Someone To Blame

Susan Combs seems to be taking the blame for the situation that occurred but somehow I'm sure she will get off scott free. She will probably get a slap on the wrist.  If this lawsuit is won it is obviousl guarenteed that Ms. Combs herself will not have to dig into her own pockets.  A $1000 pay out to about 3.5 million Texas residents.  Wow! That is amazing.  At a time like this, where is that substantial amount of dough going to come from?  Does anyone know?  Are Combs and the state prepared to deal with problems related to the security breach that occur more than a year later, perhaps even two years later? According to some identity protection experts, data thieves often sit on stolen information for up to two years before using it, to avoid raising immediate suspicion. Combs said it depends. She also does not think there will be a liability issue but that's a question for the Texas Attorney General's office.

Combs now says she takes full responsibility for the data exposure. Some of her initial comments had criticized the way agencies sent the data to the Comptroller's office. Today she says, "We're the last door. We're it. And as head of the agency, I am responsible." She says she's not thinking about her political future right now. "My job is to not worry about anything political. My job  number 1  is to accept responsibility." As for spending her campaign funds, Combs said it is appropriate that she absorb the cost for identity restoration for people who have had their information stolen and used.
This is the agency that collects taxes for the state of Texas. It doesn’t have a lot of tax information about individuals, since Texas doesn’t have a personal income tax. But it’s got a lot of sensitive and proprietary information about the businesses in the state. The agency’s officials have made an explicit deal with those taxpayers: Send us the information we need to make sure you’re paying the taxes you owe, and we’ll never share it with anyone unless they’re either a tax collector or in law enforcement or in the Legislature that’s right, Texas legislators have the legal authority to peek at your books.

It's Pooring!

Updated: Another way to tap the rainy day fund? 

On monday, Sen. Royce West, D-Dallas, floated a proposal this morning to put an additional $3 billion from the state’s rainy day fund into the budget bill that will pay for the deficit in the current year.  HB-4 already includes $3.25 billion from the $9.4 billion reserve fund to cover the state’s tab for the current fiscal year, which ends August 31st.  Of course, the Republicans are wanting to debate this proposition.  A House budget passed in early April trimmed about $23 billion in state spending with cuts to K-12 education, elderly care and higher education. The Senate version of the budget, which is expected to be voted on by the full chamber at the end of April, spends $7 billion more than the House version and differs in substantial ways.  The Senate budget would spend billions more on public education, nursing homes and Medicaid.  Lawmakers positioned themselves for the fiscal debate, with Republicans saying that the state spends too much, and Democrats arguing that the state fails to generate sufficient revenue.  Republicans said that no new taxes will be used to balance the state budget.  It doesn't seem to matter how many cuts are made in our state it is proposed that we will automatically face around a 10 billion dollar shortfall for the next fiscal years regardless.  All spending cuts will come from Education K-12, Higher Education, and of course healthcare/medicaid.  There is still an 18 billion dollar gap that will need to be filled.  It was proposed by the House Budget Chief Jim Pitts that the Legislature consider expanded gambling in the state.  This option is highly unlikely.