Dick Lavine focuses on building state and local revenue systems that meet Texans’ needs. Before coming to Every Texan in 1994, he was a Senior Researcher at the House Research Organization of the Texas House of Representatives for ten years. He is a Chartered Financial Analyst and a Trustee of the City of Austin Employees Retirement System. He served for many years as a member and chairman of the Board of Directors of the Travis Central Appraisal District and was recently returned to the Board by the voters of Travis County to fill a newly created elective position. He is also a member of the Executive Board of AFSCME Texas Retirees, the statewide union local of retired public employees, and the Board of Directors of Progress Texas Institute, a progressive media organization. The Equity Center named him as a Champion for Equity for his work to reform our tax system to ensure it can adequately support public education and other public services. He earned a Bachelor of Arts in Economics, magna cum laude, from Harvard College in 1969, and a Doctor of Jurisprudence, cum laude, from the University of Pennsylvania in 1975.
Policy areas: State & Local Revenue, Economic Incentives
Where to find me during session: Inside the Capitol, usually on a bench near the Central Court
My surprising hobby: Photography
Texas’ system is so unbalanced that many Texas families pay a larger portion of their income in state/local taxes than similar families in “high-tax” California. A comprehensive study by the
For more than 20 years, state revenue has been drained by a program of school property tax abatements known as “Chapter 313,” named after its section in the Tax Code.
What the Legislature Has Failed To Do in 2023 Make investments in the future for all Texans. In particular, the basic allotment (the building block for school finance formulas) remains
This blog has been updated to reflect the House floor amendments adopted on May 4, 2023. Read the original blog here. For more than twenty years state revenue has been
For more than twenty years state revenue has been drained by a program of school property tax abatements known as “Chapter 313,” after its section in the Tax Code. This
April 10, 2023 – Every Texan Senior Fiscal Analyst Dick Lavine testifies before the Texas House Committee on Ways and Means against HB 5, the Chapter 313 replacement bill.
Sept. 8, 2022 – Every Texan Senior Fiscal Analyst Dick Lavine testifies before the Texas House Committee on Ways and Means on Chapter 313.
View this testimony as a PDF here. HB 3600/SB 1613 is a very expensive program – The fiscal note shows an All Funds cost in the 2026-27 biennium of $921
Even after the current “once-in-a-lifetime” projected cash balance has been spent, Texas will still need sufficient revenue to provide education, health care, transportation, and other critical services for Texans across
View this blog as a PDF here. This is an updated version of our biennial report on the state and local tax systems. View the previous version of this report
