TTARA’s 2020 Annual Meeting will be held virtually due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Our two-day meeting will be held on Tuesday and Wednesday, December 8-9, 2020 and we have an exciting and informative lineup of speakers on the agenda! Our sessions will be available for on-demand viewing after the event, so you should consider registering even if you have a conflict over those dates.

The registration fee for the two-day online event is $195 for TTARA members and $245 for non-members. Please feel free to forward this notice to anyone you think would be interested in registering for the meeting.

Our Tuesday, December 8 program will begin at 10:00 a.m. with a comprehensive review of legislative, administrative and judicial issues on the tax front by the senior leadership from the Comptroller’s office. Michael Levoff from the Las Vegas Sands Corp. will discuss various issues to consider when gaming is a revenue source for the state. Doug Lindholm from the Council on State Taxation (COST) and Jared Walczak from the Tax Foundation will bring us up to date on tax developments across the states, and Dr. Keith Phillips from the Dallas Federal Reserve Bank will give us an update on the Texas economy. We will also have a panel discussion on economic development issues with Rep. Rafael Anchia, Rep. Jim Murphy, and Senator Royce West. Senator Brian Birdwell has also been invited to be a panelist.

On Wednesday, December 9, we will begin the day with comments from Comptroller Glenn Hegar on the revenue outlook for the 87^th Legislative Session. Marc Goldwein from the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget will give an update on the growing federal deficit. House Administration Committee Chairman Charlie Geren will update us on preparations being made for the operation of the 87^th Legislature in the midst of a pandemic. Senate Administration Chairman Bryan Hughes has also been invited to participate on the panel. Bruce Nassau, Partner and Chief Executive Officer of Tru Cannabis will discuss the issues involved with the legalization of cannabis as an option to provide more revenue for the state. Rep. Giovanni Capriglione, Senator Kelly Hancock, Senator Chuy Hinojosa, and Rep. Donna Howard will discuss budget considerations for the upcoming legislative session. Senate Property Tax Committee Chair Paul Bettencourt and House Ways and Means Committee Chair Dustin Burrows will discuss property tax reform measures passed by the 86th Legislature and any enhancements they foresee in the upcoming session. In addition, Ross Ramsey, Executive Editor of the Texas Tribune will join former Speaker of the House Joe Straus and Dean of the University of Houston Hobby School of Public Affairs Kirk Watson in a discussion of election results and how they will affect Texas.

We will use the very latest in event software, allowing the meeting to be as interactive as possible. Throughout the event you will have opportunities to network and chat with colleagues online as well as participate in various fun challenges.

The two-day agenda is available here. Continuing education credit will be offered for qualifying sessions. We hope you are able to join us for these two days of insightful public policy discussions, and we encourage you to sign up now.