States are best positioned to deal with state issues, a fact the founding fathers had in mind when they included the 10th Amendment in the Bill of Rights.  Over the years, that right has been clouded by ongoing federal encroachments that are reflected in a recent series of attempts by Washington to seize even more control over numerous Texas programs, including some of the most successful initiatives of their kinds in the country.

Action Items

» EPA
Texas is a national leader in reducing emissions and known pollutants, and advancing renewable energy sources all while remaining a leader in the nation's energy production. We have successfully balanced the need for environmental improvements with fostering economic growth, new investment, and job creation. Texas continues to advance new, clean energy technology by using market incentives and stable regulation, not costly mandates and taxes.

The Obama administration has taken yet another step in its campaign to harm our economy and impose federal control over Texas. With their efforts to take control of a permitting process that the Clean Air Act allows to be delegated to the states, the EPA is on the verge of killing thousands of Texas jobs and derailing a program that has effectively cleaned Texas' air. An increasingly activist EPA is ignoring the progress Texas has made to clean its air over the last decade, and should instead look to our state's successful approach to issues concerning energy and the environment.

» National Health Care Reform
Texas has consistently been at the forefront in innovative efforts to control medical costs, utilizing market-based solutions to improve the quality of treatments and widen access to care for all Texans. Governor Perry has called for a rejection of federal mandates, and instead promoted state-based solutions, such as Texas' successful reform of the medical liability tort system in 2003. Reform has brought critically-needed doctors back to traditionally-underserved portions of Texas, many in specialties – such as obstetrics – that had been largely chased out of the state by out-of-control trial lawyers. Governor Perry has also championed programs to increase the number of nurses in the state and led the effort to invest millions of dollars in biotechnology and the health care of tomorrow, leveraging the Emerging Technology Fund to help get new technology, treatments and cures to market more quickly. Through common sense laws and the spirit of innovation, Texas is well-positioned for the future of health care.

» Women's Health Program
The Texas Women's Health Program provides preventative health care to more than 100,000 Texas women, including screenings for breast and cervical cancer, diabetes and hypertension, among other services. First implemented in 2007, the program is being phased out by the Obama Administration.

Under federal law, state leaders are left to administer the program and set criteria for who is considered a qualified provider. Consistent with state and federal law, the Texas Health and Human Services Commission has developed the program to ensure continued access to care by qualified providers across Texas.

The Obama Administration rejected the state's waiver application because Texas law excludes abortion providers and their affiliates, like Planned Parenthood, from a list of qualified providers. This is despite the fact Planned Parenthood represents less than 2 percent of enrolled providers statewide.

Following the administration’s decision, Gov. Perry directed Health and Human Services Commissioner Kyle Janek to establish TWHP to continue providing the services WHP provided, until the decision is reversed by Congress or the courts.

News & Announcements

• Wednesday, December 16, 2009 • Austin, Texas • Editorial
  Disputed Science Can Lead to Disastrous Decisions in Copenhagen
  As President Obama jets off to Denmark for the UN’s climate conference, I hope he will take some time as he flies over the Atlantic Ocean to revisit the science that led him to this trip. The EPA sure didn’t.
• Wednesday, December 09, 2009 • La Porte, Texas • Press Release
  Gov. Perry Urges EPA to Withdraw Ruling on Danger of Carbon Dioxide
  
  Gov. Rick Perry today sent a letter to Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Lisa Jackson urging her to withdraw the EPA’s recent ruling on the danger of carbon dioxide, especially in light of the recent “Climategate” scandal, which uncovered data had been manipulated and destroyed in order to falsely show a preordained result. The governor was also joined in La Porte today by state officials and energy industry leaders to highlight the negative implications of Washington’s continued intrusion into the lives of Texans by sacrificing jobs, negatively impacting our energy industry and compromising our economic strength as they pursue one-size-fits all energy regulations.
  » Read the Speech: Gov. Perry Urges EPA to Withdraw Ruling on Danger of Carbon Dioxide
  + Watch Interview of Chairman Barry Smitherman, Public Utility Commission of Texas
• Monday, December 07, 2009 • Austin, Texas • Press Release
  Statement by Gov. Rick Perry Regarding EPA Ruling on Carbon Dioxide
  Gov. Rick Perry today issued the following statement regarding the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) ruling on the danger of carbon dioxide
• Tuesday, November 24, 2009 • Austin, Texas • Press Release
  Gov. Perry: Education Standards Must Be Determined by Texas, Not Washington
  Gov. Perry, in a letter to Texas Education Commissioner Robert Scott, has directed the commissioner not to commit the state to the adoption of national standards and assessments in its application for Race to the Top stimulus funding. The U.S. Department of Education has said it would give preference to states that adopt national standards and assessments in awarding funding, although no national standards have been adopted.
• Monday, November 09, 2009 • Austin, Texas • Speech
  Gov. Perry Touts Renewable Energy Success in Texas
  "Our history is closely linked to the energy industry, and we should all take pride in our state’s legacy, of roughnecks laboring on wells outside Odessa, and machinists keeping our refineries running along the Gulf Coast. Thanks to the efforts of people like you, our energy legacy continues, while it expands with a new generation of energy producers. Wind turbines dot the plains of West Texas, a biomass power plant under construction in Nacogdoches will be one of the largest in the country, and Dow Chemical is investing in a Freeport bio-refinery that will use algae to convert wastewater and CO2 into energy. In Sunray, a Valero refinery will be powered by electricity generated from its very own wind farm. Think about that for a second: A refinery powering itself with electricity generated by the wind. Could anything paint a clearer picture of the synergy that’s possible with traditional and renewable energy sources?"
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