Recently I got a mailer from TakeOnTraffic.org, which is an education initiative funded by the Greater Austin CoC to inform the people of Austin that they need roads. Masters of the obvious, these folks.
Tolls, tolls and more tolls appears to be on tap if the GACoC has their way. One has to wonder what they'll get out of it, especially since I'd be willing to bet most members of the CoC aren't so much for tolls... they just want traffic off the roads (we'll get to that in a bit). Most of the site is pretty worthless (the design's not bad... the information is. For example there is a lot of information about why we need roads. Which is pretty stupid because no one is arguing that point save maybe morons). The Transportation Funding section is the real meat of the site... the rest of it is as substantial and worthwhile as a rice cake.
Gasoline taxes. This is the main source of revenue for highways right now. However, the state gas tax hasn't been raised since 1991. With gas prices already reaching record highs, it's unlikely that the state will ever raise this tax enough to pay for all of Texas' unmet transportation needs.
Yeah, not so much at record highs anymore and around current, lower, prices, alternatives still make a lot of sense which puts an upward cap on gasoline prices. However, let's not even get into that. Let's focus instead on the idea that the state won't raise the gas tax. This is as much BS as anything else on this site. The state has been made very aware that it's cheaper to do that than anything else.
However, it may soon be possible for regions like Central Texas to institute local gasoline taxes. To meet our immediate needs, a Travis County gas tax would have to be set between 30 and 50 cents per gallon. This could have a severe impact on lower-income residents and on the regional economy.
That number for the gas tax is just wrong. We already know that it'll cost much less, even without indexing which the state is going to eventually pass. Further, the idea that gas taxes hurt lower-income residents more than tolls is absurd. For one thing, if tolls are used for expansion of 35 through central Austin, we'll all be paying the price. That's the most obvious issue. The less obvious issue is that tolls are going to increase the cost of goods sold for every business through increased transport to market costs. That'll be passed on even to consumers who don't use cars.
The other reason we'll be effected is that traffic won't disappear on 35 because there isn't a free 130 to take traffic away. 130 was always intended to be a bypass to 35 through Austin Metro for traffic moving north to south and vice versa. We already know that most trucking companies aren't going to use the toll roads. Which means that traffic in central Austin will continue to be bad and everyone will suffer. Take the tolls off 130 and watch the congestion on 35 disappear.
Finally, let's consider the only cost metric that makes sense, cost per mile. On the toll roads, the absolute best you can do is $0.12 per mile. With the gas tax (at even an inflated $0.17 per gallon), the per mile break down if your car (like most) gets 20 miles per gallon is $0.0085 per mile. Less than a penny per mile for new roads and improvements to existing roads is hell of a lot better than $0.12 per mile.
Seeing that number at the end of election, would normally send your heart through the floor if you are the lucky politician to receive it. It would normally mean the people of Texas don't want you representing them anymore. But not in the case of Rick Perry, who became just the 3rd Texas Governor to win with less than 40% of the vote.
With 5 opponents receiving votes this past November, Governor Rick Perry's losing effort turned into reelection. And on this glorious Tuesday January 16th, he will be sworn in again and become Texas's longest sitting leader during this term.
But what does it say to a leader when the majority of the voters said no? 61% of your state wanted you gone! Is it time to listen to your opponents, because you have no mandate?
Just over 1.7 million people voted to reelect Rick Perry. There were 13,074,279 voters registered for the election. Only 33.6% of them even bothered to show up. That means really only a third of a third of Texas is with him. Of course, when some of those people are reporters for major state newspapers, who else do you need supporting you right?! That seems to be the basis of the Perry Doctrine.
CorridorWatch.org is a non-partisan organization formed to educate and inform, not to participate in politics. CorridorWatch.org is not a political action committee (PAC) and therefore does not support or endorse candidates.
However over our four year existence we have observed and interacted with many of the individuals who are on this November’s ballot. During this time we have developed informed opinions about these candidates.
Our goal in presenting the following Report Card is to let you know how CorridorWatch.org feels these candidates reflect the beliefs and concerns of our members and others who are opposed to the Trans Texas Corridor.
The following candidates have been graded on information available to CorridorWatch.org and reflect our assessment of their position on the Trans Texas Corridor and related issues such as tolling, toll conversion private property rights and eminent domain taking for economic development. The grade also reflects the effectiveness (in our opinion) that the candidate would have in effecting positive change if elected.
