International Building Codes Govern Georgetown

Did you know that Georgetown has adopted international building codes as the applicable codes for Georgetown? One might think that Georgetown would adopt building codes to fit the unique needs of the city. No, it seems the city thinks "one size fits all" when it comes to building codes. This statement is from the Georgetown Residential code.

"The provisions of the "International Residential Code," 2012 Edition, including Appendixes A, B, C, D, E, G, H, J, K, M, N and P, with the specific local amendments set forth in this Chapter are hereby adopted. In this Chapter, the 2012 International Residential Code shall be referred to as the "Residential Code" and the Residential Code shall establish regulations affecting or relating to structures, processes, premises and safeguards."

Did you know that Georgetown has a 30+ page document governing what a land owner can and cannot do with respect to trees? When a city limits your use of your property through codes and ordinances, that is effectively a "taking" and is prohibited under Article I, Section 17 of the Texas Constitution, which provides that “no person’s property shall be taken, damaged or destroyed for or applied to public use without adequate compensation being made.”

Governor Abbott observed in 2015: “Some cities claim that the trees on private property belong to the community, not to the private property owner. Large cities that represent about 75 percent of the population in this state are doing this to us,” Abbott said. Referring to the foundation’s name, he said, “Unchecked over-regulation by cities will turn the Texas miracle into the California nightmare faster than you can spell TPPF.”

A recent opinion piece in the Austin Statesman provides more clarity on the issue. 

"Property rights are an essential ingredient to our free society. Their preservation is reason why the Texas Legislature should act. Landowners must be protected from local government overreach and Texans’ guarded against violations of our God-given rights to life, liberty and private property.

Several pieces of legislation have been filed in the House and Senate to reform the practice. Some of the best bills make it explicit that landowners own all the trees and timber on their land while also prohibiting a governmental entity from creating these kinds of regulations in the first place. All of the bills offer property owners some much-needed reprieve."

City officials and their lobbyists, the Texas Municipal League, are undoubtedly against reducing their power or authority over property owners, but remember, the U.S. Constitution assigns authority to the States and the People, not city governments.

Storage of Renewable Energy?

Long term electrical energy stroage is still the "holy grail" for utility engineers. Lithium-ion batteries work for the short term, like overnight, but remain very expensive. Stored power from lithium-ion batteries costs between $285 and $581 a megawatt-hour, according to Lazard Ltd.  Electricity from a new gas peaker plant costs between $155 and $227 a megawatt-hour, according to Lazard.

The WSJ reports "The Golden State is ramping up renewable energy as it pledges to be a bulwark against the Trump administration’s pro-fossil fuel policies. But first, it has to figure out what to do with all the excess power it generates when the sun is shining and the wind is blowing.

California’s solar farms create so much power during daylight hours that they often drive real-time wholesale prices in the state to zero. Meanwhile, the need for electricity can spike after sunset, sometimes sending real-time prices as high as $1,000 a megawatt-hour.

California currently has to sell excess solar power at low prices or give it away to utilities in Arizona and other states, through a real-time power market run by California’s Independent System Operator, which oversees the state grid.

Sometimes, offering the excess power at low prices isn’t enough and prices go negative, as a way for power suppliers to encourage other utilities to take power they can’t use. That happened on 178 days last year.

“Storage may help you within the day, but a battery isn’t designed to store energy from March until it’s needed in June,” said Jeff Guldner, senior vice president of public policy at Arizona Public Service Co. in Phoenix."

Assessed Property Values Increase Less Than Tax Levy

The amount of money extracted by the city through property taxes grew at an annual rate of 9.53% over the last five years while the total assessed value over the same period grew at a 7.52% rate. Let's look at the data.

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Inquiring minds would like to know why the tax levy is increasing 2% more per year than the assessed value. Explanations welcomed!

It is also worrisome that the assessed value growth has dramatically increased since 2014. This is not sustainable!


Looking at the city budget growth over the last five years it is clear it not sustainable either without continued, significant tax increases until citizens rebel.

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One can ask how the city's budget grow at 12.8% compounded annually while property tax assessed values are increasing at a 7.52% annual rate. The answer is simple; increased charges for city services like water and sewer, sales taxes, city fees and issuance of bonds! 

