Texas Business Success
Property tax reduction is a vital step for the growth and prosperity of Texas, particularly for its business community. With my 15-year experience as a Texas business ownerProperty Tax, and my candidacy for the Texas State House of Representatives, District 97, I recognize the importance of this initiative. My commitment is to foster an environment that supports businesses and encourages growth, contributing significantly to our state’s economic development.
The economic landscape presents challenges and opportunities as we head into 2024. As Republicans and conservatives, we need innovative and thoughtful solutions to address them.
My economic policy aims to enhance business success by creating a roadmap of strategic initiatives. These initiatives support economic growth and job creation, positioning Texas as a business leader.
Lowering Property Taxes
Recognizing the burden of high property taxes on Texans, Governor Greg Abbott took significant action in 2023 to address this pressing issue. Under his leadership, Texas implemented a groundbreaking property tax reform as part of an $18 billion tax cut package. This initiative marked a major stride in reducing the financial strain on property owners, including businesses.
Key elements of this reform included:
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- A substantial reduction in property taxes.
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- Particularly focusing on school district property taxes.
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- An increase in the homestead exemption from $40,000 to $100,000.
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- A temporary 20% cap on appraisal increases for certain non-homestead properties.
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- An expansion of franchise tax exemptions.
These measures represent a pivotal move toward alleviating the tax load and fostering a more business-friendly environment in Texas.
However, despite these significant steps, more work remains to be done. Texas businesses, especially small and medium-sized enterprises, face challenges due to the residual high property taxes. These taxes, though reduced, can still impede business growth and expansion, calling for continued efforts and further reforms to build on the progress already made.
I’m fond of visiting a family-owned restaurant in Fort Worth and know the owners personally. They’ve shared their struggles with me, and it’s a good example of the ongoing challenge many Texas businesses face. Despite their hard work and ambition, the owners cannot expand their seating area and upgrade their kitchen due to high property taxes.
This has reduced their profitability and limited their growth opportunities. It’s a reminder that big and small businesses need ongoing attention and action to ease the tax burden and ensure they can thrive and contribute fully to our local economies.
Eliminating the Estate Tax
It is, unfortunately, a common story that farms or businesses are lost due to tax burdens. When a family-owned business or farm is passed down through generations, the founder’s death can trigger a hefty estate tax that forces the family to sell all or a significant portion of their land to pay the Tax. Given that family-owned businesses generally include multi-generational contributions of the official owner, it is an unfair burden to the surviving generations to pay this to continue the business.
This situation can severely impact the business’s productivity and the family’s legacy. Removing the estate tax would facilitate an easier transfer from companies within families, ensuring stability and continued economic contribution.
It aligns with conservative values of promoting family business continuity and wealth preservation and could help family-owned businesses overcome the challenge posed by the estate tax.
Abolishing the Franchise Tax
The franchise tax in Texas was introduced in 2008 to finance public education and services. It intended to create a more equitable tax structure by ensuring all businesses contribute to state revenue. However, the Tax has since added to the complexity and financial burden of running a business in Texas, affecting companies of all sizes. Furthermore, it is, in essence, a “double tax” as you pay income tax to the federal government for the profits and then must also pay a franchise tax to the state for the same profit.
Abolishing this Tax would be a bold step towards a more business-friendly tax structure and signal Texas’ commitment to fostering a low-tax environment. This move would boost profitability, particularly for small businesses.
For instance, a mid-sized tech firm in Dallas could reinvest the funds saved from franchise tax into research and development, potentially leading to innovative products and more high-paying jobs. Eliminating the franchise tax would make Texas a more appealing destination for business investment and expansion.
Removing the Inventory Tax
The inventory tax in Texas is an additional financial burden for businesses, particularly those in the retail, wholesale, and manufacturing sectors. This Tax increases business costs, especially for companies with large stock levels. It affects their operational efficiency and competitiveness.
Eliminating this Tax would reduce overhead costs and promote more efficient supply chain management. It would encourage businesses to optimize inventory levels without worrying about additional tax burdens, resulting in greater operational efficiency and competitiveness.
Unrealistic Green Policies
Green policies aimed at promoting environmentally friendly practices are contributing to an increase in the cost of goods and services, which, in turn, is reducing sales across all markets. This trend is evident in various sectors, including groceries, automobiles, and housing. For instance, implementing “greener” building codes, such as higher insulation values for homes and more efficient appliances and air conditioning/heating units, is driving up the cost of constructing new homes.
Additionally, the Green community is promoting the installation of electric vehicle chargers in every new house (costing approximately $1000 per house) and phasing out natural gas products like stoves and fireplaces. Unfortunately, every $1000 increment in the cost of a house eliminates about 1000 potential buyers from the market.
The federal government is implementing a hidden but mandatory policy promoting green energy that impacts citizens’ buying capacity. While wind and solar power are presented as cheaper, taxpayers end up paying higher energy bills to cover the subsidies, expansion of electric vehicle charging grids, and backup batteries due to unreliable energy.
The reduction of Texas’s oil and gas industries impacts them and their supporting industries, such as suppliers, transporters, and equipment manufacturers. The reduction of oil and gas industries in Texas is affecting the state’s economy and people. Many towns are facing a decline in population and property values.
Green Energy
Looking at it from a different perspective, even a vast state like Texas has limitations when using unreliable energy sources. For instance, it takes up to 160 acres of land to generate the same amount of energy produced by a 1 GW natural gas power plant. If we continue expanding the use of such energy sources, it could hurt other industries that require land.
Finally, achieving a Net Zero energy, as is being promoted, will ultimately lead to exporting some of the US and Texas manufacturing plants overseas. The EPA requirements currently starting to achieve this level make manufacturing, drilling, or producing items presently being produced economically impossible. Thus, the industries will be shut down.
Texas’ Commitment to Enhancing Commerce through Infrastructure Investments
Texas has strongly committed to enhancing transportation, utilities, and digital connectivity by investing significantly in various infrastructure sectors. Texas has committed to a 10-year, $83 billion investment in new state roadway projects, which includes expanding and improving major roadways across the state, ensuring better connectivity and transportation efficiency.
In addition, the 88th Legislature proposed a constitutional amendment to create the Broadband Infrastructure Fund, intending to allocate $1.5 billion to broadband and telecommunications projects. This is in addition to $3.3 billion allocated to Texas as part of the Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) Program, a component of the federal Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA).
Furthermore, the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) announced a $100 billion 10-year transportation plan, focusing on critical funds to bolster major roadway infrastructure across Texas’s rural, urban, and suburban areas.
Governor Greg Abbott also announced a total investment of $142 billion in Texas’ transportation infrastructure. Lastly, the Texas Municipal Retirement System plans to invest $500 million in infrastructure and $200 million in real estate in 2024, aiming to increase its infrastructure portfolio to 6%. All these efforts demonstrate Texas’ ongoing commitment to enhancing commerce through infrastructure investments.
I am Cheryl Bean, and I ask for your support for my candidacy for the Texas State House of Representatives, Chair 97, as we work together towards a brighter future for Texas. The strategic initiatives outlined in this article are just some of the opportunities I see as a comprehensive approach to fostering a business environment in Texas that is conducive to growth, innovation, and long-term prosperity.
As your representative, I will advocate for these policies, ensuring that our great state continues to be a beacon of economic opportunity and business success. I believe that Texas is making great strides to create a business-friendly environment, making it a desirable state to live and work in. However, there is still work left to be done. Property tax reform and infrastructure initiatives are crucial steps in our 2024 journey, and it will take strong, conservative leadership to continue the work.