stage should feed back into the earlier stages, informing future decisions about the policy.
+30 points! 📋 Stage 2 explained!
Agenda Setting is the second stage. Not all issues make it onto the governmental agenda because there is only so much attention government can pay. One important task for a policy advocate is to frame their issue in a compelling way. For example, health care reform was made salient by framing it in terms of health care access and the percentage of people without insurance. In recent years, the Texas official policy agenda has included educational finance, property tax reform, medical malpractice reform, welfare reform, and corrections policy reform.
+30 points! 🔄 Stages 4 & 5 revealed!
Implementation (Stage 4): Government agencies begin making the policy work. They establish procedures, write guidance documents, and issue grants-in-aid. Identifying the appropriate agency is crucial. Budgetary policy plays a major role and could determine a policy's success or failure.
Evaluation (Stage 5): All policies must be evaluated for effectiveness. Evaluation asks, "How well did this policy do what we designed it to do?" A 2011 study found that abstinence-only education actually increased teen pregnancy rates—the opposite of its intended goal! Evaluation may reveal needs for revisions, implementation changes, or new policies entirely.
+30 points! 🔫 Second Amendment in Texas!
The Second Amendment reads: "A well regulated Militia being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed." In Texas, this right belongs to "every citizen" by the Texas Constitution. Estimates of Texas gun ownership range from 35% to 43% of the population—above the national average.
Eight new gun laws went into effect September 1, 2019, including allowing guns in places of worship (unless banned with proper signage), during disasters, and in rented property. Campus carry laws became effective August 1, 2016 for 4-year universities and August 1, 2017 for community colleges, pertaining to concealed carry only.
+30 points! 🚻 Civil rights debate!
Several bills were filed in the 2017 Texas Legislature regarding transgender bathroom access. Senator Lois Kolkhorst sponsored SB6, championed by Lt. Governor Dan Patrick. The Texas Senate passed SB6 (regular session) and SB3 (Special Session) by 21-10 largely along party lines. SB6 would have limited bathroom access based on the sex listed on one's birth certificate. However, in August 2017, the Texas Legislature adjourned without the House voting on any "transgender bathroom bill." This illustrates how policy can be made (or not made) through legislative inaction.
One of the most important functions of state government is providing and funding public education. Texas has a very large and complex public school system, with an equally complex school finance system. Three issues have played a major role in shaping education: desegregation, funding equity, and finding the formula for educational excellence.
+30 points! 💰 The basic allotment!
The state of Texas guarantees every school district a certain amount of funding for each student, called the basic allotment. State lawmakers determine the base number per student, which was $5,140 in 2018. Many educators argue that the state should regularly increase that base number to match inflation to provide schools with needed funding; however, the basic allotment per student has not changed substantially since 2010.
Texas' higher education system is composed of 268 colleges and universities: 107 public institutions, 73 nonprofit private schools, and 88 for-profit private institutions. At public four-year colleges, 27.6% graduated within four years, while 51.7% graduated within six years. Hispanic students comprised approximately 34.0% of the total postsecondary student population. Texas was one of five states where teaching/research assistants alone outnumbered full-time faculty.
+30 points! 🏫 Educational alternatives!
School choice programs provide alternatives to parents who don't want to send children to assigned public schools. Options include:
As of 2016, Texas provided no financial assistance for parents sending children to private schools. Charter schools in Texas cannot charge tuition or impose special entrance requirements; students are admitted through a lottery if demand exceeds spaces.
Energy policy involves governmental actions affecting the production, distribution, and consumption of energy. These policies include legislation, regulation, taxes, incentives for energy production or use, and standards for energy efficiency. A variety of factors affect feasibility, including available natural resources, geography, and consumer needs.
+30 points! ⛽ Texas oil and gas!
