Houston Shot Down A Commuter Fee, But What Was It? (Mart: neighborhood, income)

[Zhang Fei]

At last week’s marathon Houston city council meeting to consider the $5.1 billion fiscal year 2020 budget, one council member attempted to tack on an amendment that would have opened the door for a “commuter fee” better known as congestion pricing.


Council Member Martha Castex-Tatum (District K) offered the amendment, with the full support of Mayor Sylvester Turner, and it would have created an exploratory committee to research the new fee. “This is just an opportunity for us to look for another way to source some additional revenue,” she said as she rolled out the amendment. The amendment died because of a tie vote of 7-7 (two council members were out of chambers and couldn’t vote), but there wasn’t much of a discussion as to what exactly is a congestion fee and what commuters should expect.


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In NYC, the cost during business hours is estimated to be $11-25 for passenger vehicles and $25 for trucks, it would decrease on nights and weekends.

Interesting proposal.

[crone]

When we lived in St Louis, they had a city earnings income tax. Those who worked in but did not live in the city got to pay a 1% earnings tax. They said it was to cover the cost of things provided by the city to non residents.

[Zhang Fei]

Originally Posted by crone

When we lived in St Louis, they had a city earnings income tax. Those who worked in but did not live in the city got to pay a 1% earnings tax. They said it was to cover the cost of things provided by the city to non residents.

That's a possible explanation for 7 consecutive decades of population decline, such that the population is just over 1/3 of what it was at its peak. Houston could use more open spaces.

[hbcu]

the HOV on Highway 59 was $4.50 after 9 a.m. this morning. What more do they want? And is that $4.50 a toll booth or overall even if you get off before the HOV ends?

[WRM20]

Originally Posted by hbcu

the HOV on Highway 59 was $4.50 after 9 a.m. this morning. What more do they want? And is that $4.50 a toll booth or overall even if you get off before the HOV ends?

That's for the entire length. That money does not go to the City. It goes to TxDoT and Metro.

[snackdog]

Many cities are going to a congestion fee to reduce car-commuting into the city and get people on public transportation. It makes a lot of sense. Europeans have done it for decades. It would be complicated in Houston because people would have a million ways to get around the tolls, but putting them on the freeways, say, at the 610 loop, would get most of them. The fee could be tweaked to whatever it takes to deliver an acceptable congestion level in the city.

[LonghornHotspur]

Originally Posted by crone

When we lived in St Louis, they had a city earnings income tax. Those who worked in but did not live in the city got to pay a 1% earnings tax. They said it was to cover the cost of things provided by the city to non residents.

AKA no taxation without representation. Basically a slush fund for StL city council.

It's being voted on in the fall to remove the earnings tax in city of StL, along with (possibly) merging St. Louis city and St. Louis county, as today they're different.

You used to be able to deduct this tax from federal taxes too....not anymore w/ the 2018 tax law.

[gwarnecke]

In the extremely unlikely event that this goes anywhere, it'll just accelerate the decentralization of Houston's business districts (which has already been going on for decades) and likely push more major employers to the suburbs.

Houston should just leave its freeways largely alone and let congestion be its own disincentive to long commutes.

[Dopo]

All the taxes they collect from the ETJ out in the suburbs is not enough?
I live 20-30 miles from downtown and all the businesses next to my neighborhood pay taxes to the city of Houston

[crone]

Originally Posted by Dopo

All the taxes they collect from the ETJ out in the suburbs is not enough?
I live 20-30 miles from downtown and all the businesses next to my neighborhood pay taxes to the city of Houston

Get the city council maps. They tell you where the city annexed the commercial areas of MUDs. The CoH will be to Waller in a couple years.

So much for the outlying areas incorporating. The tax base is gone. Most MUDs get 1/2 the tax revenue collected by the CoH.