Good morning,

I never imagined 25 years could go by so quickly! Or realized that the silver anniversary was named for the predominate color of my hair...

Here is today's Texas Minute.

– Michael Quinn Sullivan 

Wednesday, June 10, 2020
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• Evidence of the stark economic consequences of the shutdowns can be easily seen in two numbers: the unemployment rate and the drastic drop in sales tax revenue. One way to address both would be to remove the hurdles for entrepreneurs seeking to restart their businesses – such as the heavy compliance costs of the state’s gross margins tax, also known as the business franchise tax.
       
• When legislators introduced the business franchise tax, it was sold as a way to lower property taxes. But as Brandon Waltens reports, the tax actually brings in a small fraction of Texas’ revenue, and property taxes have continued to climb. At the same time, tracking, reporting, and remitting the tax itself is costly for businesses.
         
• While legislation was filed in both the Texas House and Senate in 2019 to phase out the tax, neither reached the floor for a vote.
          
• Remember: only people pay taxes. A tax on “business” is a myth; businesses remit taxes, but the cost of those taxes are paid by people. Sometimes, business taxes are passed directly on to consumers, but in many cases the cost is reflected in reduced salaries for employees, reduced profits for business owners, or even fewer job opportunities.
    
• With the state’s economy still tumbling from the government-mandated shutdown, tax revenues are way down. A new explainer video on our YouTube channel offers a couple of places where lawmakers could immediately start cutting. 
     
• Leading up to the July primary runoffs, Texans for Courageous Courts has endorsed Collin County attorney George Flint for the 401st District Court.
       
• “George has a long track record as a grassroots leader in Collin County. He recently led the Republican Party there as county party chairman, and he enjoys widespread support from the grassroots. An experienced attorney, George is committed to promoting and upholding the rule of law.” – Tony McDonald, head of Texans for Courageous Courts
   
• Demands by Black Lives Matter activists and antifa protesters are gaining support within the Austin City Council. Cary Cheshire reports the council is expected to vote on a number of measures soon, including a potential $100 million cut to the Austin Police Department.
   
• Meanwhile, three members of the radical antifa group have been arrested in Texas’ capital city for burglarizing a local Target store. They allegedly smashed into the store, destroyed and ripped out surveillance cameras, and looted the store, stealing and damaging more than $20,000 in property. As Jacob Asmussen notes, the trio apparently live-streamed the crime as it happened on Facebook and encouraged others to join in.

• Transparency USA’s Texas portal finds that in the current election season 575 Republican candidates have raised $63.9 million, while 553 Democrat candidates have raised $29.8 million. 
   
• They also report on the top lobbyists being paid to influence your legislators. For example, Gov. Greg Abbott’s former chief of staff, Daniel Hodge, is now the highest paid lobbyist in Texas. They report he is pulling in between $5.4 million and $8 million – based on state records.
   
• I highly recommend Transparency USA as a source. Their data is easy to search – unlike the labyrinth of state websites that are allegedly designed to keep the public informed but usually succeed only at hiding the ball from citizens.

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