Texas overlies portions of major oil and gas formations:
As of February 2017, Texas had 279,615 active oil and gas wells. According to the Texas Railroad Commission, fracking began in Texas in the 1950s. Texas regulations require operators to disclose chemicals used in fracking on FracFocus.org, though trade secrets may be withheld.
+30 points! 🏛️ Federal environmental oversight!
While states have primary regulatory authority, oil and gas operators must meet federal requirements:
Environmental policy aims to conserve natural resources by balancing environmental protection with economic growth, property rights, public health, and energy production.
Healthcare policy affects not only the cost citizens pay for care, but also their access to care and the quality of care received. A top concern for policymakers is the rising cost of healthcare, which has placed an increasing strain on consumers' disposable income and state budgets.
+30 points! 💊 Medicaid explained!
Medicaid is a formula-based health insurance program—beneficiaries must demonstrate they fall within a particular income category. It's jointly funded by federal and state governments, with eligibility, benefits, and administration managed by states within federal guidelines. Texas' Medicaid program provides medical insurance to low-income people and individuals with disabilities.
Related programs include CHIP (Children's Health Insurance Program) covering low-income children above the poverty line, and TexCare offering additional children's health insurance through Medicaid and SKIP (State Kids Insurance Program).
During the Great Depression, the U.S. created programs constituting a "social safety net" for millions who lost jobs, homes, and savings. The Texas Department of Public Welfare was established in 1939 during the New Deal. As of December 2016, roughly 14% of Texas residents (approximately 4 million people) received Social Security benefits. About 87% of Texans aged 65+ received benefits. Benefits totaled roughly $4.85 billion for December 2016, averaging $1,206 per recipient per month.
+30 points! 📋 The ACA in Texas!
The Affordable Care Act (ACA), also known as Obamacare, was signed into law in 2010 by President Barack Obama. It facilitates purchase of health insurance through exchanges, tax credits, and subsidies. A 2012 Supreme Court ruling made Medicaid expansion voluntary for states. The law requires insurers to cover standard benefits and prohibits coverage denials based on preexisting conditions.
Texas led other states in efforts to combat what some called federal government takeover of healthcare. Even before the ACA, more than 50% of all healthcare expenditures in the U.S. already came from federal programs like Medicare and Medicaid.
Two important but overlapping groups defend their preferred policy changes: policy advocates and policy analysts. Understanding how these groups operate helps citizens engage more effectively in the policy process.
+30 points! 👴 Lobbying in action!
AARP (formerly American Association of Retired Persons) is a lobbying group that frequently takes on advocacy roles. Its primary job is to convince government to provide more resources and services to senior citizens, including lower health care costs and safety of Social Security payments.
In 2002, AARP surprised many by supporting the Republican prescription drug plan over the Democratic proposal. While Democrats argued their position was better for individuals, AARP reasoned the Republican plan had a better chance of passing. AARP created a new benefit it hoped could later be expanded, rather than fighting for an extreme position that might leave seniors with nothing.
+30 points! ✊ Get connected!
What is your passion? Is there an aspect of society you think should be changed? Become a public policy advocate for it! Ways to participate:
Think tanks like the Texas Public Policy Foundation, Cato Institute, and Brookings Institution provide policy analysis from various perspectives.
Chapter 12: Public Policy in Texas
| Section | Topic | Status | Points |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | What is Public Policy? | ❌ | 0/150 |
| 2 | Types of Goods & Policy | ❌ | 0/165 |
| 3 | The Policy-Making Process | ❌ | 0/160 |
| 4 | Civil Liberties & Rights | ❌ | 0/165 |
| 5 | Education Policy | ❌ | 0/155 |
| 6 | Energy & Environment | ❌ | 0/155 |
| 7 | Healthcare & Social Welfare | ❌ | 0/160 |
| 8 | Influencing Policy | ❌ | 0/150 |
This report documents the student's completion of Chapter 12: Public Policy in Texas. The percentage score reflects both content exploration and knowledge check performance. Students should aim for 80% or higher to demonstrate mastery.