CH 14 Building the Future: Public Policies
for a Changing Texas
Demographic shifts in Texas have made the issue of immigration more salient.
more salient.
Immigration has dominated the headlines in recent years, with many Texan politicians
calling for
stricter immigration controls and harsher punishments.
-For example, in 2014 former governor Rick Perry sparred with the Obama administration
by claiming that the federal government was not adequately protecting the border from
illegal immigration and smuggling. He used his authority as governor to push for
"Operation Strong Safety," a program aimed at investing $18 million per month of state
funds to increase security along the border.
The state is also changing in other profound ways:
•Increasing demographic, economic, and political diversity.
•Straining infrastructure.
•Higher education faces important hurdles.
•Droughts and other natural disasters have caused major challenges in recent years.
.In addition to immigration, higher education in the state also faces important challenges,
given that state funding for higher education has not
kept up with the state's booming population growth. Droughts have also challenged the
ability of local governments to provide safe, clean, and reliable water to residents.
Texas is a driving state.
•93 percent of Texans have a personal automobile or motorcycle.
•The Texas highway network is the nation’s largest.
•The state highway network includes almost 73,000 centerline miles and more than
180,000 lane miles.
,•Centerline miles, lane miles, and vehicle miles traveled are all measures used in relation
to Texas roads.
-The growth of Texas, especially the growth of the state’s cities, has led to major issues
involving transportation.
1.Texas roads are usually measured in one of two ways:
centerline miles, which is the total length of a road or a road segment, and lane miles,
which are the centerline miles multiplied by the road’s number of lanes.
-Another measure commonly used is vehicle miles traveled, which is an estimate of road
usage.
-Vehicle miles traveled are calculated by multiplying the average daily amount of traffic
on a road by its length in centerline miles.
Only 1 percent of Texans relied on
public transportation,
1 percent on bicycling, and 2 percent on walking.
-On average, Texans drive their personal vehicles an astounding 17,321 miles a year.
Texas roads are showing their age; they need maintenance and enhanced safety
features.
•24 percent of Texas's major roads are in poor condition.
•50 percent of state bridges have been in service for over 40 years. Many are either
"structurally deficient" or "functionally obsolete."
•Congestion of roadways has become a major problem.
•Road congestion is more than an irritant—it is expensive.
•Total congestion costs for Texas metropolitan areas are over $14 billion per year.
Road congestion is more than an irritant—it is expensive.
A nationwide study of highway congestion estimated that the average automobile
commuter in Houston was delayed about 75 hours a year as a result of traffic congestion
and that the estimated cost of that congestion in time and fuel for the average Houston
automobile commuter was $1,508.
-Other major cities in Texas also were estimated to have substantial costs associated
with congestion.
, Funding for roads and highways comes from
federal and state sources.
•The largest source of funding is the federal government.
The funding is insufficient to meet the need (roads and highways)
•The costs of road construction and repair have vastly outpaced the rate of inflation.
•Greater numbers of heavy trucks have exacerbated damage to roads.
•Texas's gasoline taxes are among the lowest in the nation.
•Federal and state gasoline taxes are not indexed to inflation.
•There have been significant increases in fuel efficiency, so people are not buying as
much gasoline as they once did.
The coronavirus pandemic exacerbated these financial difficulties.
Taxes for roads and highways are deposited in the federal Highway Trust Fund,
which provides money for highways and mass transit programs.
-The Texas Department of Transportation requested $32.68 billion for 2020-21, with 88
percent of that amount for the development, delivery, and maintenance of state highway
projects.
-Part of the problem has been that the vast new production of oil and gas from shale in
Texas has led to an increase in heavy trucks, which have damaged roads.
-texas's gasoline tax is 20 cents per gallon, and the federal gasoline tax is 18.4 cents per
gallon.
The amount of money needed to fund Texas's roads, highways, and bridges is enormous.
-An additional $5 billion annually is needed just to keep highways and bridges in good
condition.
Funding Texas infrastructure is politically difficult.
•Tax increases are politically unpalatable.
•Toll roads are unpopular.
Toll roads solved a huge problem for the conservative political leadership of the state.
Funding for the roads was off-budget. The money would be borrowed for the roads based
on the planned tolls that would be collected, and the roads could be built without raising
the gasoline tax, which would have been overwhelmingly unpopular among voters.
for a Changing Texas
Demographic shifts in Texas have made the issue of immigration more salient.
more salient.
