By shifting salves tax revenue to highway construction and prohibiting the use of tolls, Prop 7 would ensure that Texas continues on a path of sprawl and congestion, according to opponents of the proposed constitutional amendment.
"When Texas voters go to the polls this November they will decide an issue of enormous consequence to the future of the state: whether to rely increasingly on general taxes to finance highways," according to an article by Angie Schmitt.
"A proposed amendment to the state constitution — on the ballot as Proposition 7 — would shift about $2.5 billion in sales tax revenues to highway spending each year. All the money must be spent on highways that will be further subsidized by the absence of tolls, since the amendment expressly forbids spending on transit or even tolled lanes. There is no substantial political opposition to Prop 7, which has been sold to voters as a solution to congestion."
Schmitt goes on to present the cause of Jay Crossley, of the advocacy group Houston Tomorrow, who argues that Prop 7 will only further induce sprawl and congestion, following the example of the Katy Freeway.
FULL STORY: Will Texas Voters Enshrine Failed Transpo Policy in the State’s Constitution?
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