Ways and Means Committee Meets (Again) The House Ways and Means Committee held its second meeting of the legislative interim this morning. Two items were on the agenda: 1) an overview of the state’s tax system by John Heleman, Chief Revenue Estimator for Comptroller Susan Combs, and 2) a review of current franchise tax exemptions…

September 28, 2011 Let the Tax Studies Begin: House Ways and Means Meets Chairman Hilderbran held the first of what is expected to be many interim hearings of the House Ways and Means Committee this morning in Austin. The committee is getting an early start, as interim charges have yet to be assigned by Speaker…

TTARA Tax Update Webcast Scheduled for September 16th TTARA will host a webcast at 10:00 a.m. on September 16, 2011, lasting no more than an hour. During the webcast we will discuss recent developments in state and local tax issues in Texas. In particular, we will review: ●the current status of state finances (having closed…

New Year’s Eve in Texas One of the problems the legislature faced this past session was the prospect of a $4.3 billion deficit when the books closed on 2011. The projected deficit was reduced to zero through a combination of spending cuts and money from the state’s Rainy Day Fund. Thanks to a rebounding economy,…

First Revised Franchise Tax Challenge Lawsuit Filed The first lawsuit has been filed against the state concerning the constitutionality of the revised franchise, or margins, tax (which has been in full effect for the past three years). Allcat Claims Service, L.P. filed their claim on July 11 directly before the Supreme Court (the original legislation…