| Vote Recommendation | Economic Freedom | Property Rights | Personal Responsibility | Limited Government | Individual Liberty |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No | Negative | Neutral | Neutral | Negative | Neutral |
SB 896 seeks to create the East Houston Management District to promote, develop, encourage, and maintain employment, commerce, transportation, housing, tourism, recreation, the arts, entertainment, economic development, safety, and the public welfare in the district.
All or part of the district is eligible to be included in a tax increment or abatement reinvestment zone, and enterprise zone, or an industrial district.
The 11 directors of the district may be compensated up to $50 for each board meeting. The total amount a director may be compensated for each year may not exceed $2,000.
The district may impose property taxes and sales and use taxes if voted favorably. The EHMD would also be allowed to impose assessments to help fund its projects. The district may not exercise eminent domain authority.
The East Houston Management District (EHMD) is located in Harris County. According to the author’s statement of intent, “the district is a tool by which to resolve nuisance abatement and other infrastructure
issues.”
SB 896 would create the EHMDs authority allowing it to promote,
develop, encourage, and maintain employment, commerce,
transportation, housing, tourism, recreation, the arts,
entertainment, economic development, safety, and the public
welfare in the district
The EHMD would be 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, essentially creating a city within a city that lacks true accountability, which does not bode well towards supporting our liberty principles.
For these reasons, we oppose SB 896 because it is not the proper role of government to spur economic growth development. 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 896.