Issues Supported By Wendy Davis -- Strong Economy

Strong Economy

• Education

Investing in our schools to ensure all Texas children have access to quality educational opportunities and good-paying jobs is key to Texas’ economic success. As Governor, Wendy Davis will:

• Implement quality, full-day Pre-K for every child.

• Ensure we test less and teach more.

• Cut administrative costs and bureaucratic waste to put more money in our classrooms.

• Make college more accessible and affordable through college-credit hours available to high school students and by doubling the number of early college high schools.

• Invest in the TEXAS Grant program, Texas’ need-based funding program for higher education students.

• Support the advancement of Texas universities to Tier one status.

• Infrastructure

A strong infrastructure is essential for Texas to create good paying jobs and stay competitive in the 21st Century economy. As Governor, Wendy Davis will:

• Fight for smart, sufficient, and sustainable investment for Texas’ transportation infrastructure.

• Ensure the voter-approved State Water Plan is implemented transparently and effectively, so Texas families and business have the water supply they need.

• Honest Pay for Honest Work

Hardworking Texas families are the key to our economic success, and a full day’s work is worth a full day’s pay. As Governor, Wendy Davis will:

• Fight to increase the minimum wage, ensuring 2.8 million hardworking Texans have better paying jobs — including 1.5 million women, 1.5 million parents, and 377,000 people over the age of 55.

• Sign the Texas Equal Pay Act to help close the pay gap and ensure that women and all Texans are paid equally for doing the same work.

• Energy

Our energy industry builds our schools, boosts our infrastructure and creates hundreds of thousands of jobs. As Governor, Wendy Davis will:

• Help our energy industry remain a leader in innovation and technological advancement.

• Use the combined advantage of our oil and gas, wind and solar abundance to lower families’ energy bills and grow Texas’ economic prosperity.

• Protect private property rights and quality of life for Texas residents as the energy industry continues to grow and thrive.

• Work with the industry to ensure that Texas takes full advantage of its leadership in clean energy like natural gas production and wind energy to become an even bigger energy exporter to other states.

• Economic Development Funds & Tax Exemptions

When responsibly invested, economic development funds can help bring new businesses and jobs into the state, promote innovation, and encourage technological advancements. But under the wrong leadership and without accountability, too often they become giveaways to special interests and insiders that drain valuable resources from essential investments like our schools and increase taxes on working Texas families. As Governor, Wendy Davis will:

• Promote transparency, accountability, and responsible investment of economic development funds to ensure they actually create jobs, as well as encourage innovation and development that benefits all Texans.

• Establish strong, independent oversight of our incentive funds.

• Ensure transparency and accountability of tax exemptions.

• Medicaid Expansion

Wendy Davis believes we cannot let $100 billion of Texas tax dollars leave the state and pay for healthcare in other states like California, New York and Florida. We need to keep those dollars here at home to relieve the burden on local governments and create 300,000 new jobs.