Burnt Orange Report

Video Lottery has Bipartisan Opposition in House

By Byron LaMasters

Democrats don't like it because it's a regressive tax. Republicans don't like it because its immoral. Whatever the reason, video lottery will have trouble getting out of the Texas House. The Austin American Statesman reports:

Republicans and Democrats alike are threatening to kill a proposal to expand gambling in Texas by legalizing video lottery terminals, a move that could deal another big blow to the current House school finance plan.

The bipartisan opposition to video lottery comes from Republicans who object on moral grounds and Democrats who hope an attack on legalizing the terminals will force House leaders to drop a plan for higher sales taxes. Together, they could have the 51 votes needed to kill what has become a major part of a House committee's revenue-raising plans.

[...]

House factions have risen up to oppose major parts of the proposal since it was unveiled earlier this week. Wednesday, committee members balked at plans to let the state collect property taxes — rather than local governments — and to expand the sales tax to include services such as accounting and haircuts. Both were removed from the proposal.

Republicans opposed to the video lottery terminals — slot machines — don't want to bring casino-style gambling to Texas, even if that means forfeiting the $1.5 billion a year House leaders say it will raise for schools.

"We think we have the 51 votes that are hard no's that will not vote for it," Rep. Linda Harper-Brown, R-Irving, told The Associated Press. "We're very passionate about stopping this."

Sen. Jane Nelson, R-Lewisville, has threatened to filibuster against video lottery, something she says no woman has done in the Texas Senate.

Democrats also will oppose video lottery, said a Democratic member of the House committee.

Rep. Rene Oliveira, D-Brownsville, said some of his party members are willing to vote against constitutional amendments that include video lottery terminals and other revenue-raising measures if Republicans don't budge on a sales tax increase.

"The Democrats' position is that the sales tax unfairly shifts the burden to the middle class, poor and fixed-income individuals," Oliveira said.

The ever-changing revenue plan would increase the general sales tax rate from 6.25 percent to 6.75 percent and add auto maintenance and car washes as taxable items.

Right now, I'm thinking that the best thing that Democrats in the legislature can do is play the Republicans against each other and prevent anything from passing. While Robin Hood is certainly a flawed system, every proposal by the governor and the Republican leadership has had one thing in common - it has shifted a greater share of the tax burden on to the backs of low income and middle-class voters. We need a state income tax to fix the school finance mess that we're in, but since that will never happen in this decade, the next best thing is to prevent the Republican majority from screwing things up further.