Immigration has dominated the headlines in recent years, with many Texan politicians
calling for
stricter immigration controls and harsher punishments.
-For example, in 2014 former governor Rick Perry sparred with the Obama administration
by claiming that the federal government was not adequately protecting the border from
illegal immigration and smuggling. He used his authority as governor to push for
"Operation Strong Safety," a program aimed at investing $18 million per month of state
funds to increase security along the border.
The state is also changing in other profound ways:
•Increasing demographic, economic, and political diversity.
•Straining infrastructure.
•Higher education faces important hurdles.
•Droughts and other natural disasters have caused major challenges in recent years.
.In addition to immigration, higher education in the state also faces important challenges,
given that state funding for higher education has not
kept up with the state's booming population growth. Droughts have also challenged the
ability of local governments to provide safe, clean, and reliable water to residents.
Texas is a driving state.
•93 percent of Texans have a personal automobile or motorcycle.
•The Texas highway network is the nation’s largest.
•The state highway network includes almost 73,000 centerline miles and more than
180,000 lane miles.
,•Centerline miles, lane miles, and vehicle miles traveled are all measures used in relation
to Texas roads.
-The growth of Texas, especially the growth of the state’s cities, has led to major issues
involving transportation.
1.Texas roads are usually measured in one of two ways:
centerline miles, which is the total length of a road or a road segment, and lane miles,
which are the centerline miles multiplied by the road’s number of lanes.
-Another measure commonly used is vehicle miles traveled, which is an estimate of road
usage.
-Vehicle miles traveled are calculated by multiplying the average daily amount of traffic
on a road by its length in centerline miles.
Only 1 percent of Texans relied on
public transportation,
1 percent on bicycling, and 2 percent on walking.
-On average, Texans drive their personal vehicles an astounding 17,321 miles a year.
Texas roads are showing their age; they need maintenance and enhanced safety
features.
•24 percent of Texas's major roads are in poor condition.
•50 percent of state bridges have been in service for over 40 years. Many are either
"structurally deficient" or "functionally obsolete."
•Congestion of roadways has become a major problem.
•Road congestion is more than an irritant—it is expensive.
•Total congestion costs for Texas metropolitan areas are over $14 billion per year.
Road congestion is more than an irritant—it is expensive.
A nationwide study of highway congestion estimated that the average automobile
commuter in Houston was delayed about 75 hours a year as a result of traffic congestion
and that the estimated cost of that congestion in time and fuel for the average Houston
automobile commuter was $1,508.
-Other major cities in Texas also were estimated to have substantial costs associated
with congestion.
, Funding for roads and highways comes from
federal and state sources.
•The largest source of funding is the federal government.
The funding is insufficient to meet the need (roads and highways)
•The costs of road construction and repair have vastly outpaced the rate of inflation.
•Greater numbers of heavy trucks have exacerbated damage to roads.
•Texas's gasoline taxes are among the lowest in the nation.
•Federal and state gasoline taxes are not indexed to inflation.
•There have been significant increases in fuel efficiency, so people are not buying as
much gasoline as they once did.
The coronavirus pandemic exacerbated these financial difficulties.
Taxes for roads and highways are deposited in the federal Highway Trust Fund,
which provides money for highways and mass transit programs.
-The Texas Department of Transportation requested $32.68 billion for 2020-21, with 88
percent of that amount for the development, delivery, and maintenance of state highway
projects.
-Part of the problem has been that the vast new production of oil and gas from shale in
Texas has led to an increase in heavy trucks, which have damaged roads.
-texas's gasoline tax is 20 cents per gallon, and the federal gasoline tax is 18.4 cents per
gallon.
The amount of money needed to fund Texas's roads, highways, and bridges is enormous.
-An additional $5 billion annually is needed just to keep highways and bridges in good
condition.
Funding Texas infrastructure is politically difficult.
•Tax increases are politically unpalatable.
•Toll roads are unpopular.
Toll roads solved a huge problem for the conservative political leadership of the state.
Funding for the roads was off-budget. The money would be borrowed for the roads based
on the planned tolls that would be collected, and the roads could be built without raising
the gasoline tax, which would have been overwhelmingly unpopular among voters.
