HEB Chamber Government Affairs Newsletter

Bound for Austin

Time is running out to join us for the March legislative trip

Next week, members of the HEB Chamber and other chambers will travel to Austin for an important series of meetings with our local legislators. This is an important opportunity to talk in-person with local elected officials about legislation that matters most to you. We'll be in Austin March 6 and 7. A summary of the schedule:

Wednesday

11:30 a.m.: L unch at the Doubletree Suites by Hilton Austin. Ross Ramsey of the Texas Tribune will be the speaker.

1:30 to 5 p.m.: We will go to the Capitol Extension Auditorium and join the Leadership classes for presentations by members of the legislature. After the presentations, the leadership classes will depart for home.
5:30 to 7 p.m.: Tarrant County Days reception at the Doubletree.
Thursday

7:30 to 9 a.m.: Tarrant County Days breakfast at the Austin Club.

9:30 a.m.: Legislators will being make presentations in the Old Supreme Court Room of the Capitol.

10:30 a.m. (approx.): Photos with the legislators.

11 a.m. (approx.): R eturn to the Old Supreme Court room and continue with legislator presentations.

1 p.m. (approx.): Official schedule concludes.

Cost to register is $200 for Coalition members (which includes members of the HEB Chamber), and $250 for all others, and covers all of the events noted above. Transportation and hotel are not included in the fee. Register here.

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Coming into View

Legislators working on school finance

State Sen. Larry Taylor (R, Friendswood), chair of the Senate Education Committee, and House C ommittee on Public Education Chairman Dan Huberty (R, Kingwood) are preparing to introduce school finance bills that should be very similar.

The legislation is expected to include incentives -- but not requirements -- for teacher evaluations and merit-based pay increases. It also is likely to call for an unspecified across-the-board pay increase for teachers. The senator also has endorsed full funding for all-day Pre-K for low-income students and outcomes-based funding for high schools.

Both bills should be introduced by March 8, and differences will be worked out in conference. Sen. Taylor said that the School Finance Committee heard over 100 hours of testimony on school finance. He also said he wants to help Texas improve on its low national ranking.

9-1-1 for 3-1-2

Property tax legislation may lapse

Property taxes in Texas are a major concern for businesses. For example, a company making a $1 billion capital investment in Texas today will, in the subsequent 25 years, make property tax payments that are 65 percent higher than the average of the other 49 states.

That puts us as a distinctive competitive disadvantage against other states. It's also why the legislation known as Chapter 312 is so important. It allows cities and counties to abate some or all of the property tax due from a new investment for up to 10 years.
However, if no action is taken, Chapter 312 will expire on July 1. Bills have been introduced in both the House and Senate to reauthorize and improve the legislation. One of those bills is with the Senate Natural Resources and Economic Development Committee, which includes HEB senators Kelly Hancock and Beverly Powell. As important as Chapter 312 is, it seems unlikely it will be allowed to lapse. Sen. Powell has filed SB 350, which would remove the expiration date and permanently continue the incentives.

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All in Favor, Click Here

A new, easy way to get involved

Making your voice heard can be frustrating, and sometimes, discouraging.

The HEB Chamber is working to change that. Along with the other members of the Coalition of East Tarrant Chambers, we have purchased a one-year subscription to One Click Politics. One Click makes it easy for us to alert you to important legislation, and makes it easy for you to get involved.

You'll be hearing more about One Click soon. In the meantime, you can get a sneak preview at this fully operational link. The Chamber will be ready to alert you about important bills, and we hope you'll be ready to respond.

Proceeding Slowly

Property tax bill faces a few hurdles

An intriguing situation involves SB2, the property tax cap bill written by Senator Paul Bettencourt (R, Houston). As one of Lt. Governor Patrick's priorities, it has passed out of committee and should be headed to the full Senate for debate.
However, Senator Kel Seliger (R, Amarillo) has said he intends to vote with Democrats, potentially preventing the bill from coming to the floor.
This probably is part of a negotiation. In addition, there are other ways to get the bill to the floor, and the House is working on its own version. The Texas Tribune has published a great article on the bill.

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We're working for you

The Chamber's Board has five goal teams. One of these teams is Business Advocacy, and it is chaired by Howard Shotwell. The team's responsibilities include government relations, issues identification, identifying collaboration opportunities and ensuring Chamber members always have a "seat at the table." We welcome your support! If you would like to get involved in the Chamber's business advocacy work, contact Mary Frazior, 817-283-1521, maryfrazior@heb.org.

We thank our business advocacy sponsors:

Tara Simmons Insurance Agency

Sponsorship does not necessarily imply endorsement of the Chamber's policy positions.

The Chamber is 4-Star accredited by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.

chamber@heb.org heb.org