Vote Recommendation | Economic Freedom | Property Rights | Personal Responsibility | Limited Government | Individual Liberty |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
No | Neutral | Neutral | Neutral | Negative | Neutral |
Relating to the Generation
Park Management District.
No fiscal implication to the State is anticipated.
SB 839 would amend sections of Chapter 3916 (Generation Park
Management District) of the Special District Local Laws Code. Specifically,
this legislation would allow the Generation Park Management District (GPMD) to
provide “transit facilities, parking facilities, conduit facilities, rail
facilities and other enhanced infrastructure.” The bill would also allow it to
provide public art.
This bill would grant the GPMD with the same rights and
powers as a municipality when annexing territory in a district that provides firefighting
or emergency medical services. Additionally it may designate service areas by
different firefighting and emergency medical services provided by different
districts. However, the GPMD must reach an agreement with those other districts
before deciding those service areas.
The Generation Park Management District (GPMD) is located in
Harris County. According to the author’s statement of intent, “the district is
interested in creating and maintaining new transportation and beautification
projects in the district to attract new businesses into the area and spur
economic growth.”
SB 839 would expand the GPMDs authority by allowing it to
build more infrastructure such as roads and rail lines, while also giving it
more leeway in beautifying an area through the display of public art.
The GPMD is a part of a broader class of special districts
known as Municipal Management Districts (MMD). This bill would grant
municipal-type authority to a non-municipal entity, which does not bode well
towards supporting our liberty principles.
For these reasons, we oppose SB 839 because it is not the
proper role of government to “spur economic growth”. The idea that government
can and should play such a role in the economy has always been an insidious
backdoor towards more government which distorts the marketplace, picks economic
winners and losers, and infringes on individual liberty. For these reasons we
oppose SB 839.