Unaffordable, Unlivable, and Unrecognizable
What to know: The average Travis County homeowner will pay $10,823 in local property taxes this year—the highest in Texas. Even still, the city of Austin wants voters to approve a massive 20.2% tax rate hike in November because, according to one council member, “spending big dollars on city services is worth the tax hike.”
The TPPF take: Local government leftists have made Austin unaffordable, unlivable, and unrecognizable.
“Left-wing local governments are the driving force behind Central Texas’ affordability crisis. Their unceasing activism, funded through ever-higher property taxes, has been the single most destructive force on family budgets and financial security,” says TPPF’s James Quintero. “If Austin is to ever return to its former glory, then it needs dramatically less government in every way.”
For more on affordability, click here.
Stealing from the Needy
What to know: The federal government is filing charges against Californians accused of defrauding the government and stealing funds meant to help the homeless.
The TPPF take: California has reportedly spent $24 billion to end homelessness, but it still has the worst homeless problem in the country.
“It turns out that a couple of California homelessness moguls have been stealing millions from the state, using fake bank accounts to bilk the treasury out of as much as $26 million, which they allegedly used to pay off their credit card bills and buy luxury goods,” says TPPF’s Sherry Sylvester. “The DOJ brought charges yesterday, so we’ll see what happens.”
For more on homelessness spending, click here.
Citizenship
What to know: Writing for Fox News, Mike Davis says the U.S. Supreme Court must affirm President Trump’s executive order on birthright citizenship.
The TPPF take: Birthright citizenship must be reined in.
“The Fourteenth Amendment was a strong and needed step toward equality in the aftermath of the Civil War, designed to protect the rights of freed slaves and their descendants,” says TPPF’s Chuck DeVore. “However, its Framers did not foresee today’s challenges, including widespread illegal immigration and border exploitation. By acknowledging the historical intent of the amendment, Congress can ensure that U.S. citizenship remains a meaningful bond of allegiance and responsibility.”
For more on birthright citizenship, click here.