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House Bill 3084 |
House Author: Phillips |
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Effective: Vetoed |
Senate Sponsor: Deuell |
House Bill 3084 amends the Tax Code to exempt a municipal street maintenance sales tax adopted after September 1, 2007, from certain automatic expiration provisions. The bill establishes procedures to abolish the tax by election.
Reason Given for Veto: "Currently, the Street Maintenance Sales Tax adopted by a municipality must be reauthorized every four years by voters. House Bill No. 3084 would overturn this important taxpayer protection by allowing the tax to remain in effect until the municipality requests a public vote, or five percent of registered voters petition for an election.
"By making the Street Maintenance Sales Tax permanent, House Bill No. 3084 shifts the balance of power away from those being taxed to the government. The burden of justifying whether a tax should exist should fall on government, not the governed.
"Additionally, the percentage of registered voters required to initiate an election is too high. The five percent threshold would merely serve as an additional roadblock to taxpayer participation in their government."