Perhaps it is time for citizens to demand a change in the city charter that limits the budget growth to population growth plus inflation. Stayed tuned!

Govenor Abbott Defends Limiting Local Regulations

Georgetown city officials and their lobbyists, the Texas Municipal League, are vigorously fighting efforts within the Texas Legislature to place reasonable limits on cities and county's ability to raise property taxes without an automatic vote of taxpayers, or imposing local rules that inhibit business operations across local government boundaries. There are many other examples ranging from plastic bags to fracking.

Gov. Greg Abbott raised many eyebrows last week when he threw his support behind a "broad-based law" that pre-empts local regulations, a remark that did anything but calm the already contentious local control battles at the Texas Capitol. On Monday, Abbott held firm in his belief that the U.S. Constitution is the "predominant doctrine" when it comes to local control, citing the 10th Amendment's delegation of power that is not given to the federal government to the states and the people — not the cities, the governor noted. 

It is worth repeating that the U.S. Constitution delegates governing authority to the states and the people, not to city, county or special districts.

Texas Senate Finance Committe Shows Budget Restraint

The Texas Senate Finance Committee has passed a budget to the full Texas Senate for approval that holds the line on spending while meeting all the critical needs.

Early analysis, empowertexans.com/, shows "the Senators have kept their budget, Senate Bill 1, within a conservative framework that limits spending growth to the combined rates of growth in state population and inflation. That framework, sometimes referred to as the “Conservative Texas Budget,” gives room for appropriations increases up to $147.5 billion in state funds and $218.5 billion in all funds. The upper chamber’s version of the budget comes in well under these figures with room to spare, appropriating $145.2 billion in state funds and 217.8 in all funds.

Over the past several weeks, senate appropriators have been diligently combing through the state’s finances, looking for ways to trim unnecessary spending, while simultaneously addressing major priorities and preserving the Economic Stabilization (“Rainy Day”) Fund for true emergencies and critical one-time expenditures."

All levels of Texas government, including Georgetown, should maintain their budget growth within population plus inflation limits. It is the fiscally responsible thing to do.

Georgetown Needs Relief From Growing Property Tax Burden

City officials are actively opposing efforts in the Texas Legislature to reform property taxes.  The Texas Senate passed Senate Bill 2, the Property Tax Reform and Relief Act of 2017. The bill will reduce the rollback tax rate to 5% and require automatic elections if property taxes grow beyond the 5% threshold.

The city failed in the Texas Senate, so now they are focusing their lobbying efforts on the Texas House, and in particular, District 20 Representative Terry Wilson. They want to kill this effort as it restricts their ability to raise taxes without voter approval. Taxes can be raised above the 5% threshold, but, it requires approval by the voters.

City officials and their lobbyists at the Texas Municipal League will raise all kinds of objections that are superfluous and distract from the main objective of the legislation which is to give voters the opportunity to approve/disapprove tax increases greater than 5% annually.

Take a look at the tax levy against citizen's property over the last 5 years for Georgetown:

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Citizens tax bills are growing at a 9.53% compound rate over the last 5 years. Has any one's income been growing at that rate? Highly unlikely!

For those who argue that the increased property tax levy is caused by the "exploding" population growth, the numbers do not substantiate that claim. Here are the population numbers from Georgetown's 2016 Comprehensive Annual Financial Report (CAFR).

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Yes there was a one year growth spurt between 2014 and 2015 of 8%, but the 5 year compound annual growth rate, which is more representative, is about 4% annually. Also note the growth rate between 2015 and 2016 has leveled off to about 4%.

Thus we see that the city is extracting property taxes from it's citizens at more than double the population growth rate! This is why property owners need the automatic right to vote when tax Levy's exceed 5% in one year. 

Contact your District 20 Representative and let him know you want him to support Senate Bill 2 or the House equivalent.

Federal Grants to Georgetown

The number and dollar amount of direct federal funds coming to Texas local governments is a big mystery to the State of Texas. They have no requirement or mechanism for local governments to report to the state federal money they get directly from federal agencies.

Fortunately, Georgetown is quite open with the source and amount of funds they receive from the federal government. Here is the information:

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We see that Georgetown received almost $2M in FY16 from a variety of federal agencies. Almost 3/4 is for transportation related activities for highways and aviation.

