On Mother’s Day Weekend, most Texans are sending their mothers and grandmothers some flowers, but Austin lobbyists and their liberal Republican allies are trying to send them a tax increase.
Few proposed bills this session have generated more outrage from Texans than the “granny tax,” a proposal backed by nursing home conglomerates, liberal Republicans, and Democrats that would install a tax on nursing home beds—and then remit the funds back to the nursing homes.
In essence it’s a maneuver for nursing home providers to raise prices on those under their care, and shift the blame to someone else.
The bill—House Bill 2766 by State Rep. JD Sheffield (R–Stephenville)—passed the Texas House last week after a gang of liberal Republicans joined with Democrats to ram the legislation through before the deadline. That procedure is becoming an increasingly common occurrence in the Texas House.
Indeed, the vote on HB 2766 has been at least the 10th time this session in which a majority of Republicans have found themselves on the losing end of a vote as House Speaker Joe Straus’ liberal leadership joins Democrats to override them.
The Senate’s version of the bill, SB 1130 by Democrat State Sen. Chuy Hinojosa (McAllen), was thought to be dead in the water after conservative lawmakers rejected the measure. However, now that the House version is in the chamber as well there’s mounting pressure from the lobby for them to advance the legislation.
Passing either HB 2766, or its companion SB 1130, would be a massive step backward for the State of Texas and a serious reneging on lawmakers’ promises to fight for limited government and free markets. Texans should demand that the Texas Senate stand up for them and retire this legislation—for good.
