Consumers have greatly benefitted from recent efforts to reduce telecommunications taxes. But this testimony shows that the municipal franchise tax on video, voice, electricity, and natural gas services still takes hundreds of millions of dollars a year out of consumers’ pockets.
Economy
Austin’s Simple Fix for Soaring Housing Costs
After years of watching home prices skyrocket out of reach for first responders, nurses, and young families, in December 2023, Austin city council voted to rewrite its zoning code. The first phase of its HOME Initiative—known as HOME-1—effectively allowed up to three homes on most lots that previously could host only one. A year later,...
December 9, 2025