Plus: Texas Republicans are focused on the border ahead of elections and more Texas students are leaving school.
Good morning, Houston! ☀️The temperature is starting to creep back up this week. Highs today in the upper 80s. Now here's Tuesday's news. |
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Ken Ellis / Houston Chronicle |
If you read one thing: Houston's use of an obscure financing tool known as a TIRZ has trapped billions of public tax dollars in stable or even thriving neighborhoods while needier areas compete for scraps in the strained city budget. What is a TIRZ? In a tax increment reinvestment zone, or TIRZ, part of the city property taxes generated each year are set aside to be spent only within the zone, rather than sent to City Hall to be spent anywhere in Houston. As property values rise, the money trapped in that zone increases. The idea is that subsidizing new streets, sidewalks and parks will spur private investment and revitalize stagnant areas. How long does a TIRZ last? State lawmakers never set a time limit on TIRZs, and Houston has relied on this loophole to add decades to most of the city's 26 zones. Nearly a dozen times, the City Council has acknowledged its zones succeeded at spurring development, and then used that success as justification to continue them, with a new list of projects unrelated to their original aims. Houston is close to having nearly 25 percent of the city's total property value within tax increment financing zones. How do TIRZs deepen inequity? TIRZs were initially intended to help "blighted" areas, where development would not otherwise "occur solely through private investment." The city passed a TIRZ policy in 1990 that said investment zones should be created only in areas with poor infrastructure where property values have fallen by at least 20 percent over the prior decade. City planners warned: "The whole issue of equity for the citizens of Houston is one to consider carefully."
Yet the city soon embarked on a TIRZ creation spree, waiving the policy they had adopted to bring zones to already stable neighborhoods such as Uptown, Memorial City and Upper Kirby.
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Susan Barber / Houston Chronicle |
Reminder! Next Tuesday is the last day to register to vote. You have one week left to make it happen. How do I know if I'm registered? Check your registration here. How do I register? If it's your first time voting or you moved recently and need to register in your new county, you can download and print an application here. If you don't have access to a printer, email voters@harrisvotes.com to request a paper application. Just make sure you provide your mailing address and phone number in the email. Have more questions about the voting process? Check out our voter guide here. Have questions about the upcoming election. Hit reply and send them to me and I'll feature your questions and answers in next week's Election Corner. |
A singular focus for the GOP |
Jorge A. Vela / Laredo Morning Times | If you read one thing: Texas Republicans' messaging around border security has eclipsed virtually every other GOP campaign point during the final stretch of the midterms, a new analysis shows. How is the GOP focusing on the border? Republicans in congressional races across Texas tweeted about the border 741 times in September, a 55 percent increase over July. By comparison, Republicans tweeted about the economy about 188 times in September, about half as much as they did in July. What have Democrats been focused on? Democrats are far less focused on one single topic, even abortion, than Republicans are on the border. Over the last 90 days, Texas Republicans tweeted about the border 1,656 times. Democrats tweeted about abortion 677 times and gun violence 522 times over the same span. What's driving the conversation? Gov. Greg Abbott's busing of migrants to liberal cities in the north has reignited the debate over the Biden administration's handling of a record surge in border crossings. Republican U.S. Rep. Chip Roy suggested the move should count as a campaign contribution and that Republicans in Congress have Abbott and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis to thank "for saving this election." In August, 30 percent of Republicans said border security was the most important issue facing the state, while Democrats were more split over political corruption, abortion and gun violence as the most important issues. |
Susan Barber / Houston Chronicle |
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Hannah Dellinger / Houston Chronicle; Source: Texas Education Agency |
If you read one thing: Tens of thousands more students either dropped out or otherwise left Texas public schools during the 2020-21 school year, compared to previous years, according to the most recent data. Here are the numbers you should know: 46,319 — the number of students who dropped out during the 2020-21 school year, which was disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic. That was about 34 percent more than the 34,477 students who dropped out two years prior. 76,017 — the number of students who left public schools for other reasons, including death, pregnancy or to enroll in other education programs or schools in 2020-21, up more than 12,000 from the 2019-20 school year. 29,846 — the number of students who left to be home schooled in the 2020-21 school year, up about 30 percent from 22,967 in 2018-19. 2.4 percent — the high school dropout rate in 2020-21, up from 1.9 percent in 2018-19. High schools saw the highest increase in its dropout rate of any grade.
Explore more of the data and the reasons students left public schools here.
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For Thursday's Get Out section I'm working on a list of things to do outside in and around Houston as the weather gets nicer. If you have any favorite parks or some other Houston-related suggestions, I'd love to hear them! Cat DeLaura cat.delaura@chron.com |
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