Clean Up Texas Politics | Did Corporate Money Kill the Business Taxes Public Schools Need?

Clean Up Texas Politics | Did Corporate Money Kill the Business Taxes Public Schools Need?: "Campaigns for People released a report today revealing the large influence of big corporate money on Texas’ major political parties and the lack of accountability and transparency of these party funds. The report raises the question whether this corporate influence contributed to the Legislature’s failure to raise business taxes and pass crucial school finance reform.

The report reveals that in the 2004 election cycle the Texas Democratic Party raised $671,436 in corporate and union money, constituting 37% of their state funds; the Republican Party of Texas raised $1,592,221 in corporate funds, totaling 51% of their state funds. Sixty% of the Republican Party’s soft money came from only 20 corporations; 72% of the Texas Democratic Party’s soft money came from 20 corporations and unions."