When Republican Tony Dale campaigned to become the first representative for the newly created Texas House District 136, he repeatedly expressed the need to keep government local, limited and accountable.

The former Cedar Park councilman said he did just that in his first legislative session in office, helping to pass nearly half of his agenda in the form of bills he authored, sponsored or amended. He compared his success rate to the entire Legislature, which successfully passed one-quarter of all bills introduced during regular session.

"I'm pretty pleased with that," said Dale, who sat down with his staff after a busy conclusion to the regular legislative session to evaluate his initiatives.

Dale said he took the most joy in working for his constituents, whether they be in Cedar Park, Leander, Northwest Austin, unincorporated subdivisions within his district or Williamson County as whole, to help ensure success with their own initiatives.

"I was glad to be in a position where I could help them," he said.

He said he looks forward to once again serving the district in the next legislative session, as Dale intends to run for his second two-year term in the Texas House of Representatives.

Water bill to benefit Central Texas for decades, Dale says

Nearly all 140 days of the 2013 legislative session were necessary to pass the bill Dale said he considers most important to his district.

Legislation passed the final week of regular session will create a dedicated water infrastructure fund, which—if approved by voters later this year—will be filled with $2 billion upfront.

That could help finance up to $27 billion worth of water infrastructure projects throughout the state, Dale said. He called the bill particularly important for water customers such as Cedar Park and Leander that draw from Lake Travis.

"It gives other jurisdictions the ability to have alternative [water] supplies created, like if there are reservoirs created downstream from the Central Texas area, it would release pressure on the Highland Lakes, which leaves more water available here for us," he said, alluding to a future reservoir planned in Wharton County along the Lower Colorado River.

Results won't be immediate but will have a lasting effect the next 20 years, Dale said.

Dale: My Top 3 bills to pass this legislative session

Twin Creeks, Bella Vista partial annexation: This series of passed bills shift public safety protection from Emergency Services District No. 14 to the City of Cedar Park, which previously assisted the subdivisions until 2010.

School board trustees' access to information: This successful bill prevents school board members from having to file open records requests for information within the districts they were elected. Such requests were previously required by school administration in Round Rock ISD and others.

911 funding reclaimed in Central Texas: Dale co-authored the bill with State Rep. Paul Workman, R-Austin, that succeeded in giving the Capital Area Council of Governments control of dedicated 911 funding that normally goes to the state but has been used in past sessions to balance the budget, Dale said.

Quick hit Q&A with Tony Dale

Q: What was life like as a freshman state politician?

A: Everyone is respectful. There is good-natured hazing that does occur, but it's not excessive.

Q: What was it like working in a partisan environment?

A: In the House, you would see a lot of bipartisan support for much of the legislation that went through. But sometimes alliances form on different issues, and you can have a really strange coalition come together on a particular issue so it's not all Republican versus Democrat.

Q: What did you learn that prepares you for the future?

A: The good thing about having one session under your belt is that you have started building those relationships with other members. You can't help but learn every single day you're in this role, and we did things well. We also made some mistakes. We'll learn from both, and hopefully that means we'll be more effective for the district next time around.