Voice of the Conservative Vote: Harvey Hildebran

Rep. Harvey Hilderbran was first elected to the Texas House of Representatives in 1988 and was most recently re-elected in 2010 to serve the people of District 53.

In 2011, he was appointed chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee, which deals will all legislation relating to the state’s tax code. As chairman of the committee, he authored and passed legislation that will generate over $294 million for the state without raising taxes. The chairman also sits on the Legislative Audit Committee and the Legislative Budget Board, the latter of which prepares the draft appropriations bill and budget estimates for each state agency.

Additionally, Hilderban serves as a member of the Redistricting Committee, the State Affairs Committee, and the Select Committee on Voter Identification and Voter Fraud.

During the 80th Legislative Session, he served as chairman of the House Committee on Culture, Recreation and Tourism. As chairman of the committee, he authored a comprehensive funding bill aimed at restoring excellence to the state park system and state historic sites. House Bill 12 provided “truth-in-taxation” by guaranteeing that revenue generated from the sporting goods tax would be used for much-needed park repairs and operations – just as the tax was originally designed to do.

Additionally, Hilderbran served as chairman of the Human Services Committee for three sessions. During that time he wrote and passed 1995’s landmark welfare reform legislation. In 1997, he was instrumental in passing the state’s most significant legislation protecting residents of Texas nursing homes.

Hilderbran also previously served as a member of the Natural Resources Committee, which oversees the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality as it relates to the regulation of water resources, and the Texas Water Development Board. He served as co-chairman, along with Sen. Kip Averitt, of the legislative oversight committee for the Edwards Aquifer Authority.

In early 2012, NFIB/Texas presented Hilderbran with the Guardian Award to recognize him for his support of small businesses. He also received the award, which is the highest honor NFIB grants to legislators, in 2010. In 2011, the Texas Municipal League named Hilderbran a Legislator of the Year – an award the league also bestowed upon him in 2007. The Texas Association of Business named Hilderbran as a “Fighter for Free Enterprise” in 2011 and 2009. He also received the Distinguished Service Award from the Texas Association of Counties in 2011. Hilderbran was named to the Texas Association of REALTORS Legislative Hall of Fame in 2009, 2007, and 2005. The Texas Deer Association awarded him the Frank Madla Award for Representative of the Year in 2008, and the Texas Recreation and Parks Society honored him with the Distinguished Legislator Award in 2006. Hilderbran is also the 2004 recipient of the Vietnam Veterans of America-Texas State Council's Legislator of the Year Award. He was named Legislator of the Year by the Texas Yong Republicans in 2001, was the 1999 recipient of the Bob Bullock Award for Outstanding Public Stewardship, and was named Freshman of the Year by the Young Conservatives of Texas.

Hilderbran also won the Legislative Courage Award for his involvement in school finance reform. In 2003, he created the Hilderbran Scholars Fund to award deserving high school graduates from District 53. His first public policy assignment was service as a congressional legislative assistant for agriculture and small business issues in Washington D.C. in the mid-1980s. He later served as assistant director of state affairs for the Texas Farm Bureau, where he concentrated his efforts on property and water rights.

In the private sector, Rep. Hilderbran has worked in real estate, ranching, advertising and business management and marketing. Born in Uvalde in 1960, he is a 1983 graduate of Texas Tech University. He lives with his wife, Tracy, and their two daughters in Kerrville, where they are members of St. Peter’s Episcopal Church.

"New taxes aren't the only way to increase state revenue. Instead, we can generate literally hundreds of millions of dollars by encouraging compliance with tax laws, increasing tax penalties, closing loopholes to address inequalities in the tax code, strengthening the audit system, and changing collection timelines."