Only $225,986 comes from the dreaded Department of Housing and Urban Development. HUD funds usually come with onerous "strings" attached that allows federal control on many housing related issues. Ideally, Georgetown should accept no funds from HUD!

Williamson County Population Growth

The Austin Statesman breathlessly reported that Williamson County is among the top 5 in mirgration rates for 2016. The Census Bureau reported today that the net population growth for Williamson County for 2016 was 20,659 people. That brings the county's total estimated population to 528,718.

Let's look at that from a historical perspective. Here is the population and growth rate for the last 10 years for Williamson County.

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The county growth rate has been pretty constant at 4.21% for the last 10 years. Even though city and county politicans like to use the population growth as an excuse to grow their budgets in excess of 10% per year, the data shows a consistent growth rate that is far below local budget growth rates.

Red Light Cameras to be Outlawed in Texas?

Texas State Senator Bob Hall introduced a bill in the Senate to outlaw red light cameras in Texas. Here is his report on the progress of the bill. "The End of Red Light Cameras? As Vice-Chairman of Senate Committee on Transportation, I am pleased to announce that  my Senate Bill 88 was passed out of the Senate Committee on Transportation, March 15, 2017 .  Senate Bill 88 prohibits any unmanned photographic traffic signal enforcement systems in the state of Texas, commonly known as Red Light Cameras. This bill to end the use of unmanned cameras to issue citations was in response to constituent complaints that the citation process violates the constitution and multiple studies showing that the presence of the cameras actually increase accidents.  Also, establishes a statewide red light camera ban is a priority item in the republican platform.   First issue: When a law enforcement officer takes action based on an observation by the officer, they issue a citation to the person operating the vehicle.  The driver is recognized and identified at the scene as the traffic violator. This officer led process recognizes that the driver, not the vehicle committed the traffic violation.   However, with an unmanned automatic traffic camera system, only the vehicle is identified as the violator at the scene of the crime, but the vehicle owner, not necessarily the driver, is charged and prosecuted for the crime.   When a person appears in court for a ticket issued by an officer, that person is considered innocent by the court until the well-established 14th amendment process is followed and through the person is proven guilty. The burden of proof is on the court and the process has many safe guards in place to ensure that constitutional rights are not violated.   This is not so with the unmanned automated traffic camera system, because once the camera indiscriminately clicks, the vehicle owner is assumed to be the violator. This owner, who may not have even been in the vehicle, is presumed to be the person who committed the violation. To make matters worse, the innocent owner has the burden of proof and often great expense of proving that they are not liable.  This is an unjust and tremendous burden on working people who can ill-afford a high priced attorney.   Second issue: Public safety.  Today there is increasing concern for the safety of motorists on our roadways.  The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety estimates that there are more than 800 fatalities and 200,000 injuries annually in the United States as a result of red light running.  Although proponents have argued, and will continue to argue even today, that red light cameras deter unsafe driving behavior, the facts say otherwise.   For instance, a Texas Transportation Institute study found that the vast majority of red light camera tickets are issued within the first second a light is red.  Yet the majority of right-angle crashes occur after 5 seconds or more of red light time.  In other words, tickets are often being issued for split-second violations where collisions are not occurring until several seconds later.   At first glance, red light cameras may appear to be a good idea.  However, there are numerous studies by prestigious organizations showing that these cameras clearly actually increase crashes and injuries.    A significant study was completed by the Urban Transit Institute at the North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University using 57 months of data.  The study concluded that red light cameras are a detriment to safety.  Cameras were associated with:   (1)        A significant increase in accident rates (40%). (2)        A significant increase in possible injury crashes (40-50%); and (3)        No decrease in severe crashes.   Another comprehensive study by the Virginia Transportation Research Council analyzed camera programs in five jurisdictions using seven years of data.  The study concluded that their findings (and I quote) "cannot be used to justify the widespread installation of cameras because they are not universally effective."  Like the North Carolina study, they found that cameras were associated with a significant increase in total crashes.  They also found that rear-end collisions were considerably more likely with red light cameras.    In addition to the safety issues, red light cameras also are implicated in a number of constitutional issues, both on the state and federal level.  These include denying the right of a vehicle owner to a trial by an impartial jury, and denying an accused the right to substantive due process.   All of these facts undermine the argument of local entities operating these systems who say that red light cameras are completely legal and effective  at deterring unsafe driving behavior.   In conclusion, let me say that if a municipality has as its objective increased public traffic safety, then there are many non-punitive, simple and inexpensive measures available to actually make the traffic flow environment safer for motorists and pedestrians WITHOUT trampling constitutional rights.   Therefore we have filed Senate Bill 88, prohibiting unmanned photographic traffic enforcement, to permanently protect individual rights and end an unsafe practice in Texas."

