Houston Chronicle Opposes Texas Chapter 313 Legislation
[Excerpt]
Texas economic development evangelists speak of this program – once known as Chapter 313 but now House Bill 5 – with almost biblical reverence. It may not turn water into wine, but they argue it will at least turn our school property tax dollars into new jobs for years to come.
We truly wish that were true. Tax incentives done smartly can be a good deal for Texans but not when there are few protections against abuse and waste. That, after all, is why lawmakers killed Chapter 313 last session.
Sadly, the current, revised version of the bill, sponsored by state Rep. Todd Hunter, R-Corpus Christi, simply repeats the sins of the past and, in some ways, commits new ones.
[Photo Credit: Mark Mulligan, Houston Chronicle]
Why Texas' New Chapter 313 Tax Break Is Even Worse than Before, Houston Chronicle [pdf]
TMO, Texas IAF Leaders Weigh In on Vampire Legislation for Tax Breaks
[Excerpt]
In the attached audio interview, Rosalie Tristan and Joe Hinojosa, both organizers with Valley Interfaith, Joe Higgs from IAF, and Bob Fleming, an organizer with The Metropolitan Organization of Houston, say tax breaks for large corporations should not be paid for with monies that would otherwise go to public education.
[Photos: Rosalie Tristan (left), Joe Hinojosa (holding sign in center) and Bob Fleming (right)]
Valley Interfaith: Don't Suck Money Out of Public Education to Help Large Corporations, Rio Grande Guardian [audio]
TMO, Texas IAF Underscore Lasting Consequences of Chapter 313 Subsidies
[Excerpt]
"In December, legislators killed a controversial tax abatement program known as Chapter 313, but its effects will last decades....
“There’s no accountability at the statewide level; nobody administers it,” said Bob Fleming, an organizer with [T]he Metropolitan Organization of Houston who campaigned against Chapter 313 reauthorization back in 2021. “A bunch of local school districts make singular decisions based on what they think is in their interest. Nobody is looking out for the statewide interest. Local school districts are overmatched when the $2,000 suits walk into the room.” ....
“It’s a perverse incentive,” said Doug Greco, lead organizer at Central Texas Interfaith, one of the organizations that helped shut down reauthorization of Chapter 313 in the 2021 legislative session.
“We approach it on a school funding basis,” said Greco, who is already gearing up to fight any Chapter 313 renewal efforts in 2023. “It’s corporate welfare and the people who pay over time are Texas school districts.” ....
“The district my granddaughter goes to is losing $4 million to $5 million every year,” said Rosalie Tristan, referring to Edinburg Consolidated Independent School District. Tristan is an organizer with the community organization Valley Interfaith who lives north of McAllen in the Rio Grande Valley.
“They could be using that money to get more teachers for these students,” she said. “For a parent, or for a grandparent raising her granddaughter, it’s a hit in the gut.”
[Photo Credit: Pu Ying Huang, The Texas Tribune]
Critics Say State Tax Break Helps Petrochemical Companies and Hurts Public Schools, The Texas Tribune [pdf]