This article is Part 4 of a four-part series demonstrating how the money in a lobby sector can impact state politics and legislation. Read the first three articles here, here, and here.

Now that lawmakers have convened in Austin, private citizens and PACs are no longer able to make political contributions, so the sole financial influence on lawmakers during the legislative session comes from lobbyists. In fact, in session and out, lobbying is by far the biggest source of money in Texas politics — and taxpayers are footing the bill for a lot of it. This look at the City of Houston is the first installment in our series analyzing the top taxpayer-funded entities in Texas.

Texas House District 65, which includes portions of Carrollton, Dallas, Highland Village, and Lewisville in Denton County, is one of the key Battleground 2020 races to watch. After a close race in 2018, Democratic challenger Michelle Beckley flipped the District 65 seat blue, ousting then-incumbent Republican Ron Simmons by a mere 2.32 percentage points.