Increase funding for transportation infrastructure without new taxes or debt

Increase funding for transportation infrastructure without new taxes or debt In Lehman's Terms This week, a major network news program ran a story about the many states still struggling to recover from the recent economic downturn. Obviously, Texas was not one of those states. The current Texas Quarterly Housing Report shows healthy real estate growth in all segments of our economy and in all geographic regions of our state. Real estate sales and activity continue to be effective indicators of our economy's health. Why is Texas always one of the last states to feel the impact of a slow economy and one of the first to recover? Public-policy makers in Texas constantly look down the road to address problems with our infrastructure needs that could derail our long-term economic viability. Paramount among these needs is transportation. Unfortunately, accelerated growth in Texas has left our transportation system in disarray. Current funding for highways barely keeps up with road maintenance, leaving almost no money for badly needed road projects. But you can do something about this infrastructure problem. Proposition 7 on the November 3 statewide ballot creates a dedicated funding source to fix our current roads, construct new highway projects, and make all our roads safer to drive on. Proposition 7 returns Texas to the pay-as-you-go system of paying for roads, which has served this state so well for generations. Most important, the proposal redirects existing state funds and does not call for any new taxes, new debt, or new toll roads. I urge you to vote for Proposition 7 on the November 3 statewide ballot.