The Fort Worth Star-Telegram reports today that North Texas officials will ask the Legislature to authorize a huge hike in the vehicle registration fee – as much as $105 more per year – to bankroll an expansion of light rail. For consumers already struggling with high gas prices, will this drive them over the edge?
Milam County Judge Frank Summers has an interesting editorial this week in the Cameron County Herald. While he expresses mixed feelings on revenue caps, he ultimately says he’ll support them if they apply to all levels of government, and that sounds good to us.
A survey of 790 Texas small businesses finds that because of the new margins tax:
1) 50% will raise prices
2) 20% will lay off at least one employee
3) 33% won’t hire new employees
4) 14% will drop health care or other benefits
5) 3% will close
Senator Bob Deuell proposes the creation of such an office for the “main” state agencies in today’s Dallas Morning News and Governor Rick Perry’s office indicates support. The issue came up after controversial firings at the Texas Education Agency’s Inspector General’s office – currently big agencies like TEA have their own inspector general’s office.
A new report by the Rockefeller Institute finds that, while other states are sagging, Texas sales tax revenues are up 12 percent from last July through March and the Comptroller is predicting a $10.7 billion surplus. Thus, the national economic slowdown, which has reduced revenues in some states, will not be an excuse for failing to deliver property tax relief.
One of the true taxpayer heroes in the Legislature, Rep. Ken Paxton (R-McKinney), reports in his newsletter today that the Music Conservatory of Texas, which taught over 33,000 music lessons in 2007, paid $6,200 of its $8,394 in profit to the state under the new business tax.
We blogged this plan a few weeks ago, but thankfully it is now being reconsidered. Instead of spending $6.7 million to build a new visitors center that is to include a walk of fame and theater, the Lubbock City Council is now considering moving an existing building to the site.
At a Senate hearing yesterday, Dallas officials called for sales price disclosure. This would raise appraisal values, resulting in $4 billion in additional school property taxes plus billions more in other local property taxes. As the new Texas GOP platform declares, school property taxes should be abolished, but disclosure without a revenue cap would be disastrous.
Dallas County is facing a budget shortfall of $20 to $30 million, largely because they have gotten used to increasing spending at double-digit rates, but for the first time in years, appraisal increases didn’t quite keep up. Commissioners are looking for savings, and among them are stopping personal misuse of county cars and switching from fuel-hogging Ford Crown Victorias to Ford Fusions.
With the Texas GOP platform on deck this weekend, the Texas Democratic Party has posted their new platform. It does not address taxes except claiming that current state taxes favor big over small business, but includes items such as universal government health care and a new “global marketing program” at the Texas Dept. of Agriculture that would surely require more government revenue.