Texans Should Be Steamed About Lawmakers' Money ... - Kraft Elder Law

I wrote yesterday about the State of Texas hoarding money intended to help the poor and elderly pay their electricity bills. This is making a bad situation worse, as we have had far too many heat-related deaths in Texas this summer.

Now the Dallas Morning News has published an excellent editorial on this subject. Excerpts are below, but the best line is, ?Grandma?s getting roasted by the Legislature.?

When this month?s power bill arrives ? the one pricier than your car payment ? you probably won?t even notice the modest fee tacked on to help the poor and elderly keep their air conditioners on.

Six million Texas power customers pay a little each month to fund a program that provides utility-bill assistance to those who otherwise couldn?t afford to stay cool. An extra buck or so on your bill isn?t much to ask. And when it?s so hot that it feels like the sun might melt the hair off your head, who could argue with helping others survive the summer?

Texas lawmakers, apparently.

Once again, the Legislature has latched on to this dedicated fund and diverted most of it to balance the state budget. During this fiscal year, $130 million has been collected for energy-bill assistance but only $28 million has been provided to those in need.

So, as Texas suffers through one of its most brutal summers on record, precious few dollars are being spent as promised on the electric bills of the poor and elderly. More people are being forced to make painful choices, between paying the rent or the power bill, and are contemplating whether they can sweat out another night without AC.

Grandma?s getting roasted by the Legislature.

Amazingly, plenty of lawmakers are unapologetic about this deception, which has become a bad budget habit in Austin. Their defense, essentially, is that money?s tight, so the Legislature needs to grab any funds it can to offset the shortfall.

But this is a tax-and-switch.

Most Texans believe that they?re paying the extra fee to help those who can?t afford to keep the power on, a worthy objective not likely to generate much pushback from electric customers. Lawmakers seldom bother to mention that they actually hoard the money ? at the end of the next budget cycle, the state will have stockpiled nearly $1 billion intended for utility-bill assistance.

Not only has the Legislature siphoned off the funds, but in 2004, the state also imposed much tougher eligibility requirements, cutting off more than half the people who once received assistance.

Such financial funny business ought to be illegal. If these dedicated funds present too much of a temptation during tough budget years, lawmakers should statutorily tie their hands to ensure that the money is spent as promised.

A little help with the August electric bill could be a lifesaver for some Texans, and the state should continue to provide that assistance. But if lawmakers won?t spend this money as it was intended, they should stop collecting it.

Sadly, the program called LITE-UP Texas has degenerated into a lie to Texas.

Source: http://www.kraftelderlaw.com/texans-should-be-steamed-about-lawmakers-money-tricks/

justin bieber and selena gomez break up justin bieber and selena gomez break up renee zellweger paul newman 49ers new york jets air france 447