• Lowering Property Taxes
  Representative Vo voted to pay for the property tax cuts passed in the 79th Session.  The $1.50 property tax rate was cut 17 cents in 2007 and another 33 cents in 2008.

He proposed HB476 to help small businesses by limiting their appraisals increases to 10%.  He continues to support lowering the cap on homestead appraisals. 

• Equality for Seniors and Individuals with Disabilities
  Voted for HB5 which proposed property tax cuts providing relief to seniors and individuals with disabilities.  Because their taxes are frozen, special legislation was required to give them the same cut as other homeowners received in 2005. 

• Much Needed School Testing Reform
  Voted to overhauled testing requirements, favoring end-of-course exams rather than the Texas Assessment of  Knowledge and Skills (TAKS) test for grades nine through 12 while retaining accountability for schools.

• Tuition Help

HB 3900 created new savings options for families to pay for the higher education of their children by locking in today’s rates for tuition and fees.  (Rep. Vo supported).

• Putting Our Children’s Needs First 
  Restoring full funding to CHIP was a priority of Representative Vo’s during the session.   He voted for HB109 which partially restores CHIP by allowing coverage of as many as 127,000 children of working families.    These children can now receive medical care at their doctor’s office instead of hospital emergency rooms.  Representative Vo remains concerned that the failure to fully fund CHIP means the loss of more federal dollars to Texas since there is a federal match of $2.65 for every dollar allotted in the state budget

• Cancer Research

Rep. Vo coauthored  HB14 which creates the new Cancer Preventions and Research Institute of Texas.  Currently, there is no cancer institute in Texas that provides grant money for cancer research.  The Constitutional amendment to authorize $3 billion in bonds for cancer research was on the November 2007 ballot and passed. 

• Public Safety - A Priority
  Supported The Castle Doctrine which broadens the right of people to use deadly force in defending themselves in their home, workplaces or cars.

Voted for Jessica’s Law  to increase the penalties for sexual crimes against children

HB1887 increased the penalty on car burglaries.

• Border and Homeland Security

Voted to create the Border Security Council to oversee the $100 million appropriated to help law enforcement agencies on the border.  SB11 not only enhances the state’s ability to both deter and to respond to border security but also acts of terrorism, violent criminal activity and natural disasters. 

• Helping Consumers
  Representative Vo authored legislation that would have required utility companies to use the postmark date on payment envelopes to be used as the date paid instead of when the company posts the payment. 

Offered HB3175 in an attempt to bring some relief to homeowners whose insurance rates keep going up. 

Vo’s HB2890 would have mandated the Texas Commission of Environmental Quality (TCEQ) to maintain an Air Pollution Watch List which would identify areas of the state where there are high pollution levels.  Further, the bill would have required greater TCEQ review of facilities in the Watch List areas.  These strengthened reviews would have kept facilities from avoiding TCEQ review concerning emissions.