If the Austin American-Statesman is to be believed, “votes are not there in the House” to push the 125% tax hike. That’s a direct result of the effective pressure folks have been applying! But don’t get too cocky: the measure lives…
State Sen. John Carona is telling the Statesman he is amending the Texas Department of Transportation sunset bill to implement his original version of the legislation (our video). In addition to letting counties hike the gas tax, it also provided a menu of other fees that could be imposed to fund “mobility projects” with an emphasis on light-rail and other boondoggles.
This issue is obviously a moving target, so we have to keep up the pressure. This Carona amendment, like the legislation before it, has no transparency and no accountability. But it does give government more ways to waste your hard-earned money.
If Carona succeeds in amending the TxDOT sunset bill in the Senate, House members would have a much harder time pulling it off. So we need to focus our efforts, again, on the state senate.
But today’s events are proof that when we speak up and speak out, we can influence the outcome!