A Gift From Mayor Pothole
This should come as no surprise:
Mayor Bill White held out the prospect of employee layoffs Friday as he acknowledged that the projected budget gap for the coming fiscal year is twice as large as his predecessor's most dire forecast.The previous Pothole Administration lied about the budget constantly.While Lee Brown's administration projected a $74 million shortfall for fiscal year 2005, which begins on July 1, White said he expects the gap to be more than $150 million because of several major -- and unavoidable -- expenses that are coming due.
As I asked during the last election, who would really want the job of cleaning up after the last idiot?
To his credit, Mayor White says he won't consider a property tax increase. Annise Parker isn't saying any such thing:
"We shouldn't expect any serendipity," Parker said. "It will be a difficult year to put forward a balanced budget and still provide the same level of services without new revenue streams."When did "new revenue streams" become the catchword for liberals wanting to raise taxes without calling it that?
Posted by Kevin Whited @ 02/07/04 09:53 | Houston | Technorati
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The term "new revenue stream" is actually scarier than "tax increase" because it means a new way to nickle and dime the taxpayer, and as you and I have both commented on in the past, the more kinds of taxes one pays, the less inclined one is to recognize how much of your money actually goes to the governments of various levels.
When I hear the word "new revenue stream" what immediately comes to mind is "state income tax." That's obviously not what Ms. Parker has in mind since she works for the city, but heaven knows there are a zillion other ways they can add new taxes/fees on the municipal level.
Posted by R. Alex @ 16:59 on 02/07/04
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