The reforms:

 He pushed for and signed into law the two biggest tax cuts in Texas history.
 Cut the growth in state spending to its lowest rate in 40 years.
 
The results:

 Texas remains one of only a handful of states without a state income tax,
 Texans received nearly $3 billion in tax relief, and growth in state
 spending has been reduced to 2.7 percent when adjusted for population and
 inflation.
 
IV. Governor Bush reformed welfare by taking on the status quo, big
 government bureaucracy.

 The reforms:

 Required work in exchange for government assistance.
 Limited how long people can stay on welfare.
 Involved faith-based groups in the delivery of welfare services.
 
The results:

 Texas has been recognized as one of only ten "highly successful" states by
 the Heritage Foundation for reducing welfare rolls by more than 380,000
 people, a 53 percent decrease, and Texas received a $16 million bonus award
 from the federal government for being in the top ten of states moving people
 from welfare to work.
 
V. Governor Bush reformed Texas' outdated juvenile justice laws.

 The reforms:

 Rewrote the state's juvenile justice code by insisting on longer, tougher
 punishments for violent offenders.
 Lowered to 14 the age that most violent offenders can be tried as adults and
 streamlined the certification process.
 Made juvenile records freely available to law enforcement to better track
 gangs and violent offenders.
 
The results:

 Violent juvenile offenders are serving longer, tougher sentences and violent
 juvenile crime has decreased by 38 percent.


 VI. Under Governor Bush, Texas enacted some of the most comprehensive
 patient protection laws in the nation.

 The reforms:

 Required HMO report cards and prohibited "gag clauses" that discouraged
 doctors from discussing treatment options.
 Gave women the right to go directly to an ob/gyn without going through a
 gatekeeper doctor.
 Required HMOs to cover emergency services and ensured specialty care for
 chronic, disabling or life-threatening illnesses.
 Allowed patients who have been harmed the right to seek legal action because
 Texas law includes a strong, independent review process and lawsuit reforms
 designed to encourage quick, out of court resolutions instead of costly
 litigation.
 
The results:

 Expanded patient choice; most recommendations for national patient
 protection laws are already Texas law.

 A Reformer with Results