musings: Prop 1 in Houston: How to Tick Off Your Supporters...

musings: Prop 1 in Houston: How to Tick Off Your Supporters...: "I thought it was pretty bad that the Prop 1 folks didn't make it clear that schools would have to pay the flood and drainage fee, thereby gi..."

I am inclined to share many people of Houston's apprehension about Proposition 1. To date it is a very vague  proposal (it should certainly be more specific) which could ultimately cost property owners millions of dollars of their money. With billions of dollars on the line with this fee proposal one must wonder where are the specifics as to where the money is to go and under what conditions it will be spent. I moved to Houston shortly after the Metro law was passed in 1977. It also has involved billions of dollars over the last 33 years but in most cases there was great debate about how the money would be spent. However, in the end we have gotten some results -- modern buses and the start on the rail system. On the contrary the drainage proposal is very open ended. Many of the people I talk to are negative about it. They fear that it will create a large bloated but highly paid bureaucracy. They think that the money can be used on expensive projects which do not yield in a reduction in flooding. Some are skeptical that there will not be overlap problems with Harris County Flood Control, etc.

One only has to look to New Orleans where billions of dollars were spent on flood control levees for over 50 years but which failed because they were poorly engineered/constructed using "Boudreaux Engineering" methods i.e. corrupt and unaccountable contractors, lawyers, and politicians got huge taxpayer funded payments for steel, concrete, and labor which was never put into place for the infrastructure that was originally proposed. Prop 1 l is currently vaguely worded, is not transparent as to oversight, and was enacted with few restrictions as to quality, as to quantity, and as to where any flood control projects would occur or even if they would be done once the new bureaucracy has moved into its shiny new headquarters with their highly paid staffers, their well connected consultants, and their legions of lawyers/law firms. Houston voters deserve more information and accountability on this before blindly committing billions of our dollars.