Rates for Texas basic residential telephone service, includingthe federal subscriber line charge, range fromabout $13.82 per month in rural areas to $16.72 in urbanareas. But long-run incremental costs for service rangefrom $11.84 per month in the most densely-populatedareas to more than $250 per month in rural areas. Approximately95 percent of all basic residential lines aresubsidized. Sources for the subsidies include added features,business service, long distance and the UniversalService Fund.
Assessing Tax Trends in the City of Dallas
Does history suggest that property taxes are too high in the city of Dallas? And, if so, have local decision-makers actively helped or hurt the situation? To help answer these questions, let’s review the city’s 2024 Annual Comprehensive Financial Report (ACFR) and gather four types of data—i.e., tax levies, local population, total tax rates, and taxable values—over a 10-year time horizon. Using these audited estimates, we can gauge the growth of government (i.e., tax levy trends), assess its reasonability...