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  1. #1
    Join Date
    Nov 2011
    Posts
    2

    Default Mandatory Toll Based on Neighborhood Income

    My question involves civil rights in the State of: Texas

    I am debating if this belongs in th Civil rights or tax forum, hopefully I chose correctly.

    We recieved a notice today that there is a meeting to recieve public feeback on the finalization of a project to place toll boths on the road in front of our neighborhood. (Given its a finalization, it sounds like this is already being done regardless of feedback and its the first public notification issued.) The problem with this is not adding a toll, but actually that this is a short road, about 2 to 4 miles, with several neighborhood entrances off of it that have no alternative acces routes in/out of the neighborhoods. Essentially, this is an oportunity to collect extra taxation from people that have no choice on whether or not to use the service because of where they live, making it a double property tax. This road has existed for years, but recently Texas has begun tolling existing roads with high neighborhood ocupancy to collect extra taxes. The roads chosen are short areas with dense upper-middle class neighborhoods. Because the residents already pay property tax, and there is no alternative route in/out of these neighborhoods, this seems very wrong. Especially so since the neighborhoods are clearly profiled based on income. It definitely touches on the controvercy of double taxation for the same service. I'm not clear on if this is illegal or just unethical though? unfortunately, I have a feeling it is just unethical, but I wanted a second opinion.

    Thanks,
    KBT

    (And, yes, it is Gov. Perry that added these tolls. Good luck if you make that vote.)

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Sep 2005
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    Behind a Desk
    Posts
    98,846

    Default Re: Mandatory Toll Based on Neighborhood Income

    It's what you might call a back door tax - you have state "leadership" that doesn't want to take responsibility for increasing taxes, even to sustain the abysmal level of public services offered by your state, so you get local "toll roads". It's not per se unreasonable to impose tolls on roads, even short roads, that serve "dense upper-middle class neighborhoods" because dense neighborhoods impose more wear on roads than thinly populated neighborhoods. That is not to say I don't sympathize with your situation - just that I don't think you could successfully challenge the tolls in court. I do have to say that a full analysis of this issue would be complex and very time-consuming, so please treat this as an "initial reaction" - I would be happy if you went to a lawyer who told you that I'm full of Texas size cow chips and produced law defeating this initiative.

    One alternative to consider would be whether it would be advantageous to your community to try to get the government to allow the conversion of this stretch of road to a private road, with maintenance responsibility then assumed by an association representing the homeowners on the road. Even if possible, however, that idea opens up a lot of issues - dues collection and enforcement, management of funds, contracting for repairs and maintenance, etc. - and the possibility that it would be more costly than the tolls.

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Nov 2011
    Posts
    2

    Default Re: Mandatory Toll Based on Neighborhood Income

    Thanks for the reply, and well spoken, especially the point about density also correlating with roadwork. It's easy to get upset, I've seen a lot of that this week. But I had a feeling there was nothing actionable about it. Making it a private road is a good suggestion though. I think the neighborhoods would need to fund a look at the financials before doing it, but if it were possible, it would put the local people back in charge of it.

    Thanks,
    Kbt

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Jan 2006
    Posts
    38,867

    Default Re: Mandatory Toll Based on Neighborhood Income

    curious as to who initiates these selected toll stations. If it is possible, maybe find a way to initiate such toll stations on the roads that those in power in the gov live and use regularly.

    I would also look to the possibility of creating an entrance to the subdivision from some alternate route that bypassed the toll booths. I cannot think of anything funnier than to have them build the toll booths and have it collect absolutely no money.

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