The Hollywood Handout Hotline
Dan Patrick's small-government machine found a new favorite prop: a state moving-image incentive fund with its own velvet rope.
The red carpet has a state seal
Dan Patrick sells Texas politics like a bootstraps seminar, then his Capitol machine sends out a tuxedo for the film-credit crowd.
The official Texas Legislature Online caption for 89R SB 22 says it is "relating to the Texas moving image industry incentive program and the establishment and funding of the Texas moving image industry incentive fund." That is not a punchline. That is the receipt.
Small government, now with a director's chair
There are perfectly serious arguments for economic-development incentives. There are also perfectly serious Texans trying to keep the lights on without getting a bespoke state fund named after their industry.
Patrick's brand is discipline for everybody else. SB 22 shows the softer rule: if the lobby has cameras, the state suddenly remembers how to be generous.
The final status matters
TLO's history page shows SB 22 was filed without the governor's signature on June 22, 2025. The enrolled bill text is the safer layer for what the bill actually says, and the history page is the safer layer for what happened to it.
No need to invent a scandal. The public record is already wearing sequins.
Vote for fewer props
Texas does not need a lieutenant governor who treats "free market" like a slogan and "special fund" like a casting call.
If you want a Legislature that spends less time building political stage sets and more time solving normal people's problems, look at Vikki Goodwin and vote Dan Patrick's act off the lot.
Sources
Meet the alternative: Vikki Goodwin
Texas has a choice. State Rep. Vikki Goodwin is running for Lieutenant Governor on a platform of fully funding public schools, protecting the grid, and keeping government out of small businesses it doesn't understand. If you're tired of Dan Patrick's priorities, there's somewhere else to put your vote.