The Austin Texas Tea Party

The Austin Tea Party Say's #PickRick Green

2/20/2016

Our momentum is growing faster every day of early voting, and we're so excited to share that we've been endorsed by The Austin Texas Tea Party and New Revolution Now, some of the most influential conservative Tea Party groups in Central Texas.

Co-Founder and Organizer Dean Wright says, "Rick’s profound understanding of our founding documents and ability to articulate them along with his deep faith in God and love for our state and our country make him eminently qualified to serve on the Supreme Court of Texas." If you want a Constitutional Watchdog that will stand up for the rights of citizens, even if it's in the face of the entrenched legal establishment, then #PickRick for Texas Supreme Court! — with Dean Wright and The Austin Tea Party.

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Resolution AGAINST the Proposed Travis County Courthouse

10/11/2015

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Resolution AGAINST the Proposed Travis County Courthouse Bond

Whereas the $287 million Bond election for the proposed new downtown civil courthouse on the November 3rd, 2015 ballot, is in addition to the $22 million of non-voter approved debt used to acquire the downtown courthouse property site, and;

Whereas, the most recent courthouse site selection analysis was performed in 1999-2001 by a committee consisting of Travis County and other government employees (Sheriff, Dist. Att'y, Co. purchasing agent, Dist. Judge, Co. Att'y, tax assessor, exec. mgrs. of other county agencies), and A Guiding Principal of the Travis County Central Campus Study initiated in 2010 was to keep the facilities downtown, meaning no other locations were considered or evaluated, and;

Whereas, over 1,000 daily individual visits are now made to the current courthouse facility, not including 275 employees or an unspecified number of credentialed (frequent user) attorneys, with all three numbers forecast to rise, while only 500 combined parking spaces are pledged, and crucial parking demand is not part of the estimated project cost, and;

Whereas, Travis County is $695 million in debt with another $91 million of additional debt issuance already planned for 2016, and;

Whereas, the additional $287 million courthouse debt proposal is less than one-fourth of the eventual $1.2 Billion need identified by the Central Campus Study within 25 years, meaning a projected need of at least two additional rounds of similar magnitude of debt issuance during the life of the currently proposed (20-year) bonds, and;

Whereas Travis County and Austin taxpayers already suffer the highest taxes and fees of any major metro area in Texas, and;

Whereas Travis County and Austin residents have some of the highest electric (PEC and Austin Energy) and water bills of any major metro area in Texas, and;

Whereas the new $287 million of Bond debt would cause an increase of at least $13 per year for the 'average' property owner and an unknown increase to the 'average' renter, and;

Whereas real estate experts predict that the proposed downtown courthouse property could be sold for at least $30 million, and could provide desperately needed downtown residences remitting at least $120 million in new tax levy over the next 20 years, and;

Whereas developers predict that a low rise civil courthouse project in non-congested east Austin could provide many acres of free surface parking and construction costs 25% to 50% lower than the downtown project, and;

Whereas at least three Austin City Council members (Houston, Troxclair, Zimmerman) have supported a Resolution asking the Austin City Manager to cooperate with Travis County on locating government owned land in east Austin suitable for the new civil courthouse, and could possibly include a combined city/county justice center, and;

Whereas Travis County has indicated they will not consider alternatives to the current plan unless the Bond is defeated, then,

BE IT RESOLVED that the Austin Tea Party urges voters to vote AGAINST the Travis County civil courthouse Bond on the November 3rd, 2015 ballot.
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Austin property tax lawsuit triggers a backlash

9/11/2015

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Austin Mayor Steve Adler says he’s suing for fair property appraisals. A tea party skeptic calls the legal gambit an “ill-conceived publicity stunt.”

“The mayor’s plan won’t save people money — they’re being played as saps. It’s a total gimmick,” says Mark Pulliam, a retired attorney and local political activist. Read more here...

Thanks to Mark Pullium for speaking on behalf of The Austin Tea Party.

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Resolution for the City of Austin to Apply Free Market Principles

2/24/2015

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Apply Free Market Principles

Whereas the City of Austin has a history of making policy decisions that are political in nature and not grounded in real economics or take into account the impact on individual freedoms; and

Whereas the City Council’s energy would be more effectively spent in allowing businesses to compete without burdensome regulations that meet political whims but are costly to implement and enforce; and

Whereas individuals as a whole prosper in communities where free market principles are allowed to run their course;

Therefore, we resolve that the City of Austin should govern according the principles of the Free Market, which are:

1) Individual Rights: "We are each created with equal individual rights to control and to defend our life, liberty and property and to voluntary contractual exchange."

2) Limited Government: "Governments are instituted only to secure individual rights, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed."

3) Equal Justice Under Law: "Government must treat everyone equally; neither rewarding failure nor punishing success."

4) Subsidiarity: "Government authority must reside at the lowest feasible level."

5) Spontaneous Order: "When individual rights are respected, unregulated competition will maximize economic benefit for society by providing the most goods and services possible at the lowest cost."

6) Property Rights: "Private ownership is the most efficient way to sustainably utilize resources."

7) The Golden Rule: "Deal with others honestly and require honesty in return."