Top 10 Employers in Georgetown

Did you know that the top three employers are governement entities paid for by the taxpayer?

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In fact, all of the top 10 employers, except Airborn Inc., rely heavily on the taxpayer/home owner. The healthcare organizations receive substantial portions of their budgets from taxpayers through various levels of government ranging from the Federal Government to the City Government.

It is strange to see that H.E.B. is not included in the top 10 as they reportably employ several hundered people in their two Georgetown stores.

The good news is that the percentage of government funded employers in the top 10 is decreasing over the last ten years, which means the number of privately funded empolyers are increasing.

Why the Electric Fund Lost More Than $6M Last Summer

During the City Council workshop in December, it was disclosed that the expenses in the electric fund exceeded budget. The following is the city statement:

"The Electric Fund experienced higher purchased power costs than projected. Capital improvement projects are also over budget due to a substation project and increased development. The fund is projected to be $6 million over expenditures. Staff are developing a plan to bring the fund into balance and to cover the 75 day contingency reserve.

During May through August of this year, power consumption was far below normal because the temperature averaged 5 degrees below normal. The city contracted for "near peak" power during that time and found themselves with excess power capacity which could not be sold at a profit on the market."  This resulted in a loss. Keep in mind this loss is approximately 10% of annual operating revenues.

Since we have been told repeatedly that the city has a 25 year contract for wind generated electricity, presumably at a fixed price with inflation escalators, and it currently supplies 100% of Georgetown's demands, why is the city contracting with ercot for electricity at near peak rates? We have been told by city officials that these long-term contracts for wind and solar generated electricity would provide predictability and stability in electric rates.

Now we know why the electric fund lost more than $6M last year. On page 78 of the city's 2015-2016 Comprehensive Annual Financial Report, available on the city website, we find the following statement with highlighted words.

"In an effort to mitigate the financial and market risk associated with the purchase of natural gas, energy, and congestion price volatility, the City has established a Risk Management Policy. This policy was authorized by the City Council to enter into forward contracts for natural gas, swaps, and congestion rights for the purpose of reducing exposure to natural gas, energy, and congestion price risk. Use of these types of instruments for the purpose of reducing exposure to price risk is performed as a hedging activity.


At September 30, 2016, the City had multiple outstanding contracts, with wholesale customers to provide power supply and/or qualified scheduling entity services. For the power supply customers, the City charges an energy charge which is based on the quantity of power supplied multiplied by a fixed price, or multiplied by a fixed heat rate and a fuel index price. In order to hedge the City’s risk, the City has entered into corresponding power supply agreements with counterparties to hedge against energy price or heat rate fluctuation in the market.


These contracts meet the definition of a derivative instrument as defined by GASB Statement No. 53, Accounting and Reporting for Derivative Instruments (GASB 53). However, these contracts meet the normal purchases and sales exemption of GASB 53 as the City intends to use the physical commodity in its normal utility operations to supply energy to its customers. Accordingly, these contracts are not within the scope of GASB 53 and are not recorded on the City’s Statement of Net Position."

The appropriate questions to be asked are: Were any lessons learned from this experience? Have policies and procedures been instituted that will preclude such large losses in the future? What is the review and approval process for entering into these derivative contracts?

The citizens of Georgetown need and deserve transparency into these transactions and the management thereof.

Why is Georgetown Intervening in the Free Market?

