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Hey Einstein, and I use the term as loosely as possible, THAT'S HOW IT WORKS! The lower the cost of living, the lower the wages, the higher the cost, the higher the wages.
That is the one thing I love about Texas. The city level tax aspect is a brilliant idea. It allows groups of people to congregate to areas better fit for what they expect in a community. If people want less intrusive aspects, little or no property tax, etc... they choose the cities which do not have such policies (West Lake has no property tax for instance) and for those who wish more intrusive polices, excessive taxes for numerous social services, public infrastructure, etc... they choose those places (Plano for instance).
What I have noticed though, is that the cities who complain the most about wanting a state tax to help fund them and are having problems with meeting their city budgets and very high property taxes are places that are intrusive and try to implement policies similar of that California. Plano is a great example of such with ever increasing infringement through social and economic measures that are politically motivated, bloated and irresponsible in their expenses.
My worry though is that all of these people are fleeing states like California, NY, etc... to come here because we are prosperous, but they all seem to support the policies that will lead them back to the same position they left those states. You can already see this happening in various mid-cities (Plano, Frisco, etc... ) who are pushing in that direction and the result is their housing being ridiculous, their taxes absurd, and their city constantly introducing policies that infringe on people. Though as long as we keep the control at the city level, other cities can retain some sanity, which is why I guess these cities keep demanding for more state control. /sigh
Same is happening in Austin. They want and want. They get and see huge tax increases and then cry. I don't get it. If you want it then you pay for it.
You wanted the train to nowhere so pay for it. You want fancy bike paths and bike rentals in the city so pay for it. You demand recycling at a higher cost so pay for it. Goes on and on.
I live out in the county, outside of ANY city limits. Septic, private water and trash is all on my dime directly to the providers. I pay for school, sheriff and EMS services in my property taxes.
School tax is the highest but I can't blame the local schools because a good chunk of that money has to pay for NCLB unfunded mandates.
Same is happening in Austin. They want and want. They get and see huge tax increases and then cry. I don't get it. If you want it then you pay for it.
You wanted the train to nowhere so pay for it. You want fancy bike paths and bike rentals in the city so pay for it. You demand recycling at a higher cost so pay for it. Goes on and on.
I live out in the county, outside of ANY city limits. Septic, private water and trash is all on my dime directly to the providers. I pay for school, sheriff and EMS services in my property taxes.
School tax is the highest but I can't blame the local schools because a good chunk of that money has to pay for NCLB unfunded mandates.
Take Texas cities out and there would be little left on economy and commerce to brag about. No?
The property rich districts do not get to keep their money.
If you lived in Texas for 20 years then you should know that.
The state collects the money and doles it out to the school districts.
It's called Robin Hood and it gives more money to those poor school districts.
Robin Hood plan - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
"The Robin Hood plan was a media nickname given to legislation enacted by the U.S. state of Texas in 1993 to provide court-mandated equitable school financing for all school districts in the state. Similar to the legend of Robin Hood, who "robbed from the rich and gave to the poor", the law "recaptured" property tax revenue from property-wealthy school districts and distributed those in property-poor districts, in an effort to equalize the financing of all districts throughout Texas."
The fact that the state HAD TO IMPLEMENT A ROBIN HOOD PLAN indicates a legacy of economic aparthied in terms of education that still effects the state today. After all the state ruled on Robin Hood laws in 1995. Again my previous post on this issue pointed to the fact that Texas as longstanding issue with give all the people in the state equitable educational resources.
Also it's obvious not everybody in the state is happy with the law.
For years, Robin Hood law has taken money from wealthier school districts to give it to others that are less fortunate. But State Representative Gary Elkins, R-Houston, filed HJR 104 along with U.S. Congressman John Culberson Wednesday that would eliminate the program. It would also give the power of school finance to the Legislature instead of the court system.
"What the public is demanding is a school finance system and for us to deliver a school education system that is fair," Elkins said.
Further proof that their are some in the state that would just as soon see things go back to where they were in "The Good Old Days".
That is the one thing I love about Texas. The city level tax aspect is a brilliant idea. It allows groups of people to congregate to areas better fit for what they expect in a community. If people want less intrusive aspects, little or no property tax, etc... they choose the cities which do not have such policies (West Lake has no property tax for instance) and for those who wish more intrusive polices, excessive taxes for numerous social services, public infrastructure, etc... they choose those places (Plano for instance).
What I have noticed though, is that the cities who complain the most about wanting a state tax to help fund them and are having problems with meeting their city budgets and very high property taxes are places that are intrusive and try to implement policies similar of that California. Plano is a great example of such with ever increasing infringement through social and economic measures that are politically motivated, bloated and irresponsible in their expenses.
My worry though is that all of these people are fleeing states like California, NY, etc... to come here because we are prosperous, but they all seem to support the policies that will lead them back to the same position they left those states. You can already see this happening in various mid-cities (Plano, Frisco, etc... ) who are pushing in that direction and the result is their housing being ridiculous, their taxes absurd, and their city constantly introducing policies that infringe on people. Though as long as we keep the control at the city level, other cities can retain some sanity, which is why I guess these cities keep demanding for more state control. /sigh
Which points to another thing. The growth in Texas is for the most part driven by new businesses and people coming to the state. It's not being driven by internal business growth.
At some point the increasing population will lead to traffic. ( I bet folks in Dallas LOVE the construction on 635), additional pollution, higher energy cost
and increasing stresses in terms of infrastructure like water resources, which is the sleeping giant that is at some point going to bite Texas in the *ss.
The consequence of having so many new people coming to Texas it that they will bring thier polltical and social attitiudes with them. Texas will inveriably grow but it's also going to change.
While you rave about the growth that's the price you pay.
Texas again has been ranked the top exporting state, according to data released by the U.S. Department of Commerce.
"Texas' ranking as the nation's top exporter for nine years running is a testament to our strong economy and the importance of upholding low taxes, reasonable regulations, a fair legal system and an equipped workforce," Gov. Rick Perry stated in a news release.
Texas' exports in 2010 totaled more than $206.6 billion, up 26.7 percent from $162.9 billion in 2009.
The state's exports outperformed overall U.S. exports, which grew by 20.9 percent in 2010.
The state's top export recipients were Mexico, Canada, China, Brazil and South Korea, which respectively imported $72.3 billion, $18.6 billion, $10.2 billion, $7.1 billion and $6.4 billion in Texas-made goods.
Is texas the leader per capita, per GDP, or just in raw dollars?
booster articles like these are annoying, without the full set of data.
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