Interview with Dale Craymer, President of TTARA

When state legislators convene in January to address major issues facing Texas, “school finance” and “property tax relief” are expected to top the priority list.

After 15 months of working on property tax reform with a group of more than 60 people, state Rep. Hugh Shine has filed six bills. The Temple Republican filed the pieces of legislation late last week. The bills focus on reforming property taxes and make the process more transparent. The Legislature convenes Jan. 8.

Oil and gas production in the U.S. has skyrocketed, particularly in the Permian Basin, most of which underlies West Texas. Producers there are employing new drilling technologies to meet — some would say prolong — the global demand for fossil fuels. When Congress lifted decades-old federal restrictions on crude exports at the end of 2015,…