U. S. Senator "A" Barbara Ann Radnofsky DEM "B" Kay Bailey Hutchison - Incumbent REP "C" Scott Lanier Jameson LIB
Governor "A" Carole Keeton Strayhorn IND "C" Chris Bell DEM "C" Richard "Kinky" Friedman IND "D" James Werner LIB "F" Rick Perry - Incumbent REP
Lieutenant Governor "B" David Dewhurst - Incumbent REP "B" Maria Luisa Alvarado DEM "C" Judy Baker LIB
Attorney General "A" David Van Os DEM "B" Greg Abbott - Incumbent REP "C" Jon Roland LIB
Comptroller of Public Accounts "B" Susan Combs REP "B" Fred Head DEM "C" Mike Burris LIB
Commissioner General Land Office "C" VaLinda Hathcox DEM "C" Michael A. French LIB "D" Jerry Patterson - Incumbent REP
Commissioner of Agriculture "A" Hank Gilbert DEM "C" Clay Woolam LIB "F" Todd Staples REP
State Senator - District 3 "F" Robert Nichols REP
State Senator - District 25 "C" Kathleen "Kathi" Thomas DEM "C" James R. (Bob) Thompson LIB "F" Jeff Wentworth - Incumbent REP
State Representative - District 13 "A" Lois W. Kolkhorst - Incumbent REP "D" Charles Stigall LIB
State Representative - District 17 "A" Tim Kleinschmidt REP "B" Robby Cook - Incumbent DEM "D" Roderick (Rod) Gibbs LIB
State Representative - District 20 "B" Jim Stauber DEM "D" Dan M. Gattis - Incumbent REP
State Representative - District 20 "B" John Zerwas REP "C" Dorothy Bottos DEM
State Representative - District 52 "B" Karen Felthauser DEM "B" Lillian Simmons LIB "F" Mike Krusee - Incumbent REP
State Representative - District 57 "B" Jim Dunnam - Incumbent DEM "D" Neill Snider LIB
State Representative - District 62 "C" Peter "Pete" Veeck DEM "F" Larry Phillips - Incumbent REP
State Representative - District 90 "B" Lon Burnam - Incumbent DEM "D" Rod Wingo LIB
State Representative - District 117 "A" David McQuade Leibowitz - Incumbent DEM "D" Ted Kenyon REP
We drove 4500 miles with a car loaded with clothes, computers, skis, ice skates and unidentified objects to set up our son Billy in his dormitory and enjoy first-hand the ambience of Harvard.
This journey took us on some of the most sophisticated and well-established toll roads, tunnels, and turnpikes in the country. Our Texas Re-thugs want to toll 4000 miles of roads in Texas (including the Trans Texas Corridor) so studying carefully the well-established toll roads throughout the East Coast would be instructive.
Without watering down their populist message, Texas's most populist Democratic Challengers are winning over traditional Republican activists. The Trans Texas Corridor Hearings by TDoT are uniting activists who usually face off against each other. Democratic Candidates Hank Gilbert (TX Agriculture Commissioner), David Van Os, (Attorney General) and Fred Head (Comptroller) all face opponents who received money from Zachry which is the Corporation chosen by TDoT to share with Citras in the $190 billion 50 year tolled Trans Texas Corridor.
I didn't realize at the time how appropriate this week's Daily Texan column would be as it matched up with both Phillip's 40/40 this week and a front-page story in the Texan about the Trans-Texas Corridor. As such, my column below. (Major props to the Editor JJ Hermes for pitching the idea of the giant TTC cutting across the column in the print edition!)
There is an issue in Texas quietly building steam in what could be a major campaign theme in this fall's elections for governor and the state agricultural commissioner.
It's an issue that has folks in rural Texas feeling the pain of Native Americans centuries prior. It's an issue that has farmers and ranchers readying their pitchforks. And it's an issue that has some of the most conservative counties in the state upset with Republicans they used to consider defenders of free men on the range.
The issue is the Trans-Texas Corridor, a 4,000-mile, $183-billion plan proposed by Republicans and promoted by Gov. Rick Perry as the 50-year solution to Texas' traffic needs. The routes span the state, snaking across central and eastern Texas, connecting Laredo to Oklahoma and Arkansas. Future routes could bring in an East-West line from El Paso or others up through the Panhandle.
