Adding Insult to Injury

Parts of Houston are still under water, sewage is creating a health hazard in west Houston, the contents of flooded homes lines thousands of streets, the stench of rotting garbage hangs heavy in the air for lack of debris pickup, and our Mayor proposes a tax increase.

Yes, it is our Mayor's desire to collect additional taxes from the homes and businesses that, because of Hurricane Harvey are already being forced to spend hundreds of millions of dollars they don't have to recover.

Suffice to say this is, at best, exceptionally bad timing.

Regardless of the wisdom behind the decision and the timing, the item is on the City Council Agenda for consideration tomorrow. 

Some food for thought for our City leaders:

• Consider what massive and ongoing valuation increases are already doing to your tax base before you pass a huge tax increase. People and businesses are leaving town - and they won't come back. As you continue to burden those remaining with higher and higher taxes, they will leave as well. 
  
• Is it possible to know what the costs are yet just 20ish days after the storm? Isn't this a bit premature?

• Perhaps consideration of areas of savings within a very large bureaucracy of the 52 city departments is in order. What services can your overburdened taxpayers do without?  Do we need street festivals and an innovation department when we're going broke? How many press and communications "directors" and special assistants are required to handle city business? 

Prior to voting on such an enormous tax increase (and BTW, when have you ever in your lifetime seen a temporary tax increase?), Mayor Turner and City Council should show that they have sought to create efficiencies within the city bureaucracy, eliminate waste (see below note on flooded cars), and provide the taxpayers with detailed line-item expenses from the storm along with what reimbursements they anticipate receiving.
 
I feel awful for my fellow Houstonians still struggling to recover from the ravages of Harvey. To add this additional burden is adding insult to injury. #tb

P.S. Next time we expect a flooding event, the City should move its vehicles out of underground parking garages ... just sayin'. A little planning could save a lot of money.