Bill

HB 1133

83(R) - 2013
Read Bill & Check Bill Status
Taxes

Vote Recommendation

Yes
  • Neutral
  • Positive
  • Neutral
  • Positive
  • Neutral

Author(s)

John Otto

Bill Caption

Relating to a sales and use tax exemption for tangible personal property used to provide cable television service, Internet access service, or telecommunications services.

Fiscal Notes

Estimated Two-year Net Impact to General Revenue Related Funds for HB1133, Committee Report 1st House, Substituted: a negative impact of ($100,000,000) through the biennium ending August 31, 2015.

Bill Analysis

Summary: HB 1133 would make cable television, internet access, and telecommunications services eligible for a refund of taxes levied on the sale, lease, use, rental or storage or other consumption of tangible personal property used in providing services.

Analysis: HB 1133 requires Texas to give tax dollars back to these service providers. This gives back some of the property taken from these businesses and limits the amount of dollars available for government. Taking money from the government and returning it to the private sector in a non-redistributive way does serve to limit government. Our reservation with this bill is that, like many other tax cuts, it is targeted to a specific industry rather than taking a comprehensive approach that makes taxes broad based and low rate. Despite our reservations about the method, this does represent a clear limiting of government. Vote “yes,” on HB 1133 because it promotes property rights and limits government.