November 5, 2010

In the aftermath of the recent election, most commentators chose to focus on what they perceived to be an anti-government, anti-spending message being delivered by voters.  One significant event has not received enough attention, however – that is that voters in the City of Houston approved a new dedicated street and drainage fee that will fund as much as $10 billion in improvements in the City’s neighborhoods over the next two decades.

That Proposition 1 would pass in an election where the default position of many voters was “NO” speaks volumes.  It suggests that voters are willing to vote for spending for which they see a need and where the spending is dedicated to a specific program of improvements and cannot be siphoned off for general government purposes.

Perhaps there is a lesson here for the state’s transportation dilemma.  Polls may show that voters are against a “gas tax” where a big chunk of it gets diverted to education, police, and other uses besides mobility.  But would the same be true if voters had a chance to vote for a user fee that is 100% dedicated to transportation projects (no diversions) with project selection determined by local officials and a high degree of accountability for execution?  Who knows?  We should ask them.