FBN Coverage of Tunstalls Visit to MC City Council Monday

The Politics Of Tax Breaks And Land Development
Fort Bend Politics

By Bob Dunn

When Kevin Tunstall approached the microphone at Monday night’s Missouri City Council meeting, the District C council candidate hadn’t completed two full sentences before Mayor Allen Owen stopped him.

“Let me caution you,” the mayor said, “I will not allow a political speech” during a council session. It was as if everything that happens before a city council or county commission doesn’t carry political overtones, especially less than a month away from an election.

The subject of Tunstall’s comments, for instance.

He was there to talk about this arcane economic development tool called a Tax Increment Reinvestment Zone. And it turns out that the theory and practice of creating such TIRZs is fraught with political implications, since TIRZs go hand-in-hand with land developers. And in Fort Bend County, as everywhere else, it seems land developers go hand-in-hand with politicians.

Tunstall said he’d been prompted to study up on the concept of a TIRZ, after two other Missouri City residents – one a past political candidate and the other a current council candidate – had approached council at consecutive recent meetings to suggest a TIRZ should be used to attract business and development along Texas Parkway and Cartwright Road. Council members suggested the two citizens were short on facts about TIRZs and how they operate. . .

(Get more by clicking the title link above)--

Missouri City Out Of Compliance With State Law!

This just in to MCC:

Tunstall Uncovers Statutory Shortcomings

MISSOURI CITY, TEXAS Kevin Tunstall, candidate for City Council District C of Missouri City, has uncovered a shortcoming of City Officials regarding statutory reporting requirements for Tax Increment Reinvestment Zones.

State law requires City Councils to file a notification of the establishment of a TIRZ and further requires annual financial reports to be filed with Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts (Tax Code, Chapter 311 § 311.016 (b)).

As of April 16, 2007, Patricia Bailey with the Comptrollers office has verified that Missouri City officials have neither notified their office, nor filed any of the required reports mandated under Chapter 311 of the Texas Tax Code. Depending on when the zones were created, both TIRZs 1 & 2 may have been operating outside of oversight capabilities of the state government.

A government bureaucracy derelict in its responsibilities casts a negative perception on our city, Tunstall said. Perhaps the City Council should spend less time and money on PR Firms and Lobbyists and spend more time on performing their duties as elected officials.

This statutory requirement has been in effect since 1999. Currently, the only Fort Bend County TIRZ being reported is Sugar Land TIRZ #1.

Ethical, open and fiscally responsible government should be the goal of our community,Tunstall stated. When government is not held accountable, we all lose both our dignity and our rights. I think we can do better.

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Ms. Bailey with the Comptrollers office may be reached at 800-252-9121 x 34416


Comment: Last night, during the open session, Kevin Tunstall confronted the Missouri City Council over improper reporting (or the lack of reporting) on several tax reinvestment zones in our city. Could this impact one of these zones being formed for Sienna Plantation near the town center?

Sienna Plans A TIRZ In North Sienna: School District May Not Participate (click title link for the full story from the Chronicle)--

School district cools to idea of participating in TIRZ

By ZEN T. C. ZHENG
Copyright 2007 Houston Chronicle

The Fort Bend school district likely will not be part of a tax increment reinvestment zone that Missouri City aims to create over 590 acres in the Sienna North area.

The board of trustees Monday night approved the city's request for a waiver of a 60-day notice period to hold a public hearing, which the city is shooting for this month, on the issue.

The board also OK'd the city's request for not not conducting a presentation on the proposal to the school board.

David Hawes, a consultant for the city, said the city made the requests assuming the school district would not be interested in participating in the TIRZ.

A TIRZ collects taxes from its members and uses the revenues for improvements of the area within the zone, such as on infrastructure.

A 1991 change in a state law concerning school funding financially penalizes school districts for such participation, Hawes said.

"That change made it financially disadvantageous to school districts to participate. So we didn't ask the Fort Bend school district to do that," Hawes said. . . (click the title link above for more).

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Visit http://www.fortbendnow.com/news/2645/council-puts-mo-city-on-course-to-acquire-troubled-quail-valley-country-club for an update on the city purchase of QVCC in Quail Valley as a public golf course.


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