AUSTIN, Texas – June 4, 2013 – On the heels of the 83rd Legislative Session, the Annette Strauss Institute for Civic Life at
The University of Texas at Austin and the National Conference on Citizenship today released the Texas Civic Health Index, the first nonpartisan, comprehensive evaluation of community and political engagement in Texas. Following a session in which a large number of bills were passed affecting
the lives of all Texans, the study found that Texas has one of the nation’s lowest political and civic participation rates. “This report should be a wake-up call for all Texans who care about the future of our state,” said Annette Strauss Institute Director and Journalism Professor Regina Lawrence. “By not being civically engaged,
too many Texans are ceding control over the direction of our state to an active few. We hope the findings in the Texas Civic Health Index will spur conversation and debate, and inspire people to become more actively engaged.” The report data was obtained primarily from the 2011 U.S. Census Bureau Current Population Survey on Voting, Volunteering and Civic Engagement. Following are key findings from the report, which ranks Texas among the 50 states and Washington, D.C.: “While this report shows some alarming weaknesses in the state’s civic health, there is reason for hope,” said Ilir Zherka, executive director of the National Conference on Citizenship. “Our partners at the Annette Strauss Institute are doing critical work to start a statewide
conversation to ensure all Texans are actively engaged in their communities.” The report also includes suggestions for reshaping the state’s civic environment. Large-scale recommendations include improving civic literacy through schools, increasing access to higher education, increasing the supply of and demand for public affairs information and engaging citizens through digital and social media platforms. Ideas for individuals include creatively engaging legislators and reaching out to
friends and neighbors to join in election-related activities. To read the full report and join the conversation, visit //txcivichealth.org or join the conversation on Twitter at astraussinst#txciviclife. ### Contacts: Laura Byerley at (512)
471-2182; or Regina Lawrence at (512) 232-4433.
This spring, Democratic state senator Eliot Shapleigh, of El Paso, distributed the second edition of “Texas on the Brink,” a pamphlet detailing how the second-largest state compares with the other 49 in education, health, crime, and other measurable areas of public life. Shapleigh writes in the introduction that Texas must “make the necessary and critical investment” in public services and warns that “our state is at a crossroads.” At least that crossroads is familiar territory: Shapleigh’s portrayal of a state government that taxes and spends at a low level is hard to dispute, but it is not exactly new. It was as true fifty years ago, when Texas was a Democratic state and “a good business climate” was the mantra of state leaders, as it is today, when Texas is a Republican state whose watchword is “economic development.” The rankings below, drawn from Shapleigh’s report, say a lot about the choices we’ve made, and they’re certain to fuel the ongoing argument over whether those choices have been wise.
50th in
Percentage of population with health insurance Source 50-1
Percentage of high school graduates age 25 and over Source 50-2
of insured low-income children
Source 50-3
Average consumer credit score Source 50-4
Per capita spending on government employee wages and salaries Source 50-5
Per capita spending on government administration
Source 50-6
Affordability of homeowners’ insurance Source 50-7
Affordability of residential electric bill Source 50-8
49th in
Tax revenue raised per capita
Source 49-1
Per capita spending on state arts agencies Source 49-2
Total general expenditures per capita Source 49-3
Per capita spending on water quality
Source 49-4
Amount of monthly Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) benefits paid Source 49-5
48th in
Per capita spending on parks and recreation Source 48-1
Mean Scholastic Assessment Test (SAT)
scores Source 48-2
Average spending per child on child protection Source 48-3
Percentage of workforce represented by a union Source 48-4
47th in
Amount of welfare and food-stamp benefits paid Source 47-1
Percentage of poor who receive Medicaid Source 47-2
46th in
Per capita spending on environmental protection Source 46-1
Per capita spending on mental health
Source 46-2
Per capita spending on the protection of open spaces Source 46-3
Average hourly earnings Source 46-4
45th in
Per capita spending on public health
Source 45-1
Number of secondary teachers with degrees in the subject they teach Source 45-2
Percentage of women ages 50–69 who received mammograms within the last two years Source 45-3
Total assets of
banks, trust companies, and savings institutions Source 45-4
Home ownership rate Source 45-5
44th in
Number of pharmacists Source 44-1
Percentage of eligible voters who are registered
Source 44-2
43rd in
Number of households with checking accounts Source 45-1
Income distribution equality Source 43-2
Workforce education
Source 43-1
41st in
Number of dentists Source 41-1
Number of households with savings accounts Source 41-2
40th in
Rate of women ages 18–64 who receive Pap smears
Source 40-1
Percentage of adults who meet recommended levels of daily physical activity Source 40-2
Number of physicians Source 40-3
39th in
State aid per pupil
Source 39-1
Number of psychologists Source 39-2
Affordability of auto insurance Source 39-3
37th in
Compliance with the Supreme Court decision declaring that unjustified institutionalization of a
disabled person is discrimination Source 37-1
Number of women receiving prenatal care Source 37-2
35th in
Per capita spending on police protection Source 35
33rd in
Percentage of
population with access to primary care Source 33-1
Rate of firearm deaths per 100,000 people Source 33-2
32nd in
Percentage of households with Internet access Source 32-1
Per capita spending on
education Source 32-2
Average teacher salaries Source 32-3
25th in
Percentage of adults with at least a bachelor’s degree Source 25
16th in
Property tax collected per person Source 16
15th in
Murder rate Source 15
12th in
Prevalence of obesity Source 12
11th in
Percentage of low-income students in public schools
Source 11-1
Violent crime rate Source 11-2
9th in
Rate of infectious disease per 100,000 people Source 9-1
Unemployment rate
Source 9-2
Number of alcohol-related traffic fatalities Source 9-3
7th in
Poverty rate Source 7
6th in
Percentage of two-year-olds not fully immunized Source 6
5th in
Total crime rate Source 5-1
Number of diabetes deaths per 100,000 people Source 5-2
4th in
Percentage of children living in poverty
Source 4-1
Per capita consumption of energy Source 4-2
3rd in
Percentage of population that is malnourished Source 3
2nd in
Sales tax dependence
Source 2-1
Percentage of population that goes hungry Source 2-2
Overall birth rate Source 2-3
Teenage birth rate
Source 2-4
Amount of exposure to ozone pollution Source 2-5
Number of hazardous-chemical spills Source 2-6
Number of inmates per 100,000 people
Source 2-7
Number of highway fatalities Source 2-8
Number of adults diagnosed with diabetes Source 2-8
1st in
Child population growth
Source 1-1
Percentage of uninsured children Source 1-2
Percentage of home refinance loans that are sub-prime mortgage loans (generally three to four percentage points or more higher than a comparable prime market loan)
Source 1-3
Amount of toxic and cancerous manufacturing emissions Source 1-4
Number of clean-water permit violations Source 1-5
Number of environmental civil rights complaints
Source 1-6
Per capita consumption of electricity Source 1-7
Number of job discrimination lawsuits filed Source 1-8
Number of deaths attributed to floods
Source 1-9
Number of executions Source 1-10