Here is the agenda item from the last meeting of the Georgetown Economic Development Corporation. I'll bet most citizens did not know that the City owns a corporation! City of Georgetown, Texas Georgetown Economic Development Corporation March 20, 2017 SUBJECT: Consideration and possible action regarding GEDCO and City Council participation in a Feasibility Study regarding the need for a Hospice Facility in Georgetown - Steve Fought, GEDCO Board member ITEM SUMMARY:Steve Fought has researched area facilities and talked with industry professionals regarding Georgetown's lack of inpatient hospice facilities.  He would like GEDCO to consider further examination of the need for a hospice facility.   It seems the City, through it's Economic Development Corporation, is trying to pick winners and losers with respect to new businesses locating in Georgetown. Why is the City trying to decide if a Hospice Facility is needed in Georgetown? Won't the free market provide a Hospice Facility when market conditions warrant one? What guides these selections, the personal whims of a council person, a city staff member, a "crony" or just some person off the street? This does not seem like a "core" city function that warrants the expenditure of taxpayer funds.

Georgetown Airport Noise Footprint

The noise footprint of the Georgetown Airport is easily seen in the following chart. Noise Footprint

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The noise contours show the  A-weighted noise levels that represent the approximate average noise energy due to transportation noise sources over the 24 hour period at the defined locations. Since these contours represent average noise levels over 24 hours, it is apparent that peak noise levels are significantly higher. These peak noise levels as a function of aircraft type and time of day need to be established for future reference.

It seems appropriate that the city conduct a baseline noise survey in the areas indicated on the chart so that as airport operations are increased over time, a solid baseline of noise exposure will have been established.

Property Tax Relief Coming?

 The Texas Senate passed today, Senate Bill 2, the Property Tax Reform and Relief Act of 2017. The bill will reduce the rollback tax rate and require automatic elections if property taxes grow beyond the threshold.

Property tax reforms passed today by the Texas Senate will empower taxpayers and require a greater level of accountability from our local governments. These are the kind of reforms desperately needed to help fix a badly broken system.

Let your State Representative, Terry Wilson, know that you support this legislation and ask him to do everything he can to get the House to vote and pass the bill. It is time that local governments become more accountable to the people who pay the taxes.

Do You Know What Your City Council is Focused On?

You might be surprised to know what your city council thinks is important for them to focus on. Here is their official vision:

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The council thinks their job is focus on Culture, City Employees, Internal Processes, Customer Interaction and Spending Money to achieve the goals!

This is the kind of "clap trap" that is developed when an organization hires a high priced "touchy-feely" consultant who conducts a series of feel-good team-building meetings.

Where are the items that a city government should really be focused on? A specific reduction in crime rate per capita? A reduction in travel time between two locations? A reduction in traffic tickets per capita? A reduction in response times for the fire department? And finally, how about a reduction in taxing and spending per capita?

The council should be striving to make city government minimally intrusive into its citizens lives while performing their basic duties and responsibilities.

City's Unfunded Pension Liability Jumps 63.5% Over Last Year

The city posted their Comprehensive Annual Financial Report for the fiscal year ended September, 30, 2016. The 212 page report can be found on the city's web-site under Financial Reports.

The pension unfunded liability increased from $14,064,692 to $23,000,871, a 63.5% increase. The payroll for covered employees was $37,121,089, a 15.2% increase over the prior year. Simple math shows that the unfunded pension liability is now 62% of the annual payroll for covered employees.

The unfunded liabilities are calculated by the Texas Municipal Retirement System (TMRS) and covers the calendar year 2015. Evidently the increase in unfunded liabilites is due to changes in actuarial assumptions and below expected investment returns.

Battery Storage Requirements for Wind Energy

An analysis of wind energy and storage requirements to convert the state of South Australia to 100% renewable energy is provided.Watts Up With That  It is quite windy in South Australia and they already generate 35% of their electrical demand from wind turbines. Thus, there is real data available from which to extrapolate to 100% renewable energy.

Estimating the sustained demand and determining the deficient when the wind does not blow by examining actual data over a three month period, it is determined that lead acid batteries with a value of 40 Wh/kg for 300 GWh of storage requires 7,500,000 tonnes of lead acid batteries. Lithium-Ion batteries were also considered, but lead acid are currently most cost effective.

So the battery storage is some $60 to $90 billion to store the surplus energy from 4,000 MW of new wind farms with substantial running costs due to battery lifetime and erratic discharges.

Thus it appears we are a long ways from being 100% renewable energy for electricity. Inclusion of solar power may help some, but, massive amounts of storage capacity will still be required for a state like Texas.

