Texas Governor George W. Bush:

An Inventory of Governor George W. Bush Budget and Planning Office Records Located at the George W. Bush Presidential Library, 1967-2000, undated, bulk 1990-2000

Agency History

The governor of Texas is the chief executive officer of the state, elected by the citizens every four years. The duties and responsibilities of the governor include serving as commander-in-chief of the state's military forces; convening special sessions of the legislature for specific purposes; delivering to the legislature at the beginning of each regular session a report on the condition of the state, an accounting of all public money under the governor's control, a recommended biennial budget, an estimate of the amounts of money required to be raised by taxation, and any recommendations he deems necessary; signing or vetoing bills passed by the legislature; and executing the laws of the state. The governor can grant reprieves and commutations of punishment and pardons, upon the recommendation of the Board of Pardons and Paroles, and revoke conditional pardons. He appoints numerous public officials (with the consent of the Senate), fills vacancies in state and district offices (except vacancies in the legislature), calls special elections to fill vacancies in the legislature, fills vacancies in the United States Senate until an election can be held, and serves as ex officio member of several state boards.

The office of governor was first established by the Constitution of 1845 and superseded the office of president of the Republic of Texas. The position now exists under authority of Article IV, Section 1 of the Constitution of 1876 and Texas Government Code, Chapter 401. To be elected governor, a person must be at least thirty years old, a United States citizen, and a resident of Texas for at least five years preceding the election. In 1972, the term of office was extended from two to four years, effective in 1975. Since 1856 the governor has had the use of the Governor's Mansion.

In 1999 there were 198 full time equivalent employees in the Office of the Governor. Thirteen divisions outside of the Executive Office assist the governor in carrying out his functions: Administration, Appointments, Budget and Planning, Communications, General Counsel, Legislative, Policy, Scheduling, Criminal Justice Division, Governor's Committee on People with Disabilities, Office of Film, Music, Television and Multimedia Industries, Women's Commission, and Texas Council on Workforce and Economic Competitiveness.

The Texas Office of the Governor's Budget and Planning Office advises the Governor regarding state fiscal matters. The office also prepares the Governor's biennial budget recommendations to the Legislature, monitors state appropriations and operations, analyzes fiscal and economic issues, and performs other duties determined by the Governor. The budget office assigns each agency a budget analyst who serves as the contact point between the agency and the Governor's Office for the following issues: strategic planning; performance measurement; agency operating budgets; appropriations requests; consultant contract notifications and findings of fact; federal grant designations; emergency/deficiency grant requests; and other appropriations bill requirements.

From 1995 to 2000, Albert Hawkins was Texas State Budget Director for Governor George W. Bush. In this capacity, he headed the Budget and Planning Office, served as the chief advisor to the Governor on state fiscal issues, oversaw the development of the Governor's state budget, and represented the Governor before the Legislature on budgetary matters. Dale Craymer, the former Director of Budget and Planning under Texas Governor Ann Richards, briefly served as Deputy Director until he was replaced by Wayne R. Roberts. Several Group Directors, responsible for such broad areas as Health and Human Services and Governmental Services, worked under the Deputy Director, while the individual budget analysts appear to have worked under the Group Directors. Following the 2000 presidential election, Deputy Director Roberts became Acting Director as Hawkins prepared for the move to Washington D.C.

Grants Team Background

The Texas Legislature established a State Grant Writing Team in the Office of State Federal Relations in 1991 (Senate Bill 3, 72nd Legislature, First Called Session, 1991). In 1995, this Team became part of the Texas Governor's Budget and Planning Office (House Bill 1399, 74th Legislature, Regular Session, 1995). The Grants Team monitors the federal, state, and private funding information resources and alerts state legislators, state agencies, non-profit organizations, all subdivisions of government and individuals to funding opportunities. The Grants Team, specifically: 1) provides technical assistance on federal funding matters to state agencies, subdivisions of government, Texas legislators, non-profit agencies, and individuals; 2) provides counseling on the availability and means of obtaining federal, state, and private funding assistance; 3) identifies federal and state funding opportunities and responds to inquiries about federal policies and agencies; 4) provides proposal writing support and review of applications; 5) collects and analyzes performance data from state agencies on maximizing federal funds; 6) compiles and distributes the Grant Alert, a fax newsletter about funding opportunities; 7) maintains a clearinghouse of information on the availability of federal, state, and private grants; 8) identifies and facilitates opportunities for collaboration among state agencies to seek federal discretionary funds; and 9) provides proposal writing training on a cost sharing basis. By law, the state Grants Team may charge fees to recover service costs.

