Journal of the House of Representatives of the Regular Session of the Sixtieth Legislature of the State of Texas, Volume 1 Page: 236
1946 p. ; 23 cm.View a full description of this legislative document.
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236 HOS JOURNAL_
budget for the coming biennium and
retain an equitable tax structure, I
propose legalizing by local option the
sale of liquor by the drink--distilled
spirits and wine-under strict regu-
lation. I propose this action not only
as a means of raising the needed rev-
enue, but as a means of correcting a
situation which has existed in our
state for many years-the subterfuge
under which so-called private clubs
presently are circumventing the law
and serving liquor by the drink to
the general public.
It is time to bring this matter in-
to the open. It is my considered opin-
ion that a far more wholesome climate
will prevail if liquor can be sold by
the drink, legally and under tight
regulation.
I propose that operators of estab-
lishments thus selling liquor be re-
quired to comply with a rigid set of
standards or lose their licenses. In
this regard, I propose that the privi-
lege to operate an establishment sell-
ing liquor, whether by drink or by
bottle, be suspended for period of six
months for serving a minor and re-
voked forever for the second such of-
fense. The burden of identifying a
minor must necessarily rest with the
operator of the establishment, but as
part of my traffic safety program,
I am recommending the adoption of
a tamper-proof driver's license, in-
cluding a color photograph of the
holder, which should greatly alleviate
this problem. I recommend a special
colored license to identify minors.
I further propose, as an added in-
centive to strict compliance with regu-
lations, an annual license fee of $2,-
000, of which $1,000 will go to the
state, $500 to the county, and $500
to the city.
To bring into balance our spending
and revenue-raising program for the
coming two-year period, I recommend
a tax of five cents per ounce be levied
on distilled spirits to be sold by the
drink.The most conservative estimate in-
dicates it will yield more than enough
revenue to cover the extra $15 mil-
lion needed to balance the budget dur-
ing the next biennium.
The revenue measures that I have
proposed will generate an additional
$144.2 million in general revenue to
the state for the 1968-1969 biennium,
and will again produce a balanced
budget, just as we provided two years
ago and four years ago.
I pointed out earlier that I have
submitted budgetary recommendations
to you only after exercising economy
to the fullest degree that my con-
science will condone-cuts totaling
$300 million from the general revenue
fund.
In my judgment, no other action
we take in these chambers more ur-
gently deserves the statesmanship we
possess than that of facing up to the
responsibilities of financing the needs
of our people.
The requests for public funds
sometimes seem unending. The ap-
petite of government may appear in-
satiable.
And yet the growth in demand for
governmental services is the inevit-
able by-product of a vibrant and grow-
ing state.
To give all that is asked is extrav-
agance.
But to provide less than substanti-
ated need is irresponsibility.
It is not easy for me to recom-
mend new taxes of any kind. And it
is not easy for you to vote to im-
pose taxes.
But to be worthy of the trust that
is ours, the alternative for me was
unacceptable.
I hope that it will be for you.
Thank you.SUMMATION OF REVENUE SOURCES
1968-1969 Biennium
1. Repeal the Exemption of Alcoholic Beverages
from the Sales Tax (Effective July 1, 1967) ............................$ 26,025,007236
HOUSE JOURNAL
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Texas. Legislature. House of Representatives. Journal of the House of Representatives of the Regular Session of the Sixtieth Legislature of the State of Texas, Volume 1, legislative document, 1967; Austin, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth193874/m1/240/: accessed April 27, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting UNT Libraries Government Documents Department.