Texas Insider Report: AUSTIN Texas In state after state we have seen the devastation reaped as crippling taxation and spending have led to the loss of millions of jobs. We cannot just raise taxes because a simple majority decides to extend state governments generosity beyond its mission and 
its means."
Texas State Senator Dan Patrick (R-Houston) after Senate Joint Resolution 12 or SJR 12 was approved by the Senate Finance Committee last week requiring a two-thirds vote of both chambers to create or raise state taxes. Senator Dan Patrick is the bills author.
The Senate Finance Committee gave bipartisan support to SJR 12 which seeks to amend the Texas Constitution by requiring an affirmative vote of two-thirds of both chambers before a bill imposing a new state tax or increasing the rate of an existing state tax can be enrolled. Similar measures have been recently adopted in states like California & Wisconsin. Taxation must not be taken lightly. It is time to require more than a simple majority to raise taxes or create new taxes in Texas" stated Patrick. As many as 16 states have a supermajority requirement for tax increases either statutory or constitutional in nature. Most of these states have opted for a two-thirds requirement. Others require a three-fifths majority. The most restrictive requirements exist in our neighboring states of Arkansas & Oklahoma where any tax increase must be approved by a three-quarters majority. Both Patrick & Whitmire have historically opposed the two-thirds rule in the Texas Senate because it dictates a supermajority of necessary support for each and every bill before it can be passed. For instance Senator Patrick is on record numerous times stating his belief that a supermajority should be reserved for only the most far-reaching legislation. New or additional taxation rises to this level of scrutiny and necessary support. Texas Insider correspondent George Scaggs examines the growth in the Texas budget over the last decade pegging public education spending as the primary culprit.
