The Comptroller’s Office sits at a very busy intersection in state government – one where every Texan passes at some time each and every day. Whether it is balancing the state’s books, assisting local communities with economic development or overseeing plans that support higher education or job training, Susan and the Comptroller’s Office are hard at work each and every day for a stronger and better Texas.

First and foremost, the Comptroller’s Office must impose the highest standard of fairness for all taxpayers, and Susan improved the entire tax process structure to make the system more efficient and to cut down on response time by the agency. She revised the Hearings Tracking System to enhance integration and customer service and transferred administrative law judges to the independent State Office of Administrative Hearings. She also established a Special Counsel for Tax Hearings to assure independent decisions. The revised hearing process is resolving issues in a timely manner and saving both taxpayers and the state time and money. This increased responsiveness has reduced the tax case load at SOAH by 6 percent.

As part of the tax process, Susan tightened audit deadlines for both the agency and taxpayers to avoid undue delays. By following strict guidelines, the Comptroller’s Office has reduced the number of days to conduct an audit from 391 days in fiscal year 2007 to 301 days in fiscal year 2008 – a period of almost three months. For fiscal year 2009 the audit cycle is currently 284 days.

The amount of time to issue tax refunds also was shortened by 37 days under the improved procedures. In FY 2007 a refund took 278 days, compared with 241 in FY 2008.

In addition to collecting revenue, the Texas Comptroller also is responsible for distributing collected sales taxes to cities, counties, transit systems and special purpose taxing districts. These funds provide vital operating capital for local governmental entities. The Comptroller’s Office processes:

• About 3.6 million payments worth about $45 billion annually; and
• About 4.3 million tax returns annually.

The Property Tax Assistance Division, formerly known as the Property Tax Division, is now a stand-alone division at the Comptroller’s Office. The new name and independent identity emphasize Susan’s strong customer service efforts to provide much-needed tax assistance to local governments and to help remove a lot of the confusion Texas taxpayers may have about the appraisal procedure. The division’s webpage is a valuable online tool for both taxpayers and local appraisal districts.

The agency must protect the integrity of the state’s taxing system. Susan worked with the Texas Legislature on powerful, new legislation – House Bill 11 (HB 11) – that is helping prevent taxpayer fraud at the retail level. HB 11 provides Texas with a new way to combat sales tax underreporting that robs Texans of valuable revenues and requires retailers to submit monthly electronic reports on tobacco, beer and wine sales. Susan is making sure those shortchanging Texas are held accountable. Since alcohol and tobacco distributor reporting began in January 2008, our auditors have used this new tool to identify over $253 million in sales tax due to the state. This tax might have gone unreported without the fraud detection capability offered by HB 11 and the deterrent effect of the new law on those who might be tempted to underreport sales tax.

The Comptroller is the treasurer and chief financial officer of the multi-billion dollar business of Texas government. The Comptroller writes the checks and keeps the books for state government processing about 1,000 checks every minute – that’s 24 million checks a week. As treasurer, the Comptroller oversees the deposits of state revenues and coordinates the sale of the state’s short-term securities. The Comptroller also processes state payments and monitors the financial status of all state agencies.

The Comptroller’s Office handles more than $52 billion a year. About $48.2 billion are pass through or managed by the Treasury Pool, Texpool, TexPool Prime and Investment Pools, and another $4.5 billion are in endowment funds managed by the Comptroller’s Office.

The Comptroller is the chief procurement officer for Texas and manager of state support services, including mail delivery, travel and fleet management. The state’s massive buying power allows the state to cut costs by buying in volume, and Susan unveiled the landmark TexasSmartBuy that provides online comparison shopping for state and local entities. The first phase of this innovative effort already has saved the state an estimated $40 million.

The Comptroller monitors and reports on the fiscal condition of the Texas economy and projects the cash flow position of the state, analyzing factors impacting any changes in revenue or taxes. At the beginning of each legislative session, the Comptroller must present a biennial revenue estimate on how much money the Texas Legislature can spend for the next two years. The Comptroller’s Office also works with the Legislature during each session to analyze every piece of legislation for its financial impact on Texas and state government.

Susan is helping grow and nurture the Texas economy, supporting a strong business climate that keeps the state competitive in a changing global market. By analyzing tends in employment, energy, available water resources and a multitude of other issues, Susan and the Comptroller’s Office can supply local governments and economic development groups valuable information to spur business activity and job growth.

Susan’s innovative initiatives are supporting economic development through:

• Texas Ahead, a one-stop economic portal for a wealth of economic data available from the Comptroller’s Office;
• An important component of Texas Ahead is the Texas EDGE (Economic Data for Growth and Expansion) data base, a powerful online tool to help local economic development agencies with data and assistance;
• The Energy Report, an overview of the diversified energy resources available in Texas and an in-depth assessment of the state’s energy options;
• State Energy Conservation Office, which provides wide variety of information on energy use and efficiency and the use of renewable energy;
• Texas in Focus: A Statewide View of Opportunities, a summary of issues affecting economic growth across Texas and the state’s economic regions;
• Texas Works, a report examining the changing job market and the technical skills needed for the future; and
• Liquid Assets: The State of Texas’ Water Resources, a report examining the state’s current and future water resources and needs essential to protect the health of Texas citizens and the strength of the state economy.

In addition to fostering economic development, the Comptroller’s Office serves every Texan and their families. Susan streamlined the agency’s website making information easier to find and more accessible. She put state spending online, giving Texans a window into state government to see how their tax dollars are being spent. Her truth-in-spending approach has increased the transparency of state government, and her Open Book Texas website is helping identify ways Texas government can spend smarter and stretch taxpayer dollars.

An important part of this effort is the first-ever Comptroller-led study on a state unified finance accounting system – the Single Set of Books initiative. Currently, many state agencies and educational entities have their own unique accounting systems, which could produce conflicting information for the Texas Legislature. A single set of books, or a uniform financial reporting system, will help standardize information, cut operating costs, open government by shedding light on the state’s finances and allow state leaders to obtain reliable information to make well-informed decisions.

Susan also is taking transparency in government to the local level with the Texas Transparency Check-Up, which provides cities, counties, school districts and other governmental entities a step-by-step approach to posting readable, understandable information online.

Since a good education is the solid foundation for economic growth and expanding job opportunities, the Comptroller’s Office has an important role in administering programs which provide Texans access to an affordable education. Susan launched the Texas Tuition Promise Fund, a prepaid college tuition program that protects families from the rising costs of colleges and universities. The plan allows greater flexibility by purchasing tuition units that represent a fixed amount of tuition or fees. There are three types of tuition units that will fit any family’s need, and the units can be used at all four- or two-year public colleges and universities in Texas, at private Texas colleges or at out-of-state institutions.

The Comptroller’s Office also offers two educational savings plans – the Lone Star 529 Plan and the Texas College Savings Plan. Both allow Texas residents to establish a savings plan for their children’s education and benefit from tax-free earnings.

Susan and the Comptroller’s Office are undertaking the enormous task of tracking the funding from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 to determine what the $787 billion federal stimulus means for Texas and Texans. She launched a new website – Tracking the Texas Stimulus – for a convenient, online, transparent way to follow how tax dollars are being used. The Comptroller’s Office continually updates the website so officials, business leaders and taxpayers have the most reliable information available.

The Comptroller’s State Energy Conservation Office will administer about $240 million from the stimulus package. The money will be used for the State Energy Program to promote energy conservation and efficiency through initiatives such as training, technical assistance, education and implementing projects and for the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant Program, a new federal resource designed to reduce energy use, encourage economic development and create or retain jobs.