The State Single Point of Contact is co-located with the Grants Team and provides grant applicants with information on how to comply with the intergovernmental review requirements of Federal Executive Order 12372 and the Texas Review and Comment System. During Bush's administration, all targeted grant applications (and responses) that were subject to statewide or regional review and had been or would be submitted to the federal government were routed to the Single Point of Contact. The Texas Review and Comment System [TRACS], run by the Grants Team, provides state and local officials with opportunities to comment on state plans, applications for state or federal financial assistance, and environmental impact statements related to projects or funding that affect their jurisdictions before the proposals are approved or funded. For further information on Texas grant and contract management see Texas Government Code, Title 7, Chapter 783: Uniform Grant and Contract Management. This chapter may be cited as the Uniform Grant and Contract Management Act.

Staff members in 1996 were (with their areas of responsibility): Denise Francis, Director - child care, criminal justice, employment and job training, health and human services, law enforcement and public safety, mental health, and substance abuse; Ron Ayer, Grants Analyst - agriculture, business development, disabilities, economic development, housing and homeless issues, telecommunications, and transportation; (by 1999 his responsibilities had evolved into disabilities, homeless issues, mental health, and telecommunications and he seems to have been doing a substantial amount of proposal review and grant writing training workshops); Clair Burleson, Research Assistant - academic research, education, energy, environment, historic preservation, Indian affairs, parks/recreation, and youth (non-incarcerated); and Mary Helen Rositas, Administrative Technician - compiled and managed the Grant Alert; database maintenance, document handling and administrative support; and maintenance of reports from state agencies on receipt of federal funds. By 1999 Clair Burleson seems to have left and the following staff members had been added: Jennifer Fisher, Grants Analyst - agriculture, rural development, business development, economic development, housing, and transportation; and Rita Stephan, Grants Analyst - academic research, education, energy, environment, historic preservation, Indian affairs, parks/recreation, and youth (non-incarcerated). Over time, other staff members and interns seem to have included Debra Mills, Reagan Swank, Matt Salazar, Maria Hernandez, Joe Castillo, Andres Alcantar, and others. Tom Adams was the State Single Point of Contact.

(Sources include: Guide to Texas State Agencies, 9th and 10th eds., (1996 and 1999); the contents of the records; and versions of the Governor's Office web site during Governor Bush's term available on the Internet Archive at http://web.archive.org/web/*/http://www.governor.state.tx.us, accessed on March 3, 2009.)

George W. Bush Biographical Sketch

George W. Bush served as governor of Texas from January 17, 1995 to December 21, 2000, resigning as governor in the middle of his second term to become president of the United States.

He challenged the incumbent governor, Democrat Ann Richards, running on promises to improve public education and to reform the juvenile justice system, welfare, and the state's tort laws -- the system under which an injured person may sue for damages. During the 74th Legislature in 1995, he worked with the Democrats who controlled both houses of the Texas legislature and managed to get bills passed that dealt with the four issues he had emphasized in his campaign. Bush was seen as pro-business and a consensus-builder.

Bush advocated and signed the two largest tax cuts to date in Texas history, totaling over $3 billion. To pay for the cuts, he sought (unsuccessfully) federal approval of a plan to privatize Texas' social services. Education reform was a priority throughout his terms, with legislation emphasizing local control of schools, higher standards, and a revised curriculum. Controversy has followed, with charter schools mired in financial scandals and protests against one test determining a child's promotion. After winning reelection in 1998, Bush began his bid for the presidency and was not as involved in the 76th Legislature in 1999.