For Georgetown to assert that it uses 100% green energy is certainly not true as there are no direct transmission lines between the wind turbines and Georgetown and there are no electrical storage devices to provide electricity when the wind doesn't blow! Georgetown needs to be honest with their citizens and visitors.

SunEdison Still Selling Assets

"SunEdison Inc. has reached settlements with TerraForm Power Inc. and TerraForm Global Inc. that are worth $800 million in value to creditors waiting to be paid from its bankruptcy case.WSJ

The creditors committee hasn't signed on to the settlements, which would trade off the clashing claims and set the stage for SunEdison to exit bankruptcy.

SunEdison proposes to allot some of the value from the settlements to unsecured creditors. Court papers say the company’s lawyers will be talking to creditors in the coming days, with a view toward reaching a deal on how to divide the proceeds of the settlement between senior and junior creditors.

The company has said it would file a chapter 11 exit plan by the end of March."

Senator Schwertner Sponsors Ride-Sharing Bill

Senator Charles Schwertner of Georgetown has sponsored a bill in the Texas legislature to provide uniform requirements across the state for ride-sharing companies such as Lyft and Uber. Two hours of witness testimony before the Senate Business & Commerce Committee was heard on three bills aimed at overriding local regulations concerning ride-hailing companies.  

One of the issues is whether companies such as Uber and Lyft should have to require their drivers undergo fingerprint-based background checks. 

David Piperno, chief financial officer of Fasten, the Boston-based company that has taken over a large part of the Austin ride-hailing market since Uber and Lyft left, said the city's fingerprinting requirement helped him avoid hiring drivers with criminal backgrounds. Senator Schwertner noted that Fasten was not required to fingerprint drivers in it's home city of Boston.

Uniform rules across the state will simplify and lower the costs for ride-sharing companies that provide rides across multiple jurisdictions common in the Georgetown-Austin metro area.

City Council FY-16 Discretionary Fund Grows to $1,650,000

At the city council workshop yesterday, the Finance Director informed the council that as of the end of fiscal year 2016, $1,650,000 was available in the council's "slush fund" awaiting decisions on disbursement.

The city staff will have recommendations which they will present to the General Government and Finance Advisory Board near the end of March, after which the recommendations for use will be presented to the council for approval.

Any citizens that want to provide input should attend the GGAF meeting and make their recommendations, since, by the time the recommendations reach the regular city council meeting, it is too late to effect changes.

A fiscally responsible council would spend the "slush fund" on one-time purchases such as:

1. Fully fund the cemetery maintenance fund
2. Reduce the property tax for FY-2018
3. Avoid the issuance of smaller, short-term bonds

Remember this table!

The city should fund the first four items for $1,530,000, avoid the bond issuance costs and still have $120,000 left over.

Let your city staff and council know your recommendations for spending the council's "slush fund".

Naming and Branding the Georgetown Transit System

It is very enlightening to see where your city staff, city management, and city council are spending significant time. Check out this presentation to the city council on March 14, 2017. Transit Name Brand Development

Thirteen city staff, six city managers, and the mayor, city council, city attorney, and city secretary have spent significant work hours on this activity. The activity is far from complete and additional work hours are to be expended over the next several months.

Is this where you want your city officials spending significant time? Or should they be focussed on providing the core government functions of public safety, public roads, libraries and parks while minimizing the intrusion into citizens lives, and the cost and size of the city government?

Review the presentation and decide if this is an effective use of city resources and let your council representative know.

South Australia Paying the Price for Wind and Solar Energy

Tesla is selling lithium battery storage to the state of South Australia to provide electricity for a few hours. No word on what happens when the electricity is unavailable for more than four hours.

"The state relies on solar and wind generation for about 40% of its electricity, a higher proportion than any other Australian state.

Mr Musk said Tesla could supply batteries at a price of $250 per kilowatt-hour.

South Australia was hit by a statewide blackout in September after a storm knocked out the transmission system. That led to criticism from Mr. Turnbull and his right-of-center government about the rapid adoption of renewable energy and a turn away from the coal-fired and natural-gas power plants that supply much of Australia’s electricity.

