Do you know what today is? More than just 1/11/11 (though that’s pretty cool, too), it’s the day your Texas Legislature convenes for its 82nd session.
Texas is somewhat unique in that our Legislature only meets once every two years (instead of each year) for six months. That means they have a lot of work to do before sine die on June 1 and we’ll all be living with the results for quite some time.
What’s on the table that could affect business? Check out this article from Texas CEO Magazine to find out, co-authored with me by John Pitts and Lucinda Saxon of our affiliate, the Texas Star Alliance. Want the really short version? Here it is.
Texas is facing two monster issues this session: a $27 billion budget shortfall, as announced by Texas Comptroller Susan Combs yesterday, and redistricting, which determines new geographic boundaries for representation in the Texas Legislature.
The first of those issues – the budget – could impact you directly because: (1) the Legislature will look for every possible revenue source, potentially including taxes (or “fees,” as they’re calling them right now) on your industry; and (2) if you receive any funds from state programs, have state agencies as clients or otherwise earn income from the state, that income is at risk.
The second issue – redistricting – is likely to impact you indirectly. Always a difficult, contentious, time-consuming process, redistricting will occupy a lot of the Legislature’s time and attention, leaving less for issues or policies important to your business.
What can you do? First, listen. If you don’t have a legislative monitoring program in place, you should. Second, be proactive. If you need to protect or pass something this session, put your team together now. Third, be ready to respond. You may not need to launch a campaign today, but if a tax is proposed on your industry, you’d likely want to start one, so be sure you stand ready to do so.
By all accounts, it’s going to be a tough session. Let’s get to work, Texas!