George W. Bush was born July 6, 1946 in New Haven, Connecticut and grew up in Midland and Houston, Texas. He graduated from Andover Academy, and received a bachelor's degree from Yale University and a master's from Harvard Business School. He served as a pilot in the Texas Air National Guard. In 1978, Bush was defeated in a run for the U.S. Congress in West Texas. He was involved in energy exploration from the 1970s into the 1980s. From 1989 until his election as governor, Bush worked with the Texas Rangers baseball organization, leading a group of partners in purchasing the team, and then serving as managing general partner. He married Laura Welch in 1977; they have two daughters.

(Sources include: Versions of the Governor's Office web site during Governor Bush's term available on the Internet Archive at http://web.archive.org/web/*/http://www.governor.state.tx.us, accessed on March 3, 2009.)

Scope and Contents of the Records

During Texas Governor George W. Bush's term, the Budget and Planning Office advised the Governor regarding state fiscal matters, prepared the Governor's biennial budget recommendations to the Legislature, monitored state appropriations and operations, analyzed fiscal and economic issues, and performed other duties determined by the Governor. Administrative correspondence, budget development files, statewide cost allocation plans, Grants Team records, and publications were created and/or maintained by the Budget and Planning Office in the course of developing and carrying out budgets and plans for funding Texas state government during the terms of Texas Governor George W. Bush. Types of materials include correspondence, memoranda, tracking slips, reports, statements, plans, proposals, manuals, opinions, printed material, legal documents, questionnaires, contracts, organization charts, notes, publications, memoranda of agreement, executive orders, bylaws, policies and procedures, drafts, budgets, legislative records, speeches, clippings, 3.5-inch floppy disks, and audiocassette tapes, dating 1967 to 2000 and undated, bulk 1990 to 2000, created and/or maintained by the Texas Governor's Budget and Planning Office during the terms of George W. Bush. Albert Hawkins was the Director of the Budget and Planning Office during Bush's terms in office.

Administrative correspondence comprise the Budget and Planning Office "central files" and contain predominantly incoming and outgoing letters and memoranda that passed between the Budget and Planning staff and various other staff members in the Governor's Office, state agencies, federal agencies, corporations and consultants, state legislators and members of Congress, and various public officials. The subjects of the correspondence concern the development of the state budget and the financial needs and plans of Texas agencies and other state funded institutions, including appropriations, exempt salary issues, consultant contracts pursuant to Wagner-Peyser 7(b) allocations (a program providing employment-related services to veterans), emergency grants, applications for federal funds, allocation of additional full-time, part-time, and temporary employees, receipt of grant funds and other payments from federal bodies, Year 2000 transition costs, and disaster funding. General subjects include welfare to work, tax reform, the funding of public education and distressed communities, and managed care. A few memoranda concern internal Budget and Planning Office polices.

Records found in the State budget development files aid in documenting the development of the Texas state budget and were submitted by various state agencies to fulfill the reporting requirements of the General Appropriations Acts (House Bills 1) of the 74th and 75th Legislatures. The materials specifically concern, and can include copies of, rules review plans, biennial operating plans, capital acquisition statements and requests, salary level information, fee and tax collection income reports, cost containment reports, position classification statements, exceptional item funding requests, employee bonuses in return for Year 2000 conversion activities, service and population category information, contract approval requests, lawsuit notifications, and various other subjects. Correspondence is frequently addressed to Albert Hawkins, but was logged and handled by the office staff, as indicated by the logging/tracking forms attached to the letters. The role of the Legislative Budget Board in the budget development process can be discerned in some of the materials. A few documents concerning agency exempt salary plans date from the term of Texas Governor Ann Richards and were written by Dale Craymer, her Director of Budget and Planning.

Records in the Statewide cost allocation plans series concern the creation of plans that track the state's indirect costs and the recovery of those costs for the purpose of satisfying federal grant guidelines. The cost allocation plans were prepared by David M. Griffith & Associates, LTD and by KPMG Peat Marwick. Additional training materials, manuals, and proposals were submitted by David M. Griffith & Associates, LTD. Correspondence and attachments concern the plans and particularly involve communications with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS), the agency designated by OMB (U.S. Office of Management and Budget) as the cognizant agency responsible for negotiating indirect, fringe benefit (and other specialty) rates and issuing related rate agreements for a significant number of organizations receiving federal awards. Budget and Planning Office Grant's Team staff member Tom Adams figures prominently in the majority of the correspondence. Major subjects of concern in the records center around costs that the federal government disallowed, particularly charges regarding the Capitol Complex Telephone System and the Uniform Group Insurance Program (UGIP). Some of the materials date from the terms of Texas Governors William P. Clements and Ann Richards and involve Budget and Planning Directors Sheila Beckett and Dale Craymer.