Each corridor could contain up to four trucker lanes, six vehicle lanes, six rail lines and a 200-foot utility path. At its maximum size, each TTC could be 1,200 feet wide, consuming up to 9,000 square miles of land, more than exists in all of New Jersey.
These massive property and investment requirements give rise to much of the objection from rural landowners. Cutting through countless farms and ranches and looping around suburbia will be a path wider than the distance between Austin's Congress and First Street bridges. One could set the entire state Capitol inside of the right of way.
Many of them are coming up this next week. It would be good to get as many folks out to these hearings (and as many STATE WIDE CANDIDATES as possible to testify). I have sorted them by date so that it will be easier to mobilize folks to attend the hearings and YELL ABOUT THE BIGGEST LAND GRAB in Texas History.
Over 83,000 acres of prime agriculture land is scheduled to be consumed by this project. Ownership of the TTC is to be given to a Spanish company who will charge us tolls for 50 years to travel across Texas on this road. It will include corridors for our utilities and communication infra structure (which will be controlled by a foreign country!) The project will aversely impact the eco-system of our piney woods region. The reasons this project is BAD for Texas are numerous. Please check this out and stand up before it is too late. The bill was sponsored by Todd Staples (who is the Republican candidate for Agriculture Commissioner). His shortsighted disregard for the number 2 economic sector in Texas is monumental. Agriculture needs Hank Gilbert to look out for the farmers and ranchers (and people who must put groceries on the table every week). Todd Staples is dangerous. The Trans-Texas Corridor is Dangerous.
HERE THEY ARE THE HEARING DATES IN CHRONOLOGICAL ORDER:
In SD-18, Democrats voted for a primary candidate who dropped out of the race a month before the election. So now the nominee is someone who isn't planning on campaigning. Then again, should we expect more from primary voters that give us a run-off with Gene Kelly? The worst part? This seat is currently held by (retiring) Democrat Ken Armbrister. So there goes the only potentially competitive State Senate seat this fall. Republicans +1 for a 20-11 edge in the Senate. Great.
Eye on Williamson County has a new site as well as a report on a Trans-Texas Corridor forum in which Strayhorn gets a standing ovation, Kinky gets laughed at, and Bell goes 'wishy-washy' in the eye of the reporter. Then again, what would you expect from a room full of Republicans.
Greg gives commentary on the TDP and Chairman Soechting's tenure coming to a close and makes the following point (besides the fact that Chairman Soechting has sadly endorsed Rep. Al "Sexy Cheerleader" Edwards in the primary with blogosphere candidate Borris Miles.)
link: Well, not unlike your own thoughts, I can't claim to really have any hard & fast opinion on what difference it makes who's in charge of the party at this point. We've tried the "up & coming star" model with Bill White. We've tried the "reformed Republican" model with Molly Beth. We've tried the "guy with deep pockets" approach with Soechting. And at the end of the day, none of them really seemed to have an answer.
At this point, I'm not entirely sure that Richie or Maxey do either. And I'm also not entirely sure what relevance it will make if either is in charge. There's no money for the State Party to really claim to be doing much for candidates. There's no real resources outside of basic data that they have to offer. So color me doubtful. I have some good friends who put in a lot of quality time doing their damnest with the TDP and I'd love to see their work make a difference and matter.
But the real question is whether the concept of a State Party is really relevant anymore. I think it's that point that Jerome and Markos really left only lightly touched on in "Crashing the Gate." Effectively, the state party chair now is Fred Baron. Like it or not.
Fred Baron being the head trial lawyer funding the entity known as the Texas Democratic Trust, which is responsible for paying the salary of most all the staff at the TDP, which consists of the old Martin Frost team headed by Matt Angle, also of the Lone Star Project. Got that?
In San Antonio, incumbent Oscar Kazen loses in the final recount to Laura Salinas in the primary for County Court at Law #9. The Jeffersonian has back story here and here.
Speaking of another recount... PD says we should know the results of Carter Casteel's recount tomorrow.
Looks like Leininger pissed off Tommy Merritt, who won his election against a Leininger clone. Rep. Merritt already won one defamation lawsuit, he's still finding more ways to pick apart the Leininger clone. Good. Now Merritt will face Patrick Franklin in the fall.
