Page 5B • Thursday, January 29, 2004
Opinion
The Battalion
29.
M
■ M
1W
'urden of senior citizen tax freeze should not be put on shoulders of others
isast
ingn
t seems contradictory that at a
campus known for its friendli-
.ness, the surrounding communi
would be working against those
ho define it. The battle between
jirmanent College Station resi-
Bnts and Texas \& M students
rns over a new leaf this year as
|i.i/.os County seeks to enact a
I operty tax freeze for elderly and
psabled residents.
I While it is commendable to ease the financial
b rden of those on a fixed income, the proposal
b ought by the Texas Legislature does more harm
I an good to both sides. Not
lily could Brazos County resi-
d nts be paying an increased
rate to make up for those whose
I tes do not increase if the
■ moposition goes underway, but
e\en those it applies to will
l e toe eventually be hurt by it.
is anftJ The implications of this tax
n doe'I eeze a f ew years down the road
are disconcerting. The freeze
lould only postpone the pay-
lent of the taxes, requiring that
they be paid when the resident
I locates or be paid by relatives
n the event of the resident’s
liath. except with an X percent
I impounded annual interest rate.
Iicording to The Eagle.
it’s chU
. But,!
ve ton
e these
eadyfx
i rarefc
i mottr
9 hosp
leld up
reasec
I.N. re;
t almost
i Jerussi
issthei— ©111
Palest-Baking money off a wary community left with no
options and an unsuspecting retirement community
ice bo r B^° vvron £ l .y they are getting a break.
tthesitS P' ece °P Icgtsl'dion might be beneficial
for other counties in Texas, where there is enough
excess income of homeow ners to swallow the costs
Not only could Brazos
County residents be paying
an increased rate to make
up for those whose rates do
not increase if the proposi
tion goes underway, but
even those it applies to will
eventually be hurt by it
Already, elderly and disabled Brazos County resi-
I :nts receive $75,000 worth of property tax exemp-
I ans. an addendum that raised Brazos County's tax
I te by 2.44 cents, according to The Eagle. This addi-
ianal freeze would be neither beneficial nor produc
tive. but instead is the local government’s way of
that can’t be paid by the elderly, Brazos County
would only suffer from the enactment of this plan.
The penalty would fall upon the community, made up
of mostly college students who may want to buy
property instead of lease it, but cannot afford excess
bills this legislation would create.
Students who do own property are already
paying increased rates for those in the commu
nity who often make it clear that college stu
dents are not always welcome tenants.
However, students’ voices are drowned out by
local city and county officials because of the lack of
student activism in local politics. The tax freeze,
which will possibly appear on the November ballot,
could easily pass due to the lack
of students registered to vote.
In the event the bill does pass
in Brazos County, Judge Randy
Sims told The Eagle that the cur
rent exemption for elderly and
disabled residents might have to
be decreased. The other option to
counteract the loss of revenue
would be to raise property taxes
overall, something that would not
only hurt property-owning col
lege students, but could potential
ly affect leasing prices as well.
College students dealing with
rising tuition bills aren’t die only
ones to lose. Despite recurrent
community aims to retain college students to improve
the economy, the tax freeze and probable tax increas
es will only be one more factor that draws them to
bigger cities and better paying jobs.
The elderly residents of Brazos County may
innocently believe that the frozen tax rate
would be favorable and deserved, but in actual
ity what is deserved is reasonable and just treat
ment towards all residents.
Sara Foley is a junior
journalism major.
Graphic by Ivan Floes
iHaki
MAIL CALL
[dwards not without his flaws
|/n response to John David Blakley's Jan. 28 column:
am writing to respond to Blakley's comments on
let Edwards. Since I am originally from Waco, I am
| very familiar and well-versed with Edwards’ record.
JTo begin, Edwards is nothing more than a liberal,
|j )t a moderate. Edwards voted in step with former
1 ’esident Clinton, supporting a liberal agenda,
flanks to a highly liberal, gerrymandered district that
]|(isted prior to redistricting.
Edwards champions himself as pro-military and
‘pro-Fort Hood, but what congressman in his or her
pht mind would not try to champion the largest mil-
kry base in the United States if it were in his own
[strict.
1 Edwards voted against tax cuts, thinking that he
|(]in spend your money in Washington better than
you and I can here in Texas. Edwards has con-
buted to our deficits by his sponsorship of pork
krrel projects that he frequently brings back to
aco, while lining the pockets of area business-
an who faithfully support him.
ie opposed school vouchers, but his kids attend
livate schools. I guess he doesn't want minorities to
|ve the same privilege to get a better education
an his kids get.
Edwards may be an Aggie, but so have been many
lers that might have different political and ethical
Rvalues than that differ from me and other Aggies.
