问题
Despite statewide Proposition 1 passing in 2014, highway and road construction in Texas remains underfunded. The shortfall is due mostly to an underperforming gasoline tax and an unwillingness to adjust the tax or increase other transportation-related fees.

The problem is magnified by a population boom, mostly in and around urban population centers. 事实上, Texas has four of the 11 most-populous metro areas in the United States (Houston, 达拉斯/沃斯堡, 圣安东尼奥, 和奥斯丁), 每一个都在快速增长.

由于收入来源不足, the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) has been forced to over-rely on bond debt to fund roadway 维护 and new transportation projects. 然而, TxDOT’s main bond programs (State Highway Fund bonds, 德州流动基金债券, and general-obligation highway bonds) are effectively exhausted. 另外, the agency currently pays approximately $1 billion per year (about 10% of its annual budget) in interest payments on the outstanding bond debt—which exacerbates the funding shortfall.

With the uncertainty of future federal dollars, 减少收入, 以及耗尽的债券容量, TxDOT has also resorted to a large number of public/private partnerships, (i.e.(收费公路).

很明显, bonds and toll roads are important pieces of the transportation-funding solution, but they will not meet the growing demands on transportation infrastructure by themselves. The agency needs to re-evaluate the current transportation model for the state to identify new methods to efficiently handle the population increases and the state’s transportation needs. 

What does this mean for the real estate industry?
An insufficient transportation network impedes commerce, 增加了商品和服务的成本, 并造成空气质量问题. Furthermore, poor infrastructure limits Texans’ viable housing options and decreases quality of life.

德州2021十大正规彩票app经纪人®的立场
The State of Texas must ensure its citizens the right to a safe and efficient transportation system. 这样做的时候, the state must address numerous issues: congestion, 能力, 建造及维修费用, 安全, 道路的年龄和状况, and the impact transportation delays have on air quality, 货物成本, 和生活质量.

Failing to pay for infrastructure needs will ultimately cost state taxpayers an extraordinary amount of money in the future.

本协会支持以下活动:

  • The Texas Transportation Commission and Texas Department of Transportation should ensure accountability, 透明度, and public involvement in the transportation-planning process
  • 一个全国范围内的, multi-modal transportation system that facilitates safe and efficient movement of people and goods, including sufficient transportation choices such as roads, 货运和客运铁路, 水路, 海运和内河港口, 和空气.
  • Local option transportation funding sources, 除了国家资助, 其中可能包括收费公路.
  • A study on transportation funding sources needed to create infrastructure at or above the state’s current levels of service.
  • TxDOT’s efforts to secure BUILD grant funding for rural roadways near energy sectors.
  • The concept of high-speed rail as a mode of transportation in Texas.

 

立法 前景
We expect to see a number of transportation-funding bills, including proposals to send proceeds from the motor vehicle sales tax to the State Highway Fund, 增加年注册费, and apply a vehicle-miles-traveled surcharge.

历史的角度
While various financing options have been proposed and a few passed in recent sessions, the state gasoline tax has not been raised from its current 20 cents per gallon since 1991. The result of this is a decrease in the tax’s purchasing power.

In 2014, Texas voters passed a Texas constitutional amendment (Proposition 1) for transportation funding with an overwhelming 80%, signaling to the Texas Legislature that funding for transportation is an important issue and must be addressed.

2015年，84th Texas Legislature ended diversions from the Texas Highway Fund, 减少债券债务, and allocating motor vehicle sales taxes to the state highway fund (HB 1), ended diversions from the Texas Highway Fund, and prioritized future TxDOT projects based on 安全, 维护, 及交通挤塞(hb20).

除了, 2015年，选民通过了第7号提案, a constitutional amendment authorized by SJR 5 to dedicate $2.5 billion of sales tax revenue and 35% of motor vehicle sales taxes to the Texas Highway Fund when revenue milestones are met.

In 2019, a new law (SB 962) extended provisions related to that constitutional amendment to ensure no interruption of funding for 10 years, continuing voters’ desire to invest in transportation projects.