SB 125 – this bill extends the $1,000,000 exemption from the franchise tax (aka the “business tax”).
This one should be a slam dunk. Although some say we should eliminate this tax altogether, they never offer an alternative revenue stream. And with the projected gap between current program spending and expected revenues for the 2012-2013 biennium expected to be between $15 and $25 billion, just saying “cut something” won’t cut it.
SB 128 – this bill puts prevents former lawmakers from lobbying for two sessions, making it a Class A Misdemeanor.
He should have titled this one the “Corbin Van Arsdale Anti-Lobbying Bill” because of the huge amount of money the Corbin has made since Dan was successful in his bid to oust him from the House. Cutting down on the influence these guys have straight out of the legislature should help to reduce overall spending.
SB 129 – Wow, back to his former signature issue, the appraisal cap. This bill would limit it to 5{997ab4c1e65fa660c64e6dfea23d436a73c89d6254ad3ae72f887cf583448986}, below the 3{997ab4c1e65fa660c64e6dfea23d436a73c89d6254ad3ae72f887cf583448986} we really want but it is a signal that Dan is back. He also introduced the required Constitutional Amendment, SJR 7.
It is so good to see him back to this. It brings back memories of his battles with Fred Hill and is the reason that Dan was elected in the first place. This will be hard to pass even with Austin full of new Republicans. We need to all pitch in and help him.
He also introduced his own version of the illegal immigration bills that Debbie Riddle and others introduced, but the good news as far as I’m concerned is that there are no trans fat bills, checkpoints, etc. He has said that he would introduce bills to stop 18-20 year olds from drinking alcohol in clubs, so that could be worrisome depending upon how he words it. We’ll have to watch and see on that and any other bills he files but this is a very good and refreshing start for Dan. Kudos.