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Bill King Joins Rice Baker Institute as Financial Research Fellow | Rice News | News and media relations
Bill King will join Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public Policy as a public finance fellow.
King is a lifelong resident of the Houston area, earning his undergraduate and law degrees from the University of Houston. He has had a varied business and legal career, including serving as national managing partner of Linebarger Goggan Blair & Sampson and president of Southwest Airport Services Inc. Currently managing director of a real estate investment firm, King also serves on the board of Methodist Retirement . Communities.
His community involvement includes various public services and voluntary organizations. From 1992 to 2005, he held various positions in the City of Kemah, including member of the City Council and two terms as mayor. King chaired a regional task force on the disastrous Hurricane Rita evacuation, and his recommendations formed the basis of new regional evacuation plans. In 2015 and 2019 he was a candidate for mayor of Houston.
“I have worked for the past two decades to make local government financial information more accessible and understandable,” King said. “I am excited to draw on the expertise and resources of the Baker Institute to continue and expand this work.”
King wrote for the Houston Chronicle from 2005 to 2015, writing a biweekly column and serving on the editorial board. He has also written two books including Unapologetically Moderate: My Search for the Rational Center in American Politics. He is a regular contributor to Really clear policy and publishes his own blog on BillKingBlog. with.
“Bill will be a key asset to the institute’s policy work, given his exceptional professional experience and ability to present complex issues in a practical, commonsense way,” said David Satterfield, director of the Baker Institute.
King has also participated in many civic and charitable organizations, including Interfaith Ministries for Greater Houston, Methodist DeBakey Heart Council, Houston ISD Foundation, Crime Stoppers, Galveston Bay Foundation, Memorial Hermann Foundation, and Trees for Houston.
The Baker Institute’s Center for Public Finance provides policy analysis and recommendations for decision makers in the public and private sectors on federal, state, and local economic issues, with a particular focus on how various taxes and government expenditures affect economic growth. The center publishes in-depth studies to advance the frontier of knowledge and draw attention to critical public policy issues, such as the economic effects of potential changes in tax policy at the national, state, and local levels; the distribution of the tax burden and wealth within and between generations; the sustainability of the US budget; and other issues affecting US economic growth.
“The Center for Public Finance is pleased to welcome Bill as he brings with him a wealth of practical knowledge about local government finance and a knack for finding common-sense solutions to difficult problems facing local governments,” said John Diamond, director of the Baker Institute Center. for Public Finance.
The center’s research draws on the rich academic resources of the Baker Institute and Rice to ensure the highest standards of thought leadership and scholarship. The center aspires to influence thinking on pressing policy issues through exceptional research, media outreach, policy outreach and testimony, and research conferences that result in timely and relevant policy analysis and recommendations.