If a controversial fee fails the scrutiny of the state's courts, roads around the city will suffer the consequences.
Katherine Drieesen reports on a lawsuit threatening ReBuild Houston, "a drainage fee that voters approved in 2010 to help fund billions in street and drainage improvements."
According to Drieesen, "a Texas Supreme Court ruling two weeks ago found the ReBuild ballot measure voters narrowly approved in 2010 obscured the nature and cost of the drainage fee. The case is headed back to trial court where legal experts say a judge is likely to honor the Supreme Court decision."
If the city cannot collect the drainage fee, the city would have to shelve the next round of scheduled ReBuild Houston projects. The city had budgeted $100 million in drainage fee spending for the next fiscal year, and the fee is expected to bring in $500 million over the next five years.
Drieesen provides more details about how the city collects the drainage fee and supplements its funds with other sources of funding for road repair work. Without the drainage fee, according to Drieesen, ReBuild Houston loses one its "guiding virtues": patience. A ruling is expected in October.
Read the full story: ReBuild lawsuit could halt road projects
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