Property tax relief records are written testimony, public testimony registration cards, sign-in sheets, audiocassette tapes of public hearings, and correspondence, 1976 to 1996, bulk 1996, created, received, or maintained by the Governor's Office of Budget and Planning, which provided administrative support to the Citizen's Committee on Property Tax Relief. The committee was created by Texas Governor George W. Bush to explore ways to reduce property taxes. The Staff Work Group on Property Tax Relief, composed of designees of Governor Bush, Lieutenant Governor Bob Bullock, House Speaker Pete Laney, and Comptroller John Sharp, was created to develop possible replacements for the school property tax without providing recommendations. Registration cards include the names of individuals testifying at hearings held by the citizen's committee, title and address of those testifying, who they represent, and the location of the public hearing. Hearings were held in Amarillo, Beaumont, Corpus Christi, Dallas, El Paso, Fort Worth, Harlingen, Houston, Lubbock, San Antonio, Tyler, and Wichita Falls. Testimony was presented by state officials; former state officials; representatives of organizations, businesses, and agriculture; and home owners, including those on fixed incomes. Correspondence was sent by individuals unable to attend the hearings.

The Grants Team monitors the federal, state, and private funding information resources and alerts state legislators, state agencies, non-profit organizations, all subdivisions of government and individuals to funding opportunities. Records of the Grants Team include correspondence, memoranda, letters and memoranda of agreement, grant reference materials, casework, executive orders, strategic plans, evaluations, reports, publications, bylaws, policies and procedures, manuals, printed materials, calendars, drafts, budgets, performance measures, legislative records, speeches, opinions, clippings, web page printouts, forms, organization charts, mailing lists, notes, telephone directories, travel and purchase records, and 3.5-inch floppy disks that date 1967 to 2000 and were maintained by the Grants Team in the Texas Office of the Governor's Budget and Planning Office during the tenure of George W. Bush.

Grants Team records of assistance to regional planning commissions, dating 1967 to 1999, document the activities of the administrations of all Texas governors from John Connally to George W. Bush in the origination, development, and functioning of Texas' regional assistance funding program and regional planning commissions. Staff member Tom Adams figures prominently in the records from the 1990s. Initial records contain founding executive orders and governing legislation, Attorney General opinions, speeches, early policies and procedures, proposals, rationales, and reports concerning the regional council/commission system and its relationship to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development 701 program. The redelineation files concern the biennial reviews, beginning in 1971, of state planning region boundaries by the Governor's Office. The general files contain information about all of the regional planning councils, such as funding allocation formulas, general correspondence, requests for project funds, and the 1996 quarterly/annual reports for all of the councils. The final section of records consists of files for each of the individual planning councils. The files generally include reports, correspondence, and other information submitted to enable the councils to receive state planning assistance funds.

Denise Francis' files cover a wide range of subjects handled as head of the Grants Team. Staff casework records respond to requests for assistance in locating and obtaining grant funds. Training files document workshops presented by Grants Team staff around Texas from 1998 to 2000. Agency strategic plans and reports, 1995-1996, seem to have been submitted in 1996 in accordance with the responsibility of the Texas Governor's Budget and Planning office's Grants Team to collect and analyze performance data from state agencies on maximizing federal funds.

The records of the Budget and Planning Office include eight publications maintained in that office during the terms of George W. Bush. The publications concern proposed Texas state budgets, a budget policy message to the 74th Legislature in the form of a published speech, statewide strategic planning elements from 1998 and 2000, and property tax relief.

