Toll Roads

An article that I recently ran across really got my attention because I can relate to this issue. It is an article by a lady named Sarah Eckhardt who is a Travis County Commissioner that addresses the issue on toll roads about how we can’t really rely on state and federal government for money that is needed to build our transportation system and etc. In this article, Eckhardt is all about toll roads but doesn’t like the fact how the money is used for market-based spending and the toll road plan as proposed presents serious problems of inequity that we can, and must, address. Basically the proposed toll plan would create a two-way system of roadways where those who can afford it will have the "choice" to access the fast lane and the rest of us will go slow on the same road system we currently share equally.

Those who make the choice will easily be paying five times more in transportation taxes than commuters of similar wealth who do not have a toll road stretched between the home and place of work. This "use tax" can be diverted from the toll road on which it was charged to other transportation projects in the CAMPO region, enabling a dangerous dependence on toll taxes and solo car travel. So whether you are rich or poor, this proposed toll plan has some sort of unfairness for you. This is why she is offering an amendment that controls the revenue generated from a toll project to the corridor in which tolls are collected. All of this meaning it would limit the use of any revenue beyond construction, maintenance and operation costs to improving the non-tolled options in and around the toll project. Under these amendments the toll tax will go away when the construction debt is all paid. I believe that Eckhardt presented this issue very well and that she is right on target with this new amendment because it will hopefully take toll taxes away and no longer has inequities for either the poor or rich because we the people are already paying enough taxes. Also the building of toll roads would decrease the the traffic issues that we are currently experiencing.

For further information regarding this toll plan, go to statesmans

Medicare cuts?

The U.S. House of Representatives is thinking of and proposing a bill called the CHAMP
Act which is a bill that makes deep, damaging Medicare cuts to seniors' care. The House supporters of this bill, the Children's Health and Medicare Protection Act of 2007 claim it will help 'America's Greatest Generation' of seniors. In fact, data from the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) reveals that the CHAMP Act would sharply cut the Medicare funding that America's oldest, sickest seniors depend upon by $2.7 billion over five years.

If the CHAMP Act were to become a law it would create a real bad situation. Texas would suffer the 4th largest cut in the nation in conjunction with having the 4th lowest Medicaid reimbursement rate in the nation. Another thing this bill would cause is that it would have severe negative repercussions on every one of our state's nearly 90,000 nursing home residents, and every one of the more than 100.000 caring employees who work long, demanding hours in more than 1100 Texas skilled nursing facilities to care for those least able to care for themselves. Cutting down on Medicare would greatly affect the elderly because they are already old and can’t work anymore, so how can they pay for insurance? Now more than ever we need the help of our Texas Congressional Delegation, many of whom sit on the powerful U.S. House of Representatives Energy and Commerce and Ways and Means Committees to help kick this proposed Medicare cuts out. These cuts threaten to reduce care for Texas' most vulnerable population of frail, elderly nursing home residents by $168 million over five years – the 4th largest cut on a national basis. We must not let this stand. Since Members of Congress are now back home listening to their constituents, it is essential for all of us who care about the future for our grandparents, our parents and even ourselves to ensure that congressional delegation understands why these ill-advised, short-sighted Medicare cuts should be dumped.

For more details concerning this proposed bill, visit

Statesman.com

Community College Funding...

State leaders are talking about funding money for community colleges but details are not quite up to date yet because they have not agreed on a plan to make it happen. The topic right now is $154 million dollars in state funding for community colleges that Governor Rick Perry vetoed in June. He and the colleges disagree on how health care costs for college employees should be split between the state and local taxpayers and students. Perry wants community colleges to get the $154 million in vetoed funds and about $50 million more, with much of it spent on performance incentives and financial aid programs that Perry championed during the session. But in order for this to happen there must be a budget board meeting with Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst and House Speaker Tom Craddick, R-Midland. This is interesting the only thing that caught my eye is that they are going to raise tuition which I think they already did by increasing student fees by $2 per credit hour.

To read up more about this go to

Statesman.com