On Thursday, the Australian Energy Market Operator projected a shortfall in gas-power electricity generation in the southeastern states as early as next summer if no action is taken.

Mr. Turnbull said in a speech the same day that Australia was losing a competitive advantage underpinned by affordable, reliable energy. Electricity prices for families had doubled over the past decade, and for industrial users had outpaced inflation by a factor of three between 2002 and 2013, Mr. Turnbull said."WSJ

Wind and solar generated electricity has caused prices to double and triple over the last 15 years and that does not include the cost of the new limited supply batteries. To provide a stable and affordable long-term supply of electricity, fossil fueled generators will be required and will add to the cost of electricity.

Georgetown Against Property Tax Reform?

Senate Bill 2 is being lobbyed against with paid lobbyists to the detriment of property owners/tax payers. Many governments are using precious taxpayer dollars to hire expensive, influential lobbyists to push against the voters' best interests.

Georgetown is a paid member of the Texas Municipal League (TML) which is a secretive lobbying organization for citys. They do not make their revenue and expenditures available to the public, even though public funds are used to support them.

The Dallas News has an excellent description of the bill and of the opposition to it. The arguments being used to try and stop SB2 are exposed as being phony and untrue scare tacticts.

Some key excerpts:

"You say you want local control for your town and county budgets, and you want state lawmakers to butt out of your business. In truth, you actually fear your own voters butting into your business which is really our business, not yours. It's so obvious.

SB 2 would require local governments to hold tax approval elections (called rollbacks) on the big Election Day in November — not, like now, hidden on obscure election dates."

"The city/county opposition cries the Texas mantra: "local control." That's shorthand for "Austin, butt out!" Under local control, city councils and county commissions call the shots on property tax bills by setting tax rates (that get multiplied with appraised values for a tax bill).

But if SB 2 or its House companion, HB 15, passes, this goes one better than local control. It becomes super-local control, because voters suddenly would stand atop the tax-and-spend pyramid. We would decide."

Bottom line:

"If you can't grow your local government with a 3.9 percent annual tax increase or less to avoid voter approval elections, maybe you have the wrong job."

Senator Betttencourt calls opponents arguments false.

"This is a fight between the taxpayers and the spenders," he says. "And I'll stand up for the taxpayers because they don't have a paid lobby. They don't have people on government salaries lobbying senators."

Supporters of SB 2 have the chance to speak March 14 at a public hearing before Sen. Jane Nelson's finance committee. Room E1.036 at the Capitol. You're invited. You can also watch a livestream broadcast through www.capitol.state.tx.us.

Read the entire Dallas News article to get educated and then get involved with your legislators.

Airport Revenues Up in Q1

Georgetown airport revenues increased 16.4% compared to the same period last year. Presumably this is due to increased fuel sales which implies increased air traffic.

Just wait until they double the load carrying capacity of runway 18-36. Then you will see the following types of airplanes using the airport.

This is the Bombardier CS100. The CS100 can fly with up to 110 passengers, with a range of about 5,400 km or just under 3,000 miles.

The CS100 needs 4,800 feet of runway at maximum take-off weight of 134,000 lbs, which is well within the length of Georgetown runway 18-36. Of couse if the airplane is not loaded to capacity, then shorter runway lengths are required.

Carrying 38,875 lbs of fuel, which equals 5,759 gallons, the fillup will really bring in the revenue!

So don't let city officials tell you that increasing the load bearing capacity of the runway will not bring much larger aircraft. If the runway will accommodate larger and heavier aircraft, they will come.

Diverging Diamond Intesection at Williams Dr. and I35

Councilman Fought has some concerns about the proposed diverging diamond intersection at Williams Drive and I35. From his newsletter:

"1. The "diverging diamond" supposedly speeds up traffic through the intersection; however, the end-point of our intersection is a "T" intersection, not a through street as in Round Rock.  So what speeds up through the intersection would get piled up at Austin Avenue. That makes no sense to me, and I don't see how the design, even with the through-lane northbound on Austin Avenue, deals with the issue.

2. We lose the northbound access road that runs parallel to IH-35. Access roads are a bail-out option for traffic jams/accidents on the interstate and are a staple for drivers who do not want to brave the wilds on the Interstate when traveling short distances.