Restrictions

Restrictions on Access

Because of the possibility that portions of these records fall under Public Information Act exceptions including, but not limited to, information within the attorney-client privilege (V.T.C.A., Government Code Section 552.107); agency memoranda and working papers (V.T.C.A., Government Code Section 552.111); a citizen and a legislator and/or lieutenant governor (V.T.C.A., Government Code, Chapter 306); social service recipients (V.T.C.A, Human Resources Code, Title 2 - Department of Human Services and Department of Protective and Regulatory Services, Section 12.003); home addresses, phone numbers, social security numbers, and personal family information of government employees and officials (V.T.C.A., Government Code, Section 552.117); e-mail addresses (V.T.C.A., Government Code, Section 552.136); account numbers (V.T.C.A., Government Code, Section 552.136); government information related to security issues for computers (V.T.C.A., Government Code, Section 552.136); Texas drivers license numbers (V.T.C.A., Government Code, Section 552.130); and proprietary and trade secret information that may be subject to V.T.C.A. Texas Government Code Section 552.110, an archivist must review these records before they can be accessed for research. The records may be requested for research under the provisions of the Public Information Act (V.T.C.A., Government Code, Chapter 552). The researcher may request an interview with an archivist or submit a request by mail (Texas State Library and Archives Commission, P. O. Box 12927, Austin, TX 78711), fax (512-463-5436), email (Dir_Lib@tsl.state.tx.us), or see our web page (https://www.tsl.state.tx.us/requestgovernorbushrecords.html). Include enough description and detail about the information requested to enable the archivist to accurately identify and locate the information requested. (Note: The Governor's Office has requested that the State Archives contact the Public Information Coordinator for the Governor's Office when we receive a Public Information Act request for these records.) If our review reveals information that may be excepted by the Public Information Act, we are obligated to seek an open records decision from the Attorney General on whether the records can be released. The Public Information Act allows the Archives ten working days after receiving a request to make this determination. The Attorney General has 45 working days to render a decision. Alternately, the Archives can inform you of the nature of the potentially excepted information and if you agree, that information can be redacted or removed and you can access the remainder of the records.

Records series described in this finding aid have access restrictions specific to each of them. The terms of access are found following the series' descriptions.

Restrictions on Use

Most records created by Texas state agencies are not copyrighted. State records also include materials received by, not created by, state agencies. Copyright remains with the creator. The researcher is responsible for complying with U.S. Copyright Law (Title 17 U.S.C.).

Technical Requirements

Records contain information on 3.5-inch computer disks. Researchers wishing to view any of the information on the disks should consult with Archives staff and be aware that these disks may or may not still be readable. Some information on the disks may be exempted from disclosure under the Texas Public Information Act.

To obtain equipment to listen to the audiocassettes, please contact Archives staff.

Related Material

Administrative Information

Preferred Citation

(Identify the item and cite the series), Texas Governor George W. Bush Budget and Planning Office records. Archives and Information Services Division, Texas State Library and Archives Commission.

Accession Information

Accession numbers: 2002/151, 2005/144

In December 2000, Governor George W. Bush designated the George Bush Presidential Library as the repository for the records from his tenure as Governor of Texas, under authority of Texas Government Code, Section 441.201. Shortly after he left office, the records were shipped to the Bush Library in College Station, Texas. Texas Attorney General John Cornyn ruled the records are state records subject to the Texas Public Information Act and the management of the Texas State Library and Archives Commission even after transfer to a federal facility (Opinion No. JC-0498, May 3, 2002). In July 2002 the records were transferred from the Bush Library to the Texas State Archives in Austin for preparation for research use. In June 2003, a memorandum of understanding signed by representatives of the National Archives and Records Administration, the Texas State Library and Archives Commission, and George W. Bush replaced a January 2002 interim memorandum of understanding. Additional material was transferred to the Archives and Information Services Division of the Texas State Library and Archives Commission by the Texas Office of the Governor on May 18, 2005. The records were moved to the George W. Bush Presidential Library in February 2013.

Processing Information

Nancy Enneking, April 2003, March 2004

Tonia J. Wood, March 2007

Jessica Tucker, October 2011

Finding aid updated by Tonia J. Wood, April 2013

Detailed Description of the Records