| Vote Recommendation | Economic Freedom | Property Rights | Personal Responsibility | Limited Government | Individual Liberty |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No | Negative | Neutral | Neutral | Negative | Neutral |
Relating to the creation of the Brazoria County Management District No.2; providing authority to issue bonds; providing authority to impose assessments, fees, and taxes.
No significant fiscal implication to the State is anticipated.
HB 4612 would establish the Brazoria County Management Districts No.2 (BCMD2) 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 including in a tax increment or abatement reinvestment zone, and enterprise zone, or an industrial district.
The district may impose property taxes and sales and use taxes if approved in an election. The district would also be allowed to impose assessments to help fund its projects. The district would not be allowed to exercise eminent domain authority.
HB 4612 would give this new management district 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 BCMD2 would be a part of a 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.
Texas Action opposes HB 4612 because it is not the proper role of government to spur economic 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.