I'll start with Mr. Hill who has been the bigest RINO on the plantation with regards to property Taxes. Here is his comments on the issue in the article
"The House still has a whole lot of bills to deal with in the remaining weeks of the session, and I don't believe that appraisal caps or revenue caps will be among those that pass," said Rep. Fred Hill, who chairs the House Local Ways and Means Committee that has jurisdiction over many of the issues.
"In the last three years, the members have learned a lot about these subjects," he said. "It's not that we are opposed to doing something to relieve the property tax situation, but these bills don't really help and won't do anything to make government more efficient."
Mr. Hill, R-Richardson, called the proposals "bad public policy," pointing to studies showing that while Texas has one of the higher property tax loads in the country, it ranks 44th among the states in per capita tax burden.
"Texas is a bargain when it comes to taxes," he said.
He thinks it is a bargain?, he thinks it is bad public policy to force taxing entities to have a strict budget? He seems to miss the point that if things do not change then people will start losing their homes because they cannot pay their taxes. What will happen then? Well I will bet that the classic snowball effect will take place. The tax rates will go up to cover for the missing income, and then more people will lose their homes or downsize. And eventually the strong housing market that we now have will implode worse than the 1980's real estate bust. Hill's comments also prove that he is pro-governement and anti-tax cut, and does not seem to understand that 99% of the people in the state of Texas have not seen an annual salary increase of over 5% in years. Just to prove that Mr. Hill has never been in the situation that most of you that will read this have been in here is a link to Mr. Hill's DCAD property record and you can see that his property value has been capped only 1 year in the past 8. Also look at the value and history and you can see that at about the time the appraisal cap issue came to the forefront of the state legislature Mr. Hill qualified for and was granted an OVER 65 exemption which for the most part has protected him from significant tax increases.
Now from that to the other head of this snake, the TAC and Elna Christopher.
Elna Christopher, a spokeswoman for the Texas Association of Counties, said the group remains "very concerned" about the revenue cap measure. It would establish a 5 percent increase limit on annual revenues for cities and counties that could be exceeded only with voter approval. Currently, voters can petition for an election to roll back the property tax rate if the effective rate increases more than 8 percent in a given year.
"The counties believe it would be disastrous," Ms. Christopher said. City and county officials across the state have warned that priorities such as adequate police protection and economic development projects could be jeopardized if local officials lose control over their property tax rates.
Again the TAC and Ms. Christopher are a fountain of misinformation. First of all, the reason that TAC is against this is because it would force the 90% of counties, MUD Districts, and School Districts to become more responsable stewards with OUR MONEY, heaven forbid. Also it is not harming current budgets, all it would do is reduce the size of the raise that the county would get. I have said it before here shifting where the money comes from will not make the burden any less for the people who pay the taxes.
It is time for the citizens of Texas to step up and put some pressure on those in power to get the following bills out of committee and on to the floor of the Texas House and Senate for some honest debate and a vote up or down, so that we can see who is for giving the tax payers of the state a break and who is willing to side with TAC and other political cronies.
Here are links to the bills as well as a link to the committee that they have been sent to.
SB347: Would reduce the cap on how much property appraisals can increase, from 10 percent a year to 5 percent a year. Bill Text for SB347 and SJR 14
STATUS: Awaiting a hearing in a Senate committee. Finance Committee
HB2463: Would let homeowners pay property taxes based on the five-year average of their home's appraised value. Bill Text for HB2463
STATUS: Given a hearing in a House committee, but the panel has not voted on it. House Ways and Means
HB3534: Would cap how much local governments' revenue can increase, unless they let voters cast ballots on the issue. Bill Text for HB3543
STATUS: Awaiting a hearing in a House committee. House Ways and Means
SB270: Would require the disclosure of the sales price of real estate. Bill Text for SB270
STATUS: Scheduled for a hearing Wednesday in a Senate committee. Intergovernmental Regulations
SB407: Would allow voters to approve a sales-tax increase to offset a property tax cut. Bill Text SB407
STATUS: Awaiting a hearing in a Senate committee. Finance Committee
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