1. Straus in the Texas House was insistent on sales tax reductions instead of property taxes. I’d rather pay a higher sales tax in exchange for reducing or eliminating the property tax. The compromise is better than nothing but conservatives could have made great gains in changing tax code except that the Texas House is anything but conservative.
2. The margins franchise tax represents 5% of state revenue and comes at an extremely high compliance cost for small businesses. 25% is a start. They should have reduced it by an additional 75% this session.
The franchise tax needs to go.
3. The legislature seems intent on turning most Texas roads to toll roads. Oh well, there are special interests spending tons of PAC money to make it so. The fuel taxes should be dedicated to roads and tolls should be a non-starter.
4. Protections against the pending supreme cabal decision on gay rights were ignored. So were protections for home schoolers. The open carry law passed stripped language preventing police from stopping carriers solely to check papers (or more accurately, plastic).
Bottom line of the session: with a conservative Lt Gov and Gov, the House’s liberal leadership was playing defense. Gains were made as a result, but changing the Texas House leadership has the potential to cause a true conservative revolution.
Straus and his lieutenants like Byron Cook need to go.
Thanks for the info!
“... I’d rather pay a higher sales taxin exchange for reducing or eliminating the property tax. ...”
I agree on the above!