3. I have yet to receive a satisfactory answer to what happens to the intersection when the power goes out -- as it will from time to time for various reasons. The proposed diamond intersection is quite complex and heavily dependent on multiple well-timed and coordinated traffic lights.  "Lights out" looks to be a recipe for mass confusion.

4. I don't find the diverging diamond concept to be "intuitive". Traffic patterns should be intuitive. Drivers should not have to guess which way to go, or be "trained" to use an intersection. Counter intuitive designs are simply an accident looking for a place to happen."

He doesn't expect TxDot to respond to his conserns by changing the design and contruction is expected to start in 2020.

Debt and Pension Liability is a Texas Problem

COMMENTARY: Stop the rising burden of Texas' debt and public pensions

• TALMADGE HEFLIN AND DR. VANCE GINN | GUEST COLUMNISTS
 
• Mar 5, 2017
 
•  (…) Link

The rising burden of Texas’ state debt and public pensions must be stopped.

As families across the Rio Grande Valley must limit their reliance on debt, so too must the Texas Legislature. Legislators should do this to not only continue their AAA credit rating by all three major credit rating agencies, but they should also do it to keep the tax burden lighter on you.

While Texas ranks 2nd lowest in state debt per capita among the top 10 most populous states and 16th best nationwide in fiscal health, there are increasingly signs of fiscal fragility. Reforms to state debt and public pensions would help curb these dangers so they don’t come home to roost on Texas families.

When debt is mentioned, there’s usually a negative connotation associated with it. Debt is not inherently bad, but like many things, too much of it can be. State legislators must be vigilant in prioritizing taxpayer dollars in the most effective way, which includes expenditures and tax cuts, to then appropriately manage state debt.

At the end of the 2016 fiscal year, Texas state debt outstanding, which includes only the principal owed, was $49.8 billion. This amount is small compared with Texas’ $1.7 trillion economy. However, it has increased by 52.7 percent above the increase in the state’s population since fiscal year 2006 to $1,790 owed per every man, woman, and child in Texas.

Accounting for the full cost to taxpayers of both the principal and interest owed during the life of the loans, total debt service outstanding is $80.8 billion, bringing the amount owed by every Texan to roughly $3,000.

If these trends and amounts continue to accumulate without proper management and accountability, it could require either higher taxes that destroy economic activity or government spending cuts that could undermine essential government programs.

Lawmakers this session could slow the rising tide of debt by increasing ballot box transparency.

Currently, the Legislature passes bonds for things like roads and then voters consider approving the ballot proposition with just the bond’s purpose and amount available. To provide voters who don’t have sufficient time to obtain more information while working and caring for their family, bond propositions should include more information with so much at stake. This includes the total debt service required to pay the proposed debt and an estimate of the influence on the average taxpayer’s taxes.

Another potential burden plaguing Texans is the rising amount of unfunded liabilities in public pensions from the current setup of costly defined-benefit plans.

The state’s two largest pension systems, Employees Retirement System (ERS) and Teachers Retirement System (TRS), have $41 billion of unfunded liabilities. This amount is the net present value of future benefits paid less expected contributions and investment earnings. The estimated future funding gap that could quickly exhaust these defined-benefit plans is dependent on volatile annual rates of return and fewer contributors paying for more beneficiaries.

For example, the $41 billion unfunded gap for just ERS and TRS is derived by using an assumed 8 percent of annual return, which isn’t met every year despite fund managers taking on more risk. However, assuming a risk-free rate of an average 15-year Treasury note rate of 2.3 percent, research shows that all unfunded liabilities in Texas amount to $360 billion, or about $13,000 per person.

Until state pension systems are not based on payouts without appropriate funding, taxpayers will ultimately be on the hook to fund any potential shortfall.

While there are steps that can kick the can down the road, as past legislatures have taken, the best option is to transition pensions to defined-contribution plans. This would allocate payments of retirement funds based on matching deposited funds of employees and taxpayers instead of payouts today that correspond little with matched deposits.

By passing ballot box transparency for issuances of state debt and converting pensions to defined-contribution plans, legislators can reduce the growing burden of liability payments on current and future generations of Texans. Achieving this will help legislators prioritize taxpayer dollars for essential government provisions and tax cuts so you get the biggest bang for the buck for each dollar sent to Austin.