Good morning,

Here is today's Texas Minute.

– Michael Quinn Sullivan 

Wednesday, April 15, 2020
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• Tarrant County Republican State Rep. Matt Krause wants Gov. Greg Abbott to get Texas back to normal. Cary Cheshire details the letter Krause sent the governor with seven policy recommendations for a state plan to help Texas recover from the Chinese coronavirus epidemic and the resulting government-ordered closures. 
      
• Among the planks of Krause’s plan: ending the distinction between “essential” and “non-essential” businesses; allowing public gatherings, including religious services, provided they conform to CDC guidelines; continue waiving regulations for another six months; continue recommending “shelter-in-place” for the elderly and infirm; keep schools closed for the remainder of the 2019-2020 academic year.
     
• Hood County’s Mike Lang (R), whose own letter to Abbott was similar to Krause’s, provided substantially more freedom for Texans to regulate their own risks. Rep. Lang stipulates that any “shelter-in-place” ideas going forward should be stated as recommendations rather than mandates or orders. He also wants those “waived” regulations to remain unenforced until after the 2021 legislative session.  
   
• Meanwhile, state and local government must cut spending now, urges State Rep. Tony Tinderholt in a new commentary. Ruling out a tax increase, the Arlington Republican says swift action today will allow continued funding for what he identifies as core functions of government – “infrastructure, public safety, and public education.”
     
• “Therefore, at a time when the average American is evaluating their personal budget for any unnecessary spending, so should our governments of Texas.” – State Rep. Tony Tinderholt
      
• Reps. Lang, Krause, and Tinderholt should be commended for presenting serious proposals to restore Texans’ liberty and help the state’s economy get back to work.
         
• With officials across Texas ordering a patchwork of draconian emergency orders with the intent of slowing the spread of coronavirus, one hotel owner is pushing back against orders that needlessly hurt small businesses and violate constitutional rights. Matt Stringer reports the owner of the historic Gage Hotel in Marathon, Texas, is challenging the constitutionality of the Brewster County judge’s “emergency” orders on the grounds they have unnecessarily hurt small businesses and prevented free travel.
   
• Over at The Federalist, John Davidson writes the coronavirus has revealed “little tyrants” around the country; mayors and governors who “seem to think their authority is limitless... They need a remedial lesson in the Constitution.”

• As cases of the Chinese coronavirus start to level off locally, Collin County’s top elected official is preparing to help residents recover from the economic impact of the public health disaster. Erin Anderson has the details.
   
• In central Texas, the Austin City Council were recently warned 261,000 people in the Austin metro area—a quarter of all the workforce—could lose their jobs during the coronavirus pandemic. Jacob Asmussen has the details on what this means for the region’s return to normalcy.
   
• And finally, Travis County has issued a ban on anyone being in public without wearing a mask, with a few exceptions. Violations of this latest pandemic power-grab could result in a $1,000 fine or even jail time.
   
• I have a new, government-mandated outfit for jewelry shopping and going to the bank. Yay, government!

Coronavirus (COVID-19) Case Data
Current as of 6:00am, 4/15/2020

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