Conference Committee on SB1: A Ten-Minute Flirtation with Transparency… Opening Salvo, Fire in the Hole

The Conference Committee on SB1 met this morning, teasing us with a brief glimmer of open government. Not so fast there, Cowboy (or in my case, Eagle). The Legislative Budget Board made a presentation and then Chair Nelson said, “We are getting to work immediately”. Cameras zoomed in, fingers sat poised over keyboards and then the Committee dissolved into secret chambers where one can only imagine the dark arts hold sway. Committee members include: Senate: Nelson, Huffman, Kolkhorst, Nichols, and Taylor (Not a Democrat to be seen.) The House, in a nod to an attempt at bipartisanism, included Bonnen, Mary Gonzales, Capriglione, Walle, and Wilson. The presentation by the LBB can be found below. The reader is advised to see other documents by Texas Insight for a more in-depth analysis of the differences between the two Bills. Presentation by the Legislative Budget Board [here]. Senate Bill 1, by Method of Finance Constitut