Looking At State Agency Spending On Advertising & Public Relations

The San Antonio Express-News has an interesting story up on state agency spending on advertising and public relations–a topic that’s been in the news a good bit already:

Paxton said when he learned of the TxDOT campaign, estimated to cost $7 million to $9 million in highway funds, “I thought, ‘Wow, I wonder how many other agencies are doing this, and how much of our taxpayer money is being spent on it?’”

That question can be difficult to answer because state records don’t precisely track such efforts, but the tally for advertising, publications and promotional items is easily close to $100 million or more in state and federal funds just for fiscal year 2008. Some agencies with such budgets for this fiscal year include:

The tourism section of Gov. Rick Perry’s office, which has a $40 million advertising budget.

The Texas Lottery Commission, which spends $31 million on advertising.

TxDOT, which has budgeted $18.4 million for advertising on programs ranging from traffic safety to promoting TxTags, which give access to toll roads. The total doesn’t include Keep Texas Moving.

The secretary of state, whose office has an estimated $4 million budget.

No total for 2008 was available for the Texas Department of State Health Services, which promotes everything from disease prevention to abstinence to the fight against tobacco to disaster preparation. Agency spokesman Doug McBride said such costs aren’t centrally budgeted but determined at the program level.

The HHS Spending and Secretary of State Spending I can understand. HHS spends to encourage people to take advantage of state programs and make their lives better. The Secretary of State spends PR money on, among other things, campaigns to encourage voting. TxDOT, however, spending money to make Texans “feel better” about toll roads, is a bit out of whack.

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