Signed: The Austin Tea Party

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Resolution to Engineer Smart Traffic Solutions

2/24/2015

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Engineer Smart Traffic Solutions

Whereas the City of Austin is experiencing a population boom that is putting strain on existing roadway infrastructure; and

Whereas the high cost of living within the City is forcing a greater number of commuters on the roads; and

Whereas mass transit solutions designed to move people by train are expensive to manage, operate at a loss, and are environmentally unfriendly; and

Whereas 95% of Austin-area commuters drive a vehicle to and from work every day,

"Therefore, we resolve that the City pursue smart traffic solutions, like additional highway lanes, a completed SH 45 loop, and a re-engineered bus route system that increases bus availability for the neighborhoods that need them most."

Signed: The Austin Tea Party

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Resolution to Budget at the Effective Tax Rate

2/24/2015

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Budget at the Effective Tax Rate

Whereas the City of Austin is experiencing strong growth in new properties being added to the tax rolls every year; and

Whereas new properties mean new sources of revenue each year totaling in the millions of dollars; and

Whereas, in spite of the growing tax base and rising property values, the City repeatedly raises the tax rate and takes in a higher percentage of dollars year after year,

Therefore, we resolve that the City should henceforth set budgets according to the Effective Tax Rate, which would allow the city to collect the same amount of revenue as it did the previous year, with additional revenue coming in only from new properties on the tax roll, thereby providing immediate tax relief to property owners and hedging them from future bloated tax rate increases.

Signed: The Austin Tea Party

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Resolution to Implement the Maximum Allowable Homestead Exemption

2/24/2015

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Implement the Maximum Allowable Homestead Exemption

Whereas assessed property values on Austin homes are skyrocketing; and

Whereas Austin is the only major city in Texas that does not make a homestead exemption available to its residents; and

Whereas cost of implementing the full homestead exemption can reasonably be absorbed by making strategic cuts within the city’s budget,

Therefore, we resolve that the City of Austin should act quickly to bring tax relief to Austin homeowners by implementing the maximum allowable homestead exemption.

Signed: The Austin Tea Party

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Resolution to Audit the City of Austin

2/24/2015

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Audit the City of Austin

Whereas the new 10-1 City Council needs a clear picture of the state of the City’s financial and operational health; and

Whereas knowing exactly what role the City plays in contributing to the affordability crisis in Austin due to possible redundancies and inefficiencies is critical to turning the crisis around; and

Whereas internal auditors on the City’s payroll may be inclined to hide the full nature of the City’s financial or operational condition due to conflicts of interest;

Therefore, we resolve that the City Council to hire an independent forensic auditor to conduct an investigation as the only way to guarantee a neutral, clear-eyed assessment of the state of the City's operations.

Signed: The Austin Tea Party

Co-Signer: sign below in comments

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Let's Go Austin Targets the Austin Tea Party

10/28/2014

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With hundreds of thousands of dollars at its disposal, Let’s Go Austin’s number one target to denounce seems to be, the Austin Tea Party. Let’s Go Austin has run expensive newspaper ads, distributed massive amounts of mailers and even circulated a high dollar video telling Austinites, the Austin Tea Party is 1.) misleading them and 2.) is behind the campaign against Prop. 1. They even hired U.S. Representative Lloyd Doggett to smear the Austin Tea Party, telling Austinites we were misleading them on the issue of light rail.

This multithousand dollar PAC is spreading lies and deception, using the Austin Tea Party as their fall guy. They claim we are misleading the public on the light rail issue. Not true. But we have referred Austinites to http://norailtax.com/ to get the facts. By the way, Citizens Against Rail Taxes uses the same numbers as Let’s Go Austin, just without the deception. Secondly, they claim that we are “behind” the campaign against Prop. 1. Not true. The Austin Tea Party is not involved with the planning and financing of the campaign against Prop. 1. We have spent ZERO dollars supporting the campaign and we have in no way been involved in planning or strategizing for the campaign.

So why is this almost half a million dollar PAC taking aim at the Austin Tea Party? Pure and simple, it’s an act of desperation. They can’t even justify their own facts so they have to deceive the public and demonize anyone who seeks the truth. Just think, with the half a million dollars Let’s Go Austin is spending on deception (SEE VIDEO), we could have started to implemented “smart signal lights”. Now there’s a smart investment and common sense solution to traffic congestion.

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Is "Kickback" Lloyd Promoting a Smart Investment for Austin Taxpayers?

10/24/2014

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When asked in 2009, “how have you amassed a 20+ million dollar fortune over the past 16 years on a U.S. Congressman’s salary"? “Kickback” Lloyd replied, “smart investments”.

Now, “Kickback” Lloyd is promoting Austin Prop. 1 as a “smart investment”. But for who? How much is “Kickback” Lloyd being paid for promoting it? How much money does “Kickback” Lloyd stand to make if Prop. 1 passes? This may be a “smart investment” for “Kickback” Lloyd but raising taxes and saddling Austinites with even more debt and not adding one road lane, is a “dumb investment” for Austin taxpayers. We need traffic engineering solutions not social engineering boondoggles. Get the facts at http://www.norailtax.com/

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<<Previous

The Austin Tea Party Say's #PickRick Green

Resolution AGAINST the Proposed Travis County Courthouse

Austin property tax lawsuit triggers a backlash

Resolution for the City of Austin to Apply Free Market Principles

Resolution to Engineer Smart Traffic Solutions

Resolution to Budget at the Effective Tax Rate

Resolution to Implement the Maximum Allowable Homestead Exemption

Resolution to Audit the City of Austin

Let's Go Austin Targets the Austin Tea Party

Is "Kickback" Lloyd Promoting a Smart Investment for Austin Taxpayers?

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