■ The congressman is only trying to pander to
fjgies because they are in his district, not because
ay might possibly share values with him.
| hope that Aggies and constituents of this new dis-
II see through this facade of a political act and
Died us from Congressman Edwards keeping his
lat in the House of Representatives.
A. Brannon Kroll
Class of 2001
A blow to the First Amendment
CBS is simply wrong for refusing to air commer
cials sponsored by groups like MoveOn.org and
People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals.
Have they forgotten about that little clause of the
First Amendment guaranteeing free speech to all
Americans? Or have they just been co-opted by the
Bush administration’s policy?
Let's not forget there was just a bill passed tai
lored to large corporate media outlets like CBS and
Fox. And, not surprisingly, we will see an ad spon
sored by the White House.
CBS gives as its reason that it will not show
"controversial" advertisement, yet it has shown
equally-controversial ads linking drug traffic to
terrorism.
Furthermore, there is nothing controversial about
MoveOn's ad, which cites the fact that the Bush
administration has created a $1 trillion deficit, a
number actually proven low by the Congressional
Budget Office's numbers released Jan. 26.
If you are incensed by this affront to the liberties
guaranteed by our Constitution, please contact
CBS and let them know. And sign the petition at
MoveOn.org. This is about more than an ad; it's
about free speech.
Andrew Prihoda
Class of 2004
The Battalion encourages letters to the editor.
Letters must be 200 words or less and include
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McDonald, MS I 111, Texas A&M University,
College Station, TX 77843-1 111. Fax: (979) 845-
2647 Email: mailcall@thebattalion.net
‘Robin Hood’ plan
needs replacement
L ast year, the Texas
Legislature decided
it would do away
with the “Robin Hood”
plan for funding Texas
public schools. However,
it failed to create a
replacement plan due to
partisan bickering and
posturing. It appears that
this failure may force
Gov. Rick Perry to call a special session of
the Legislature this year to deal with this
problem of school funding. Texas taxpayers
and students deserve a workable plan to
replace Robin Hood, but the way things are
looking, more of the strife that dominated
the Legislature in the past year is still to
come, and little will likely be done.
Last year, legislative
' special sessions were
the rage, with two
being called to deal
with redistricting. But
in the fuss, important
fiscal issues such as
school finance were
neglected. The only
thing that was a priori
ty in this area was to
abolish the old plan,
which was done by
passing a law that
would eventually
repeal the current
Robin Hood plan.
This seems odd,
however, when com
pared to the vocal tendencies of the state’s
top politicians on other matters. The only
major elected official who even ventured
to propose a plan was Lt. Gov. David
Dewhurst. He told the Amarillo Globe
News he wished to end local school taxes
and replace them with a lower state prop
erty tax and increased taxesjof services
such as “alcohol or insurance.” But other
state leaders are relatively quiet on the
issue.
House Speaker Tom Craddick, appar
ently eager to leave his mark on the state
and redraw its congressional boundaries,
did not even bring Dewhurst’s plan up for
a vote in the House, according to The
Houston Chronicle. He has been relatively
quiet on the issue, as has the usually-
vociferous state Comptroller Carol
Keeton-Strayhorn. Legislative Democrats
have also been relatively quiet, except to
complain about the repeal of the old plan.
Although Perry has comments about
the issue of public schools in Texas, they
rarely have to do with funding. He recent
ly appointed a new state education com
missioner, Shirley Neely. She was former
ly with Galena Park ISD and, in a Houston
Chronicle column, she said, "We must
never, ever accept failure, mediocrity, the
status quo or excuses (in the schools).”
She needs to send that message to her
boss. Perry, about funding for those
schools.
But the appointment of Neely is just
part of Perry’s recent kick on “educational
excellence.” In an article in The Chronicle,
Perry proposed three cash incentives for
achievement. In total, he proposed $500
million in incentives, according to the arti
cle. The governor made
no mention of where
that money will come
from.
Perry also opposed
discussing new taxes in
the article. But he can
not keep his head in
the sand forever. Texas
school districts have
already begun to mobi
lize on a lawsuit over
school funding, howev
er. Although Perry
wants to fund the
schools at acceptable
levels, this seems in
conflict with his desire
of excellence.
At least this time, unlike the last battle
over the issue in 1993, the Legislature is
not operating under the threat of a court
order. It has the time to make a proper
plan that should see the schools for the
long run. Although Dewhurst’s plan may
not be perfect, it at least recognizes the
fact that the state will have to raise more
money somehow to pay for schools. Perry,
Craddick and the Democrats should drop
the election shtick and own up to the fact
that the state faces a serious funding prob
lem in its schools, and the only way to fix
it may be to restructure state taxes. Texas’
future may depend on it.
David Shoemaker is a junior
management major.
DAVID
SHOEMAKER
Texas taxpayers and
students deserve a
workable plan to replace
Robin Hood, but the way
things are looking, more
of the strife that
dominated the legislature
in the past year is
still to come.